When is Carnival Monday?
The Carnival is an annual festival held in several countries in Latin America and the Caribbean in the days before Ash Wednesday.
The Monday and Tuesday are generally observed as public holidays.
History of Carnival Monday
Carnivals are popular events as they represent the last chance to party and overindulge before the fasting period of Lent begins on Ash Wednesday.
The tradition of a Carnival in the Americas came with the colonials who arrived from Europe, particularly the Spanish and French. These new settlers needed a workforce, which was supplied by slaves brought from Africa.
Despite the hardships endured by the slaves, they also brought festival customs of their own. The carnival celebrations were an opportunity that the slaves used to observe their own festivals as a way of maintaining their identity and expressing their beliefs.
Over time these African customs fused with the European carnival traditions to give rise to the more colourful and exuberant displays and parades that today brighten up the streets of many parts of the Latin America and the Caribbean.
Did you know?
On the island of Montserrat, the European settlers were mainly Irish, so instead of celebrating Carnival, St. Patrick's Day is the spring festival of choice.
Lent
During the 40 days before Easter, Roman Catholics are supposed to abstain from all bodily pleasures, including the consumption of meat. This is intended to remember the fasting of Jesus, who spent 40 days in the desert before beginning his ministry. Indeed, it is proposed by some that the word carnival is derived from the Latin 'Carne Vale' which means a farewell to meat signifying the coming period without meat.
Despite its original religious beginnings, the carnival can hardly be described as a solemn affair, and it shares its excessive nature with similar European celebrations and Mardi Gras, where the festivals are an opportunity for final indulgence before lent itself.
