[infoshare] TDS 21 Feb - Mardi Gras
- From: "Lynne" <superlynne@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <infoshare@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Sat, 21 Feb 2009 22:47:36 -0500
Hi, All.
We just returned from a mardi Gras dinner party, which inspired today's share.
thanks, Wikipedia!
Let the good times roll! I knew the screen readers would kill the French
translation of this famous saying. Wait until you hear the article. Eek!
Lynne
he terms "Mardi Gras" (mär`de grä) and "Mardi Gras season",
The season can be designated by the year, as in "Mardi Gras 2008". Others treat
the final three-day period as being Mardi Gras. In Mobile, Alabama, Mardi Gras
events begin in November, followed by mystic society balls on Thanksgiving,
then New Year's Eve, formerly with parades on New Year's Day, followed by
parades and balls in January February, celebrating up to midnight before Ash
Wednesday.
Other cities most famous for their Mardi Gras celebrations include Rio de
Janeiro, Brazil, and New Orleans, Louisiana. Many other places have important
Mardi Gras celebrations as well.
Carnival is an important celebration in most of Europe, except in Ireland and
the United Kingdom where the festival is called "shrovetide" ending on Shrove
Tuesday, and pancakes are the tradition, and also in many parts of Latin
America and the Caribbean.
Belgium
In the Belgian city of Binche the "Mardi Gras" is the most important day of the
year and the summit of the Carnival of Binche.
Around 1000 Gilles can be found dancing throughout the city from in the morning
until well past dark whilst traditional carnival songs play.
In 2003, the Carnival of Binche was proclaimed one of the Masterpieces of the
Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO.
Brazil
The Carnival is an annual pre-Lenten celebration in Brazil. the cities of
Recife and Salvador are well-known for their Carnival but the most notable is
the one held in Rio de Janeiro. By Carnival's end on Mardi Gras, thousands of
people will have attended the festivities.
Recife
Recife's Carnival is nationally known and attracts thousands of people every
year. The party starts a week before the official date, with electric trios
"shaking" the Boa Viagem district. On Friday, people take to the streets to
enjoy themselves to the sound of frevo and to dance with maracatu, ciranda,
caboclinhos, afoxé, reggae and Mangue Bit groups. There is entertainment
throughout the city, such as when more than a million people follow the Galo da
Madrugada group. On Sunday the Pátio do Terço is the sight of Noite dos
Tambores Silenciosos, where maracatus honor slaves that died in prison.
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro has many Carnival choices, including the famous Escolas de Samba
(Samba schools) parades in the sambódromo exhibition centre and the popular
'blocos de carnaval', which parade in almost every corner of the city. The most
famous parades are the Cordão do Bola Preta with traditional carnaval parades
in the centre of the city, the Suvaco do Cristo parades in the Botanic Garden,
Carmelitas parades in the hills of Santa Teresa, the Simpatia é Quase Amor is
one of the most popular parades in Ipanema, and the Banda de Ipanema which
attracts a wide range of revelers, including families and a wide spectrum of
the gay population (notably spectacular drag queens).
Salvador
According to the Guinness Book, the carnival or Carnaval of Salvador de Bahia
is the biggest street party on the planet. For an entire week, almost two
million people join the city's street celebrations, which are divided into
circuits: Barra/Ondina, Campo Grande and Pelourinho. The music played during
Carnaval includes Axé and Samba-reggae. Many "blocos" participate in Carnaval,
the "blocos afros" like Malé Debalé, Olodum and Filhos de Gandhi being the most
famous of them.
Caribbean nations
In the Caribbean, Carnival is celebrated on a number of islands: Antigua,
Aruba, Barbados, Bonaire, Curaçao, Dominica,Dominican Republic, Grenada,
Guadeloupe, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, St. Lucia, Saint Vincent and the
Grenadines, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Trinidad and Tobago and United States Virgin
Islands are some of the celebrants.
Colombia
Several Colombian cities celebrate carnivals in the period between Twelfth
Night and Mardi Gras. The most important of these celebrations is
Barranquilla's Carnival (Spanish: Carnaval de Barranquilla), which starts on
the Saturday before Ash Wednesday and ends on Mardi Gras. The roots of
Barranquilla's Carnival date back to the 19th century, and is reputed for being
second in size to Rio's, but is far less commercialized. The Carnival of
Barranquilla was proclaimed by UNESCO, in November 2003, as one of the
Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity.
France
The city of Nice, France records that in the year of 1294, the Comte de
Provence Charles II, Duc d'Anjou began taking his holidays in Nice to take part
in the festivities of Carnival complete with balls, masquerades, bonfires,
jugglers, mimes, and more. All that was required to take part was a costume and
a mask. So much revelery was had that even the church could not control the
more obscene aspects. The city's records, however, show that the celebration
hit a high note in the period of time they call the Belle Époque, in the late
19th century to early 20th century before the World Wars. The city of Nice
still celebrates Mardi Gras with parades of flower covered floats and brilliant
night-time light displays.
Germany
The celebration of Mardi Gras in Germany is called Karneval, Fastnacht, or
Fasching. Fastnacht means "Eve of the Beginning of the Fast", and thus it is
celebrated until the day before Ash Wednesday. The most famous parades are held
in Köln (Cologne), Mainz, and Düsseldorf on Monday before Ash Wednesday on
"Rosenmontag" i.e. Lundi Gras.
Guatemala
The main celebration of Mardi Gras in Guatemala is in Mazatenango. Also, there
are a lot of mimes.
India
In Goa, India, the Carnival is celebrated for three days culminating on Fat
Tuesday. Goa was a Portuguese colony until 1961. In Kerala State the carnival
parade is called "Rasa" (fun in Sanskrit) and happens on the night before Ash
Wednesday. There are typically no masks in the celebration, unlike in Goa.
Italy
Venice
Venice is home to one of the most famous Carnival celebrations in the world, in
addition to one of the oldest. The Carnival of Venice (or Carnevale di Venezia
in Italian) was first recorded in 1268. The subversive nature of the festival
is reflected in the many laws created over the centuries in Italy attempting to
restrict celebrations and often banning the wearing of masks. Masks have always
been a central feature of the Venetian carnival, traditionally people were
allowed to wear them between the festival of Santo Stefano (St. Stephen's Day,
at the start of the Carnival season and midnight of Shrove Tuesday. As masks
were also allowed during Ascension and from October 5 to Christmas, people
could spend a large proportion of the year in disguise
http://www.carnivalofvenice.com/argomento.asp?cat=13lang=en. Maskmakers
(mascherari) enjoyed a special position in society, with their own laws and
their own guild. In 1797 Venice became part of the Austrian-held Kingdom of
Lombardy-Venetia when Napoleon signed the Treaty of Campo Formio. The Austrians
took control of the city on January 18, 1798 and it fell into a decline which
also effectively brought Carnival celebrations to a halt for almost two
centuries. Carnival was outlawed by the fascist government in the 1930s. It was
not until a modern mask shop was founded in the 1980s that Carnival enjoyed a
revival.
Mexico
In Mexico, there are large Carnival celebrations every year in Mazatlán, which
claims to have "The third largest Mardi Gras in the world", and Veracruz, which
include the election of a queen and street parades. There is also a week-long
Carnival or Mardi Gras celebration in Mérida, Yucatán. Ocozocoautla de
Espinosa, Chiapas also holds a Carnival with a mix of Christian and indigenous
elements.
Panama
Carnival is celebrated in several Panamanian cities such as Las Tablas, Ocu,
Chitre, Penenomé and Panama City. Carnival in this country is characterized by
the soaking of people mainly via the use of water trucks and hoses. The
celebrations tend to last through a four day holiday weekend.
Slovenia
In Slovenia it is called Kurentovanje. It's from the word Kurent which is the
name of a mask, made of sheep skin and richly decorated. People make noise with
bells attached on their hips. It's also one of the traditions to eat doughnuts.
Spain
In Spain it's called 'Carnaval'. The Carnival in Chipiona Carnaval in Chipiona
is without doubt the festival that represents the Spanish town the most. It's
celebrated in the month of February and coincides with the date of the festival
held in the capital of the province, Cádiz. Even though it's official duration
is just 10 days, for at least a month before, there are activities which are
always held in the peñas and by various organizations.
Sweden
In Sweden the celebration is called Fettisdagen. It comes from the word "fett"
(fat) and "tisdag" (Tuesday). Originally, this was the only day one should eat
"Semlor" (Semla) (fat Tuesday buns), but these are now found in most grocery
stores and bakeries preceding the holiday, and up until Easter
Denmark
In Denmark the celebration is called Fastelavn. Fastelavn evolved from the
Roman Catholic tradition of celebrating in the days before Lent, but after
Denmark became a Protestant nation, the holiday became less specifically
religious. This holiday occurs seven weeks before Easter Sunday and is
sometimes described as a Nordic Halloween with children dressing up in costumes
and gathering treats for the Fastelavn feast. The holiday is generally
considered to be a time for children's fun and family games. The term
"Fastelavn" is a Low Saxon loanword imported from Northern Germany: Fastelavend
'fastl?.???vm?t, Fastelabend 'fastl?.???bm?t and Fastlaam (also spelled
Fastlom) 'fastl???m, related to Low Saxon Vastelaovend in the eastern parts of
the Netherlands and to Dutch Vastenavond.
United States
While not observed nationally throughout the United States, a number of cities
and regions in the country have notable celebrations. Mardi Gras arrived in
North America as a sedate French Catholic tradition with the Le Moyne brothers,
Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville and Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne de Bienville, in the
late 17th century, when King Louis XIV sent the pair to defend France's claim
on the territory of Louisiane, which included what are now the U.S. states of
Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana. and in 1703 the Mardi Gras tradition began
with celebrations by the French settlers in that city. By 1720, Biloxi had been
made capital of Louisiana. The French customs were introduced there at that
time. In 1723, the capital of Louisiana was moved to New Orleans, founded in
1718. The tradition there expanded to the point that it became synonymous with
that city. In more recent times several other U.S. cities without a French
Catholic heritage have instituted the celebration of Mardi Gras.
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