Karnawał

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Arguably the most famous locales in Spain are Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Las Palmas De Gran Canaria, Sitges, Vilanova i la Geltrú, Tarragona, Solsona, Cádiz, Badajoz, Bielsa (an ancestral Carnival celebration), Plan, San Juan de Plan, Laza, Verín, Viana and Xinzo de Limia

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In Cádiz the costumes worn are often related to recent news, such as the bird flu epidemic in 2006, during which many people were disguised as chickens. The feeling of this Carnival is the sharp criticism, the funny play on words and the imagin ation in the costumes, more than the glamorous dressings. It is traditional to paint the face with lipstick as a humble substitute of a mask. The most famous groups are the chirigotas, choirs and comparsas. The chirigotas are well known witty, satiric popular groups who sing about politics, new times and household topics, wearing the same costume, which they train for the whole year. The Choirs (coros) are wider groups that go on open carts through the streets singing with a little orchestra of guitars and lutes. Their characteristic composition is the "Carnival Tango", and they alternate comical and serious repertory. The comparsas are the serious counterpart of the chirigota in Cádiz, and the poetical lyrics and the criticism are their main ingredients. They have a more elaborated polyphony, being easily recognizable by the typical countertenor voice.

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The Santa Cruz de Tenerife and Las Palmas de Gran Canaria is together with the Carnival of Cadiz, the most important festival for Spanish tourism and Spain's largest Carnival. In 1980 it was declared a Festival Tourist International Interest, by the Secretariat of State for the Tourism. Every February, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, the capital of the largest of the Canary Islands, hosts the event, attracting around a million people. The celebrations could be declared by UNESCO as Heritage of Mankind in 2011. Carnival of Santa Cruz de Tenerife now aspires to become a World Heritage Site. In 1980 it was declared a Festival Tourist International Interest, by the Secretariat of State for the Tourism and it is one of the most important Carnivals of the World. The Carnival of Santa Cruz de Tenerife now aspires to become a World Heritage Site.[16] This declaration by UNESCO will, occur, further promoting international had Santa Cruz de Tenerife, being the first Carnival of Spain to obtain this recognition, for its permanent in time and it would reach the five continents through UNESCO. In 1987 went to the "Carnival Chicharrero" Cuban singer Celia Cruz with orchestra Billo's Caracas Boys, attended by 250,000 people, was registered in the Guinness of Records as the largest gathering of people in an outdoor plaza to attend a concert, a record she holds today.

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In Catalonia people dress up and organise parties for a week but particularly on the weekend. Despite it being winter, parties are open air, beginning with a cercavila to call everybody to come. Rues of people dance along the streets. On Thursday Dijous Gras is celebrated, also called 'the omelette day' (el dia de la truita), coques (de llardons, butifarra d'ou, butifarra) and omelettes are eaten. Parties end by burning Mr. Carnestoltes and with enterrament de la sardina (sardine's funeral). Carnival de Solsona takes place in Solsona, Lleida in central Catalonia. It is one of the longest Carnivals in Catalonia; free events in the streets, and concerts every night, run for more than a week. The Carnival is known for a legend that explains some people hung a donkey at the tower bell, because the animal wanted to eat some grass which grew on the top of the tower. To remember this legend, every year people in Solsona hang a stuffed donkey at the tower that "pisses" above the excited people using a water pump. This event is the most important of Solsona's Carnival and takes place on Saturday night. For this reason, the inhabitants of Solsona are called "matarrucs" ("donkey killers"). Another characteristic of the Carnival is its giants. Crazy Giants will pursue and try to hit revellers with their articulated arms and legs. The Crazy Giants were created in 1978 by the giant-making master Manel Casserras i Boix. "Comparses" groups organize free activities in the streets. They are groups of friends who create and personalize a uniformed suit which is worn every year during the festivities. Sitges: This Carnival is one of the most famous Carnivals in Catalonia. Special food includes xatonades (a xató is a traditional local salad of Sitges) served with omelettes. Two important moments are the Rua de la Disbauxa (Debauchery Parade) on Sunday night and the Rua de l'Extermini (Extermination Parade) on Tuesday night. Around 40 floats with more than 2,500 participants parade in Sitges. The Carnival of Vilanova i la Geltrú is notable for Les Comparses (on Sunday), in which good-humoured rival groups throw boiled sweets (candies) at each other. Vinanova's and Sitge's Carnival are rivals.
Tarragona has one of the most complete ritual sequences of the Catalan Carnivals. The events start with the building of a huge barrel and end with its burning together with the effigies of the Carnival King and Queen. On Saturday, the main parade takes place. There are masked groups, zoomorphic figures, music and percussion bands, and groups with fireworks (the devils, the dragon, the ox, the female dragon). Carnival groups stand out for their clothes full of elegance, showing brilliant examples of fabric crafts, at the Saturday and Sunday parades. About 5,000 people are members of the parade groups.

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For almost five centuries, the local Greek communities throughout Istanbul clebrated pre-Lent carnival with weeks of bawdy parades, lavish balls and street parties. This continued for weeks before the 40-day Lent period. At Shrove Monday, the last day of the carnival season, took place Baklahorani. The event was led by the Greek Orthodox community, but the celebrations were public and inter-communal and brought everyone together for one final celebration in the Kurtuluş district of the city. However, in 1943 the carnival was banned by the Turkish authorities, as part of the discrimination campaigns against non-Muslim communities in the country. There has been a recent revival initiative of Baklahorani from 2010.

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Most of the islands in the Caribbean celebrate Carnival. The largest and most well-known celebration is held in Trinidad and Tobago. The Dominican Republic, Antigua, Aruba, Cayman Islands, Curaçao, Barbados,, Dominica, Grenada, Jamaica, Saint Maarten, Saint Lucia, Saint Kitts, Saint Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines are also known for lengthy carnival seasons and large celebrations. Carnival is an important cultural event on the Dutch Antilles islands of Aruba, Curaçao, Sint Maarten, Saba, Sint Eustatius (Statia), and Bonaire. Festivities include "jump-up" parades with beautifully colored costumes, floats, and live bands as well as beauty contests and other competitions. Carnival on these islands also includes a middle-of-the-night j'ouvert (juvé) parade that ends at sunrise with the burning of a straw King Momo, cleansing the island of sins and bad luck. On Statia he is called Prince Stupid. Carnival has also been celebrated in Cuba since the 18th century. The costumes, dances and pageantry grew with each passing year, with the participants donning costumes from the cultural and ethnic variety on the island. After Fidel Castro's Communist Revolution, Carnival's religious overture was suppressed. The events remained, albeit frowned upon by the state. Carnival celebrations have been in decline throughout Cuba since 1960.

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Carnival means weeks of events that bring you colourfully decorated floats, contagiously throbbing music, luxuriously costumed groups of celebrants of all ages, King & Queen elections, electrifying jump ups and torch light parades that wind their way through the streets at night, the Jouvert morning: the Children's Parades and finally the Grand Parade. Aruba's biggest celebration of the year is a month-long celebration consisting of festive "jump-ups" (street parades), spectacular parades and creative contests. Music and flamboyant costumes play a central role, from the Queen elections to the Grand Parade, which winds it ways down city avenues to the delight of thousands of spectators. Street parades are held in various districts throughout the month, allowing everyone an opportunity to participate and dance to the season's most popular brass band, steel band and roadmarch tunes. On the evening before the start of Lent, Carnival officially comes to end with the symbolic burning of "King Momo."

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The Antiguan Carnival is a celebration of music and dance held annually from the end of July to the first Tuesday in August. The most important day is that of the j'ouvert (or juvé), in which brass and steel bands perform for much of the island's population. Barbuda's Carnival, held in June, is known as Caribana. The Antiguan and Barbudan Carnivals replaced the Old Time Christmas Festival in 1957, with hopes of inspiring tourism in Antigua and Barbuda. Some elements of the Christmas Festival remain in the modern Carnival celebrations, which are otherwise largely based on the Trinidadian Carnival. The Carnival consists of mass playing, steel pan music and various shows such as calypso shows and pageants.

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Carnival in Barbados is known as Crop Over. Crop Over is Barbados' biggest festival, having had its early beginnings on the sugar cane plantations during the colonial period. The crop over tradition began in 1688, and featured singing, dancing and accompaniment by bottles filled with water, shak-shak, banjo, triangle, fiddle, guitar, and bones. Other traditions included climbing a greased pole, feasting and drinking competitions. Originally a celebration signaling the end of the yearly sugar cane harvest, it has since evolved into a national festival rivaling New Orleans Mardi Gras and Trinidad Carnival in Trinidad. In the late 20th Century, the general schematic of Crop Over began to closely mirror the Trinidad Carnival. Beginning in June, Crop Over it runs until the first Monday in August when it culminates in the finale, The Grand Kadooment. For the entire two months life for many islanders is one big party with a major feature of crop over being the calypso competition. Calypso music, originating in Trinidad, uses syncopated rhythm and topical lyrics and gives its exponents a medium in which to satirise local politics and comment on the issues of the day, while taking nothing away from the general bacchanal. Calypso tents, also originating in Trinidad, feature their cadre of calypsonians who perform biting social commentaries on the happenings of the past year, political exposés or rousing exhortations to wuk dah waistline and roll dat bumper. There are craft markets, food tents and stalls, street parties and cavalcades every week supplemented by daily events at Tim's on the Highway, the new home of the Barbados Cropover Festival. Competition "tents" ring with the fierce battle of calypsonians for the coveted Calypso Monarch Award and the air is redolent with the exotic smells of Bajan cooking during the Bridgetown Market Street Fair. Rich with the spirit of local culture, the Cohobblopot Festival blends dance and drama and music with the crowning of the King and Queen of costume bands. Every evening the "Pic-o-de-Crop" Show is performed when finally the King of Calypso is crowned. The climax of the festival is Kadooment Day celebrated with a national holiday when costume bands fill the streets with pulsating Barbadian rhythms and fireworks that ignite the sky.

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Dominican Carnival is celebrated in most cities and towns in the Dominican Republic. It is celebrated in the main streets of each town during the month of February. One of the main characteristics of this Carnival are its flashy costumes and the loud music played during the celebration. Some of the most known parades of this country are the one held in La Vega, which is one of the biggest in the country, and the National Parade held in Santo Domingo. It was here where the first Carnival of the Americas was held, and it is also one of the biggest in the region.
One of the main attractions are its masks, which are very elaborate and colorful. The elaborate costumes used on the parades are satires of the Devil and are called "Diablos Cojuelos" all around the country, they dance, and run to the rhythm of Merengue mixed with techno, hip-hop, and reggaeton during the celebration. Adding to this characters the celebration also show some allegorical characters representing Dominican traditions such as "Roba la Gallina",and "Califé". One of the most international parades in the Dominican Republic is the one in San Pedro de Macoris that exhibits the "Guloyas", which are considered cultural heritage of the world. This parade consists of groups of people dressed in costumes dancing around the street of San Pedro de Macoris. The main attraction apart from the colorful costumes is the people running away from the "Diablos Cojuelos" which try to hit people with "Vejigas".

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Bacchanal, Jamaica's carnival is typically held around the time of Easter, highly similar to carnivals held in places such as Barbados or Trinidad. Costumes are vibrant and colorful, decorated in jewels and feathers while the masqueraders and spectators dance in a parade to soca, reggae and dance hall. This celebration attracts people from all over the world.

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n Trinidad & Tobago, Carnival is a festival season that lasts over a month and culminates in large celebrations in Port of Spain which is the capital of Trinidad, on the Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday before Ash Wednesday with Dimanche Gras, J'ouvert, and Mas (masquerade). Tobago's celebrations also culminates on Monday and Tuesday but on a much smaller scale in its capital Scarborough. Many people from various other Caribbean islands visit Trinbago (combination of Trinidad and Tobago) at this time to participate in the festivities as either reveler or spectator. Carnival is a festive time of costumes, dance, music, competitions, rum, and partying (also referred to as fete-ing). Music styles associated with Carnival include Soca, Calypso and Rapso (mixture of Rap and Calypso) and more recently Chutney-soca (Chutney and Soca combined).
The annual Carnival Steel Pan competition known as the National Panorama competition is held in the weeks preceding Carnival with the finals held on the Saturday before the main event. Pan players compete in various categories such as "Conventional Steel Band" or "Single Pan Band" by performing renditions of the current year's calypsos. Preliminary judging of this event for "Conventional Steel Bands" has been recently moved to the individual pan yards where steel bands practice their selections for the competition. "Dimanche Gras" takes place on the Sunday night before Ash Wednesday. Here the Calypso Monarch is chosen (after competition) and prize money and a vehicle bestowed. Also the King and Queen of the bands are crowned, where each band to parade costumes for the next two days submits a king and queen, from which an overall winner is chosen. These usually involve huge, complex, beautiful well-crafted costumes, that includes 'wire-bending'. J'ouvert, or "Dirty Mas", takes place before dawn on the Monday (known as Carnival Monday) before Ash Wednesday. It means ""opening of the day" . Here revelers dress in mainly character costumes that make use of pun on current affairs, especially political and social. "Clean Mud" (clay mud), oil paint and body paint are usually familiar sights on one's body during J'ouvert. A common character to be seen at this time is "Jab-jabs" (devils, blue, black or red) complete with pitch fork, pointed horns and tails. Here also, a King and Queen of the J'ouvert are chosen, based on their representation of current political/social events/issues.Carnival Monday involves the parade of the mas bands, but on a casual or relaxed scale. Usually revelers wear only parts of their costumes, and the purpose of the day is more one of fun than display or competition. Also on Carnival Monday, Monday Night Mas is popular in most towns and especially the capital, where smaller bands participate in competition. There is also the 'Bomb Competition' which is a smaller-scaled judging of Steel Bands held on Ariapita Avenue (a popular 'liming' area in the environs of Port-of-Spain). Carnival Tuesday is when the main events of the Carnival take place. On this day full costume is worn complete with make up and body paints/adornments and other accessories. Usually 'Mas Boots' that complement the costumes are worn and are also more comfortable for the feet on the long parade routes. Each band has their costume presentation based on a particular theme, and contain various sections (some consisting of thousands of revelers) which reflect these themes. Here, the street parade and eventual crowning of the best designed band costumes take place. After following a route where various judging points are located, the mas bands eventually converge on the Queen's Park Savannah to pass on "The Stage" to be judged once and for all - this is usually the climax for revelers because the stage is literally their own to portray their costumes to the onlooking audience in the North and Grand Stands and also the video-photographers and other camera persons. Also taking place on this day is the crowning of the Road March King or Queen, where the singer of the most played song at judging sites over the two days of the Carnival is crowned winner, complete with prize money and usually a vehicle. This parading and revelry goes on into the night of the Tuesday until midnight. Ash Wednesday itself, whilst not an official holiday, is marked by most by visiting the beaches that abound both in Trinidad and Tobago. The most populated being Maracas beach and Manzanilla beach, where huge beach parties take place every Ash Wednesday. These provide a cool down from the previous five days of hectic partying, parades and competitions, and are usually attended by the whole family.

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The smallest Carnival celebration in Guatemala is in Mazatenango. During the month of February, Mazatenango is famous for its eight day Carnival Feast. Locals and visitors alike look forward to the days of food, music, parades, games, etc. that bring the streets of the capital city of the department of Suchitepéquez to life. As one Guatemalan website states, "To mention the Carnival of Mazatenango is to bring to mind moments of a happy and cordial party. In the eight days of this celebration's duration the local residents have kept alive the traditions of the Department."

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n La Ceiba in Honduras, Carnival is held on the fourth Saturday of every May to commemorate San Isidro. It is the largest Carnival celebration in Central America.

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On the Caribbean coast of Nicaragua, in the city of Bluefields, the Carnival, better known as Palo de Mayo (or Mayo Ya!), is celebrated every day of May. In the Nicaragua's capital city, Managua, it is only celebrated for 2 days. The Carnival in Managua is named "Alegria por la vida" translated to "Joy for Life" and features a different theme each year. There's also a Festival In Managua which is called " Santo Domingo de Guzman" which lasts ten days.

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In Mexico, Carnival is celebrated in many cities and towns, most notably in Mazatlán, Sinaloa, Mérida, Yucatán, and in the city of Veracruz, where Carnival is celebrated with traditional music, folklore, arts and dances. People dress in bright, feathered costumes resembling the indigenous traditions, and create a series of performances on the streets as well as on stages. In most cases there is a large set-up of fair games and roller coasters. Both Mazatlán's and Veracruz's celebrations are often compared to the Carnival of Rio de Janeiro or New Orleans. In Copándaro de Galeana, Michoacán c Carnival is celebrated with lively parades often surrounding bull riding, cockfights and dancing. In some of the central to northern regions the popular Norteña and Mexican rodeo influences are very present, whereas in the coastal or southern regions, Carnivals represent a more indigenous rendition. Each one will include many region-specific food dishes and drinks.

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The Panamanian Carnival is the second biggest festival in the world. Traditionally beginning on Friday and ending on the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday, "los Carnivales", as Panamanians refer to the days of Carnival, are celebrated in almost the whole country. Carnival Week in Panama is specially popular because of the luxury and magnitude of the Las Tablas Carnival as well as the Carnival celebrations in Panama City and almost all of the Azuero Peninsula. The Panamanian Carnival is also popular because of the great number of concerts by national and international artists held on different stages in the most visited areas of the country.

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Caribana, held in Toronto on the first weekend of August, has its origins in the Carnival traditions of the Caribbean. Due to climatic imperatives, Caribana is held in the summer when Caribbean costumes may be paraded comfortably, rather than adhering to the traditional winter dates of the other Carnivals in which the festival is strongly rooted. Attendance at the Caribana parade typically exceeds one million people. The Quebec Winter Carnival is the biggest winter-themed Carnival in the world.[citation needed] It depends on good snowfalls and very cold weather, to keep snowy ski trails in good condition and the many ice sculptures intact. For this reason it does not coincide with the pre-Lent celebration but is fixed instead to the last days of January and first days of February. In the Ottawa-Gatineau region, Winterlude takes place during the first 4 weeks of February.

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Carnival celebrations, usually referred to as Mardi Gras, were first celebrated in the Gulf Coast area of the United States, but now occur in many other states. Customs originated in the onetime French colonial capitals of Mobile (now in Alabama), New Orleans (Louisiana) and Biloxi (Mississippi), all of which have been celebrated for many years with street parades and masked balls. Other major U.S. cities with celebrations include Miami, Florida, Tampa, Florida, St. Louis, Missouri, Pensacola, Florida, San Diego, California, Galveston, Texas and Orlando, Florida.
Carnival is celebrated in New York City in the Borough of Brooklyn. As in the UK, the timing of Carnival has been separated from the Christian calendar and is celebrated on Labor Day Monday, in September. It is called the West Indian Day Parade or West Indian Day Carnival, and was founded by immigrants from Trinidad, one of the West Indian islands that has one of the largest Carnivals of the Caribbean region. In the mid twentieth century, West Indians moved the timing of the New York area Carnival from the beginning of Lent to the Labor Day weekend. The West Indian Day Carnival is one of the largest parades and street festivals in New York with usually over one million people participating or attending. The parade, which consists of steel bands, floats, elaborate Carnival costumes and sound trucks proceeds down Brooklyn's Eastern Parkway in the Crown Heights neighborhood.

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The best-known, most elaborate, and most popular events are in New Orleans, while other South Louisiana cities such as Lafayette, Mamou, Houma,and Thibodaux all of which were under French control at one time or another, are the sites of famous Carnival celebrations of their own.
Major Mardi Gras celebrations are spreading to other parts of the United States, such as the Mississippi Valley region of St. Louis, Missouri, Orlando, Florida in Universal Studios, and in the Gaslamp Quarter of San Diego, California.

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In Argentina, the most representative Carnival performed is the so called Murga, although other famous Carnival, more Brazilian stylized, are held in the Argentine Mesopotamia and the North-East. Gualeguaychú in the east of Entre Ríos province is the most important Carnival city and has one of the largest parades, with a similar afro-American musical background to Brazilian or Uruguayan Carnival. Corrientes is another city with a lively Carnival tradition. Chamame, a kind of polka is played during the Carnivals. In all major cities and many towns throughout the country, Carnival is also celebrated, but less famous than in the above mentioned places.
As Carnival coincides with summer, in many parts of Argentina children play with water. The 19th century tradition of filling empty egg shells with water has evolved into water games that include the throwing of water balloons.

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La Diablada Carnival, takes place in the city of Oruro in central Bolivia. It is celebrated in honor of the patron saint of the miners, Vírgen de Socavon (the Virgin of the Tunnels). Over 50 parade groups dance, sing and play music over a five kilometre-long course. Participants dress up as demons, devils, angels, Incas and Spanish conquerors. There are various kinds of dances such as caporales and tinkus. The parade runs from morning until late at night, 18 hours a day, 3 days before Ash Wednesday. Meanwhile throughout the country celebrations are held involving traditional rhythms and water parties. In Santa Cruz de la Sierra, at the east side of the country, the tropical weather allows a Brazilian-type Carnival, with agropuations of people called "Comparsas" dancing traditional songs in matching uniforms. Declared the 2001 "Masterpieces of Oral Heritage and Intangible Heritage of Humanity" for UNESCO

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The Carnival in Brazil is a big part of the Brazilian Culture, and it is sometimes referred to by the Brazilians as the "Greatest Show on Earth". Salvador has large Carnival celebrations, including the Axé, typical Bahia music. A truck with giant speakers and a platform where musicians play songs of local genres such as Axé music, Samba-reggae and Arrocha, is driven with the following crowd both dancing and singing. It was originally staged by two Salvador musicians, Dodo & Osmar, in the 1950s. Several cities in the state of Bahia still celebrate Carnival this way, with as most popular the Carnival of Porto Seguro. Another important part of the Brazilian Carnival takes place in the Rio Carnival, with samba schools parading in the Sambadrome ("sambódromo" in Portuguese). It's the largest Carnival event in this country, considered to be the largest of the kind in the world. Called "One of the biggest shows of the Earth", the festival attracts millions of tourists, both Brazilians and foreigners who come from everywhere to participate and enjoy the great show. Samba Schools are large, social entities with thousands of members and a theme for their song and parade each year. Tourists are allowed to participate, paying ($500–750) to buy a Samba costume and dance in the parade through the Sambadrome with one of the schools. The price paid is used to buy the tourist's own costume and also the costumes of the people who do not have the money to afford it. Blocos are generally small informal groups also with a definite theme in their samba, usually satirical of the current political situation. But there are also a lot, about 30 of them in Rio de Janeiro, that are very big in number of participants, gathering hundreds of thousands of people. There are more than 400 blocos in Rio de Janeiro. Bandas are samba musical bands, usually formed by enthusiasts in the same neighborhood. In 2011, the Carnival of Brazil, which is held 46 days before Easter, started on Friday with feasts and fanfare and samba parades on the streets of São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. The most famous holiday event in Brazil, which occurs around Brazil and most of South America, known as Carnival, is happening from March 4 to 8 this year. In Picture: Revellers parade for Rosas de Ouro samba school during Carnival in São Paulo March 5, 2011

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Although Carnival was introduced by the Spaniards and has incorporated elements from the European cultures, it has managed to re-interpret traditions that belonged to the African and Amerindian cultures of Colombia. There is documentary evidence that Carnival existed in Colombia in the 18th century and had already been a cause for concern for the colonial authorities, who censored the celebrations, especially in the main political centres such as Cartagena, Bogotá and Popayán. The Carnival, therefore, continued its evolution and re-interpretation in the small and at that time unimportant towns where celebrations did not offend the ruling elites. The result was the uninterrupted celebration of Carnival festivals in Barranquilla (see Barranquilla's Carnival) which has been recognized as one of the Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity. The Barranquilla Carnival attracts tens of thousands of people from Colombia and around the world, having become several parades done on Friday and Saturday nights beginning on 11 January and ending always with the four-day non-stop festival, which has now been made six days long, beginning on Wednesday, exactly one week prior to Ash Wednesday and ending on Tuesday at 12pm to initiate the next day with the season of Lent. In other villages along the lower Magdalena River in northern Colombia, and in Pasto, Nariño (see Blacks and Whites Carnival) in the south of the country. In modern times, there have been attempts to introduce Carnival in the capital, Bogotá, in the early 20th century, but it has always failed to gain the approval of authorities. The Bogotá Carnival has had to wait until the 21st century to be resurrected, this time by the authorities of the city.