Italy where people paraded and danced or parade, which has elements of a cir- at masquerade balls. They wore masks cus. Festivalgoers often wear masks and Geography to hide their identities and therefore so- elaborate costumes, sacrifi cing sleep for In The cial classes, so that all could share in the all-night parties. celebration. Venice hosted an extremely Carnival celebrations evolved differ- News™ famous carnival that began in 1268 and ently depending upon the culture of the today sees 30,000 visitors a year to the cel- area. Rio Carnival dates back to 1723 and ebration. is the largest in the world. There, one pur- Carnival traditions spread from Italy pose of the celebration is for samba schools Neal Lineback to Catholic communities in France, Spain to compete against one another in parade and Mandy Lineback Gritzner and Portugal. France gave the fi nal day of demonstrations. The samba is a popular carnival its modern name “Mardi Gras,” dance that African slaves brought to Bra- which means “Fat Tuesday” in French. zil. Each samba school spends months CARNIVAL Fat Tuesday refers to the Tuesday before building expensive, elaborate fl oats and Ash Wednesday, the day Lent begins and costumes in their pursuit to be the best SEASON most celebrations end. Fat Tuesday is the group. Each group has a band and may Rio de Janeiro hosts one of the largest biggest day of celebration in New Orleans’ have as many as eight fl oats and thou- carnival celebrations in the world. Unfor- Mardi Gras. sands of participants, including dancers tunately, a huge fi re swept through the Rio From France, carnival traditions spread and fl oat riders. Carnival center in early February 2011, de- northward to the areas along the Rhine As examples of other carnivals, Winter stroying thousands of costumes and fl oats. River in Germany (also called the Rhine- Carnival in Québec, Canada, is the third Three of the top 12 samba groups that land and mostly French-dominated) and largest in the world behind Rio and New perform in the famous parades suffered westward to the French colonies of North Orleans with over a million participants. incredible losses with one group alone los- America. As Spain and Portugal colonized Trinidad and Tobago in the Caribbean also ing more than 3,000 costumes. the Caribbean and Latin America, carnival host a notable carnival with West African Called “Mardi Gras season” in New traditions also arrived in those regions. roots. Orleans, carnival has historic roots in the In the United States, New Orleans, Carnivals draw people of all traditions Roman Catholic religion and its schedule which was once in French Louisiana, be- and religions from great distances to join follows the holy calendar. The main events came the site for the largest Mardi Gras in. Once a year, a carnival is a cause for cel- of the festive season usually occur in Feb- in the country. This festival dates back to ebration and “a good time is had by all.” ruary and lead up to Lent. In dozens of the early 1800s. In New Orleans, societies And that is Geography in the News™. countries where Catholicism was preva- called “krewes” organize elaborate pa- March 4, 2011. #1083. lent among early colonizers, carnival is the rades. One of the largest, the Krewe of Rex Co-authors are Neal Lineback, Appalachian biggest public celebration of the year. (Krewe of the King) has been marching in State University Professor Emeritus of Carnival celebrations go back hundreds the Mardi Gras parades since 1872. Geography, and Geographer Mandy Lineback and perhaps even thousands of years. In The New Orleans’ Mardi Gras is a time Gritzner. University News Director Jane Roman Catholicism, the six-week period for people to escape daily life. The celebra- Nicholson serves as technical editor. immediately before Easter is called Lent. tion normally includes a public celebration The 40 days of Lent represent the time that Jesus spent in the desert before his ministry. Traditionally during the Lenten Carnivals Across the World period, no parties or celebrations were al- lowed—instead the time was marked by fasting, self-denial and prayer. People abstained from eating rich foods like meat, sugar, fats and dairy products. Scholars dispute the origin of the word “carnival,” but it may have come from the Italian phrase, carne levare, or “remove meat,” which refers to refraining from eat- ©2011 ing meat during Lent. People partook hardily of rich foods and drinks in preparation for the Carnival Location start of Lent. While the festive event indisput- ably is linked to the Christian cal- Geography in the News 03/04/11 M. Shears/T. Smith endar, it may also be related to pre- Christian ancient Roman festivals or even to more secular medieval pag- Sources: http://news.travel.aol.com/seasonal/history-of-mardi-gras/; and http://www. eants. Some of the fi rst recorded car- reuters.com/article/2011/02/07/us-brazil-carnival-odd-idUSTRE7163WK20110207 nival celebrations were in medieval

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