The tradition that evolved into Mardi Gras dates back thousands of years, with its beginnings in pagan celebrations of spring and fertility. When Christianity arrived in Rome, leaders decided to “go with the flow” and morph these celebrations into the new faith, which seemed a much easier task than banning them. Along with Christianity, the tradition spread to other European countries.
Today, Mardis Gras is celebrated in many countries around the world—mainly those with large Roman Catholic populations—on the day before the religious season of Lent begins. Brazil, Venice, and New Orleans host some of the holiday’s most famous festivals, drawing thousands of tourists (and party animals) annually.
Mardi Gras 2024 will fall on Tuesday, February 13. In many areas, however, Mardi Gras has evolved into a week-long festival (or, with good old American retail commercialization—a whole “season.”)
So, what exactly is Mardi Gras (other than a reason to party in New Orleans—which never seems lacking)?
In French, “Mardi” is the word for Tuesday, and “Gras” means fat. In France, the day before Ash Wednesday came to be known as Mardi Gras, or “Fat Tuesday.”
Historically, in the days leading up to Lent, people would binge on all the rich, fatty foods (meat, eggs, milk, lard, and cheese) to empty their pantries of them, in anticipation of several weeks of eating only fish and different types of fasting. When Lent arrived, they began 40 days of fasting and penance between Ash Wednesday and Easter Sunday.
The word carnival (or carnaval), another common name for the pre-Lenten festivities, traces back to Medieval Latin. Carnelevarium means to take away or remove meat; it comes from the Latin root carnem for meat.
The French traditionally celebrated Mardi Gras from the feast of the Epiphany (when the Three Kings visited the Baby Jesus) until Ash Wednesday. Celebrations included masquerade balls that were held by a different family each weekend from Epiphany until Ash Wednesday. This could mean up to a month or two of celebrations!
Brazil’s weeklong Carnival festivities combine European, African, and native customs. In Canada, Quebec City plays host to the giant Quebec Winter Carnival. In Italy, tourists flock to Venice’s Carnevale (famous for its masquerade balls), which dates back to the 13th century. In Ivrea, Italy, the highlight of the carnival period is a reenactment of the “Battle of the Oranges”. While the original battle was between the people and troops in the Middle Ages, today It’s simply the largest food fight in Italy.
The German celebration–known as Karneval, Fastnacht or Fasching–includes parades, costume balls, and a tradition that empowers women to cut off men’s ties. The German-speaking area of Europe might have the longest celebration period, with it officially starting on November 11th (at 11.11am) and running right through the winter.
Denmark’s Fastevlan resembles Halloween—to a point. Children dress up and gather candy. But that resemblance disappears on Easter Sunday morning, when the kids ritually flog their parents!
Russian Maslenitsa has both pagan and Orthodox Christian ties, as it is the week before Lent. For the Orthodox, Lent begins on Monday rather than Wednesday, and Maslenitsa, known as “Butter Week”, “Cheese Week” or “Crepe Week” is the week before.
Since Maslenitsa was officially not allowed under Soviet rule, celebrations were more family-oriented during this period. Now the traditional outdoor celebrations (which include sledding, snowball fights, skating and sleigh rides) have returned.
New Orleans, by far, has the most famous Mardi Gras celebration in the United States. This certainly doesn’t mean many other locations with French or Cajun ties (or people who just look for a reason to party) don’t follow the lead.
Mardi Gras arrived in the United States when the Le Moyne brothers were sent from France to defend the French claim to Louisiane, an area covering modern Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi and part of Texas.
The now famous parades in New Orleans began in 1837. These parades run for the two weeks prior to Ash Wednesday. Each parade is organized by a different “Krewe,” or social club. Many include decorated floats. Small items, including colored beads, are often thrown from the floats to people in the crowd watching the parade. Many attending and in the parade dress up in costume.
Other large Mardi Gras celebrations include Mobile, Alabama; Galveston, Texas; and Pensacola, Florida.
Mobile, Alabama has the oldest organized Mardi Gras in the United States, first recorded in 1703. In Mobile, mystic societies organize parades with large, colorful floats, balls (including masquerade balls), and other events. It was actually folks from one of Mobile’s societies who started the first Krewe in New Orleans.
King Cake is a ring-shaped pastry is usually covered in icing, then topped with yellow, purple, and green edible glitter or sprinkles. The cake traditionally contains a porcelain or plastic baby that is supposed to bring good luck to whoever winds up with it in their slice.
The tradition of the king cake dates back to the Middle Ages. It was originally made to celebrate the Catholic Epiphany, a.k.a. Three Kings Day. French settlers brought the cake (and the traditions behind it) to Louisiana in the 1800s. So, what’s the meaning behind the baby?
Some say the tiny token represents the Baby Jesus, while others believe it comes from another Louisiana tradition of hiding a bean or trinket in one slice of cake during the king’s ball — whoever found the trinket would be crowned the “king” or “queen” of the ball. Regardless of its origins, the baby is said to bring good luck and prosperity.
The colors of Mardi Gras can be traced to the first Rex parade in New Orleans, Louisiana in 1872. Purple Represents Justice. Green Represents Faith. Gold Represents Power. According to legend, Mardi Gras colors influenced the choice of school colors for archrivals Louisiana State University and Tulane University. They say when LSU was deciding on its colors, the shops in New Orleans had stocked up on purple, green, and gold for the Mardi Gras season. LSU decided upon purple and gold (and bought much of it). Tulane bought much of the only remaining color – green.
The tradition of tossing Mardi Gras throws to spectators during parades started with the second procession of the Twelfth Night Revelers in the early 1870s, with an individual dressed as Santa Claus passing out gifts to spectators as he passed by. The tradition was then expanded and continued by the Krewe of Rex who began to throw glass beads to spectators in the early 20th century.
Throws consist of necklaces of plastic beads, coins called doubloons (which are stamped with Krewes’ logos, parade themes, and the year), plus an array of plastic cups and toys. The plastic cups used as throws are sometimes referred to as New Orleans dinnerware. Mardi Gras beads are said to be a symbol of good luck, prosperity, and sharing.
Regardless of the motivation for joining in on Mardi Gras activities, we can all gain wisdom from the practice of celebrating and being thankful—in both prosperity and in want.
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