Introduction

The manifestation of all forms and types of culture of any group, starting from the accepted forms of behavior, ending with the demonstration of outfits and the performance of traditional rituals, goes through a holiday. At this stage of socio-cultural development, when organizing mass holidays, the use of carnival as a form of festive culture has become widespread. Close attention to the carnival is due to the fact that it is such a form of celebration, within which the continuity of the original traditions of individual nations and a full-fledged dialogue of cultures of different countries and regions is carried out, which is especially important today. Particular attention to carnival-type holidays is also due to the fact that they act as an effective and accessible form of development of the creatosphere of modern society, since they contain a wide range of opportunities for realizing the creative potential of the largest possible number of participants.

What is carnival

Karnavaml is a holiday associated with dressing up, masquerade and colorful processions, celebrated before Lent. It is similar to the East Slavic Maslenitsa or Myasopust among the Catholic Slavs. It is distributed mainly in Catholic countries. It is accompanied by mass folk festivals with street processions and theatrical performances.

The carnival appeared in the 9th-10th centuries. The earliest references to periodic city festivals in various cities of Western Europe date back to this time. The first carnivals appeared in Italy - the Venice Carnival, where large independent cities appeared first of all. Then carnivals appeared in France, and later in Germany: Mainz, Düsseldorf and Cologne.

The origin of the carnival is not fully understood, and the etymology of the word itself is unclear. Most researchers believe that the ancient pra-carnival fell on the change of seasons and was an agrarian holiday. The European carnival itself arose from the fusion of Roman and Germanic customs. Gradually, the carnival turned into a traditional celebration of the meeting of spring, which everywhere in Europe began to precede the main annual fast - a period of repentance and starvation.

It is believed that the word "carnival" comes from the cult cart-ship on wheels (Latin carrus-navalis - "chariot-ship", used, in particular, during the ancient mysteries of Marduk, Dionysus, etc., in the rituals of the peoples of Europe from the bronze century); in the Middle Ages and later, an effigy of Carnival was taken out on a chariot during festive processions.

There is, however, another version: the Italian word "carnevale" - "carnival" comes from the Latin words "carne" and "vale" - "goodbye, meat."

In Slavic mythology, Maslenitsa corresponds to the image of Carnival.

carnival culture holiday mythology

In ancient Greece, as well as throughout the ancient world, there was a direct relationship between the cycle of the year and human life. Too dry - the seeds will not sprout, too rainy - the same thing. And what to eat? How to "persuade" nature to meet halfway? We do not know, and we do not think about it, but the people of the ancient world had a completely accurate opinion on this matter. Inspiring nature, they tried to propitiate her, to make a sacrifice to her. They held holidays in honor of her and were sure that the higher powers would give them a good harvest as a reward.

All holidays of this kind lasted for several days. They were accompanied by dressing up, songs and dances in honor of the gods. Dionisias (ancient Greek holidays in honor of the god of winemaking and fertility Dionysus) were celebrated twice a year - in spring and autumn, during the sowing of seeds and during harvesting. During these days, all work was forgotten and all obligations were removed, only truly unrestrained fun with gluttony, wine and orgies remained. (It is interesting that a child conceived during the time of the Great Dionysius was considered the child of a god and had a special honor in society).

Then, during the Great Dionysius, there was a big religious procession - men in the skins of goats and the god Dionysus himself (who was also portrayed by one of the townspeople) walked through the fields and "seed" them. I repeat, all this was accompanied by fun, songs, dances and dressing up. (Actually, the theater was born from the cult of the god Dionysus). So, the carnival appeared a very, very long time ago. But then, apparently, its purpose was not at all the amusement of the population, but the maintenance of life.

traditional carnival

The tradition of carnival has not disappeared even with the advent of Christianity. Before Lent, that is, at the end of winter, Shrovetide festivities took place in many European cities. The word carnival itself, according to one version, means "farewell to meat." The oily Shrovetide is replaced by a skinny fast. (Look at the “Fight of Lent with Shrovetide” by P. Brueghel the Elder). Shrovetide festivities, that is, farewell to winter and preparation for spring, were also filled with fun, food and games. Then the festival finally took shape in a procession through the streets of the city. Then theatrical processions "attached" to them. For three days in a row, mummers walked the streets. People changed places, portrayed each other, the lower classes, the upper classes, scenes from the Old Testament, scenes from the New Testament. Then the chariots joined these processions. They were a moving stage.

The heyday of the carnival

The heyday of the carnival in Italy falls on the time of the Medici. The mummers accompanied decorated chariots on foot and on horseback and sang songs praising sensual earthly joys. As before, the main feature of the carnival was a way out of everyday life. It was the world inside out, the world in reverse (according to M. M. Bakhtin). Based on this idea, the jester, that is, the king, on the contrary, became the main thing during the carnival. Nothing could trample on this ancient custom! The Catholic Church had to make a concession, the only thing they managed to do was to reduce the number of days of the holiday.

Carnivals of the world

As you can see, the carnival is not just a holiday, not just fun, but a whole cult dating back to a very, very distant past. Not all ancient holidays have such persistence! Of course, now carnivals look completely different, and they mean much less than before, but, nevertheless, they are now held everywhere. What is this carnival anyway? What is so attractive about it for us, the modern inhabitants of the planet, whose existence is many, many times less dependent on the vagaries of nature?

Carnival Rio, Brazil

Carnival in Rio traditionally begins in the last week of February. Just like before, it means the near beginning of Great Lent and begins forty days before Easter. Carnival in Rio lasts five days. People from all over the world come to see this grandiose theatrical procession. The beginning of the carnival itself is indicated by the handing over of the keys to the city to the "King of the Carnival". For the duration of the holiday, this king has every right to introduce his own laws. The first and most important order that he gives to his "subjects" is simple and pleasant: fun! Fun should spread throughout the city! Of course, there are no disagreements. All week people rest from work. Half-dressed women and men roam the streets, everyone is dancing and enjoying life.

The most exciting thing about the Brazilian Carnival is the parade of Samba schools. Schools compete among themselves for the title of the best. Rehearsals for next year begin almost immediately after the end of the carnival.

Venice Carnival. Italy.

Just like the carnival in Rio, the Venice Carnival begins before Lent. Already in 1262, the carnival acquired the status of a real holiday. The opening of the carnival takes place on the square in front of the cathedral with a theatrical performance, where the troupes play the release of the Venetians. Football is an integral part of the program. The match takes place on the fifth day of the carnival. The Venetians are sure that it was they who came up with this sport, therefore, during the carnival, they reconstruct a medieval football match. Usually this closes the holiday, and the masks fall asleep until next year.

It is believed that this is where the tradition of wearing masks came from. The costume hid the real face and body of a person, erased social boundaries so as not to interfere with the main guest of the carnival - fun. Interestingly, at some point, the inhabitants of Venice were so imbued with the idea of ​​\u200b\u200bhiding their face that they used masks all the time. This, of course, gave rise to all sorts of crimes, because of which the city authorities had to ban the permanent wearing of masks. Now the Venice Carnival attracts a huge number of tourists. Because of this, of course, the holiday loses a lot, becoming a purely entertainment event.

Cologne carnival. Germany

On November 11 of each year at 11:11 a.m., future participants and organizers of the carnival open a carnival meeting. Until February (as we can see, February is a common month for all carnivals) they will discuss the carnival program. They say that the Cologne carnival is almost the only time when the German ceases to be restrained and harsh. But something German still remains in the opening of the carnival. At 11.11 matriarchy begins! Women are storming the city hall, and ties are cut off from all the men they meet! Although the celebration takes place throughout the city, and especially in pubs and bars, there is also a main procession. Carnival communities go through the streets and carry carts behind them. On the wagons, as a rule, there are funny figures of politicians made of papier-mâché.

Trinidad and Tobago are islands. We know them from the annual carnivals, which also take place in February. The appearance of this holiday on the islands dates back to 1838. Initially, it looked like an exquisite costume ball, but later the city also fell out. Carnival starts on Friday. On this day, they choose the queen and king of calypso (Afro-Caribbean music that sounds throughout the city during the entire festival). In general, this event is very musical - everywhere they knock on steel drums and dance. (Nevertheless, let us recall the orgiastic origins).

Carnival in Barranquilla, Colombia

Carnival in Barranquilla is called the folklore and national carnival of Colombia. It also starts at the end of February, but the rehearsals of the carnival are in full swing in advance. The holiday begins on the Saturday closest to Lent. It begins with the coronation of the queen and a solemn speech. On Saturday you can see the platform parade. Many folklore groups take part in it. Sunday is dedicated to the big parade, and Monday is dedicated to folk music popular in this region. Tuesday - the closing of the carnival - is dedicated to the funeral of Joselito. Joselito is a fictional character, the personification of carnival fun. But every year in February, Joselito is resurrected and lives again for several days of a fun carnival. In general, the carnival in Barranquilla is a very bright and informative spectacle, because here you can see all the shades of Colombia with all its multicolor.

Carnival in Nice, France

Exists since 1924. (Allegedly, the Duke of Anjou came here to relax and brought with him fun, which soon turned into a carnival). Now the carnival in Nice lasts two weeks. According to the carnival tradition, on the first day, the citizens and guests of Nice meet Fun. On the Massenafaçada Square, the houses, previously “pasted” with plywood and painted by artists, light up with a multitude of light bulbs. A distinctive feature of the carnival in Nice is the battle of flowers. Huge platforms are completely decorated with fresh flowers, and all this beauty joyfully rolls through the streets of Nice. At the end of the carnival, according to the carnival tradition already known to us, the “effigy” of the carnival is burned on the streets.

Carnival in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain

Just like all other carnivals, the Spanish carnival lasts a week. Carnival is considered an international tourism festival. The carnival is formally divided into two parts. This is an official carnival and a street carnival. All the main streets of the city are filled with mummers. From everywhere you can hear music, both folk and modern, theatrical performances and chariots with huge puppets on them.

MardiGras carnival in New Orleans, USA

MardiGra is Fat Tuesday. The holiday is somewhat similar to Shrovetide and is its analogue. In 1872, the rules for the MardiGras carnival were established in New Orleans. The carnival has its own king and queen, crowned at the very beginning of the holiday.

Carnival in Goa, India

Here, the main member of the carnival is the funny King Momo. He sits on a huge festive platform and is the full owner of the entire festival. It is believed that the Portuguese brought carnivals to India. At first, the locals did not understand its essence, but later, and especially now, they themselves take part in it with great joy and interest. Costumes, chariots and scenes for the carnival begin to be prepared six months in advance, but the main part of this holiday is food.

Basel Carnival, Switzerland

One of the oldest carnivals (from about the 16th century). Leads its history from knightly tournaments. Interestingly, even now only privileged groups are allowed to participate in the carnival. These are groups of carnival-musical unions. There are about 300 of them in total. Thus, the Swiss carnival (which is unusual for other carnivals) divides the participants into artists and spectators, and mixing between them is almost impossible. The carnival begins early in the morning, when it is still dark on the streets. Lighting in the city is extinguished. Carnival participants illuminate the space with their fancy lanterns. A lot of amazing light changes the city beyond recognition and creates an atmosphere of something new, mysterious. At noon, another procession begins, this time more traditional - artists in costumes and with musical instruments walk through the streets. Another distinctive feature of the carnival in Switzerland can be called the second day. It is considered "children's", because children are dressed up in costumes on this day.

Carnival in Germany and other German-speaking lands

Kolyazin V.F. From Mystery to Carnival: Theatricality of the German Religious

And areal scenes of the early and late Middle Ages. - M.: Nauka, 2002, p. 88-118

Carnival is an ancient and unusually versatile phenomenon. He has many faces, like a Hindu deity, because he combines the ethos and genre formations of pagan ritual and church action, the centuries-old traditions of buffoonery and oral literature, the square spectacle and the most ancient forms of theater. Carnival itself is a ritual theater performed by the people on the street, but carnival, with its powerful field of play and visual forms, is also an integral element of the modern theatrical worldview. The European stage from time to time experienced powerful waves of carnivalization (let's name at least the names of Reinhardt, Vakhtangov, Evreinov, Meyerhold, Brecht, Besson, Mnushkin). And today, carnival and various carnival forms are a powerful generator of ideas for modern theatrical thinking. Meanwhile, there are almost no works on the history of the German carnival in Russia.

Carnival in the broad sense of the word, according to M. Bakhtin's definition, is "the totality of all the various festivities, rituals and forms of the carnival type" 1 . Such an interpretation implies consideration of the holy holidays of the church annual cycle - Christmas time (Zwö lften), Lent Eve (Fastnacnt), Trinity Days (Pfingsten), Harvest Festival (Erntefest). If we add here the rituals and secular holidays of the Middle Ages, with their winter, spring, summer and autumn cycles (the reconstruction of the annual calendar of all these holidays was proposed by M. Reutin) 2, then we get a concept that is comprehensive, if not exorbitantly expanded. Carnival in the narrow sense of the word, as it is commonly considered in the German-speaking tradition, is fastnacht or fascing - festivities that take place during the six "fat days" preceding Ash Wednesday (Aschermittwoch), the beginning of Lent - Quadragint. Every year in February, starting from Thursday and ending on Tuesday of the following week, a crowd of merry mummers performed many clownish rites that violated all norms of Christian and social order. Jesters and buffoonery as an expression of extreme freedom of behavior and creativity ruled the medieval city these days.

Carnival in German-speaking countries, called there most often by regional synonyms: Fasching - in Munich, Fastnacht - in Frankfurt or Basel, Fastelovend - in Cologne, or Schembartlauf ) - in Nuremberg, differs significantly from the carnival-
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La in the Italian regions, although he borrowed a lot from him, developing for a long time in parallel under the dictates of the Vatican - the capital of Catholicism. The German carnival is a highly ordered and fairly closed structure, much closer to church canons than the Italian or French carnival.

About the carnival in Germany (however, not only in Germany) there are mountains of research. It has been considered and is being considered from the historical-cultural, anthropological, theological, folklore, theatrical, philological, and finally semiotic points of view. Some are occupied by the religious subtext of the action, others by pure carnival forms, the third by the idea of ​​buffoonery and the clownish worldview, and the fourth by the modeling of signs-parodies.

The folklore approach to carnival experienced a real revival in post-war Germany, firmly connected with the theological one, centers of its study were formed in Munich, Freiburg, Konstanz, Nuremberg. The Germans are proud of their school of folklore-theological "carnival studies", founded by the Munich culturologist Dietz Rüdiger Moser and continued by his students - Werner Moser, Jürgen Küster and others. In the Swabian-Allemanic region, a more secular tradition is preferred; Here, not far from Constanta, the Museum of the History of the Carnival was created following the example of the Dutch. The Swiss (and above all the Basel researchers who have at their disposal a museum in Binnigen) take their historical and national traditions as a starting point.

Our subject is special, rather specific - the theatrical and spectacular side of the carnival, the theatrical forms nurtured by it and grown on its soil, its theatrical (or proto-theatrical) types, masks, costumes, props and forms of performance (disguise), a system of allegories, the entire richest repertoire of buffoonery , i.e. specific folk acting, its simplest and more complex spatial and decorative techniques. It goes without saying that in this case it is impossible to abstract from the history of the issue, from various areas of "carnival studies" (since it is there that the main sources of study are contained), from their polemics and contradictions.

From the very beginning, it should be said that the Russian school of carnival studies, represented primarily by Bakhtin and his followers, sharply diverges from the German one. This contradiction manifested itself with particular force in the discussions of the early 1990s. around the ideas of the Russian philologist on the pages of the Heidelberg magazine "Euphorion" shortly after the translations of Bakhtin's main works on the folk culture of the Renaissance and carnival appeared in Germany - with a huge delay. German researchers, and above all the head of the school D.-R. Moser, did not accept the Bakhtinian concept of grassroots laughter culture. Moser's follower Jurgen Küster wrote: "The history of the origin of the carnival is completely unknown. It was the obscurity of the ancient origins and the early development of the traditional customs of the late Middle Ages that led to numerous speculations about the anthropological structures of the masquerade. It seems highly improbable that the holiday of the Christian
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The calendar, which in its structure for about 1900 years was determined by religious thinking and action, can be measured by anthropological standards. 3 its history (However, Bakhtin's Russian opponent A.Ya. Gurevich considers Bakhtin's concept "rather the mythology of carnival and laughter culture than their actual history" - which is not without a grain of truth, especially in relation to the German carnival).

We will constantly keep this contradiction in mind when talking about carnival forms. Two different approaches to an ancient phenomenon, the origin of which remains unclear - can they be compatible or reconciled? Carnival in the view of the German school is a church-established holiday, a direct continuation of Catholicism; the whole essence of carnival in the understanding of Bakhtin is in the opposition of the areal spirit to church-state officialdom, in the free flight of l "anima allegra (cheerful soul) of the jester. The description and analysis of the carnival for the German school is, first of all, the identification of the Christian meaning and subtext of the main carnival forms and symbols, for Bakhtin, it is the identification of the main motifs of folk culture that violate church dogma.There is a feeling that we are talking about two completely different carnivals.

Carnival has survived all times. Regarding the medieval carnival we are studying (since it is obvious that there is a new carnival of the 18th-19th centuries and a new, highly commercialized carnival of the 20th century), we will accept the periodization proposed by the "Bakhtinist" M. Reutin:

Early Middle Ages - the beginning of the XIII century. Carnival before carnival - agricultural cults with their inherent sequence of fasting, execution-consumption and festive fullness;
- the beginning of the XIII century. - middle of the XVI century. The carnival itself is the ritual basis of the folklore culture of the medieval city. The general loosening of the ritual structure and the emergence of a parodic series;
- middle of the XVI century. - new time. Carnival after carnival;
- the result of a consistent rethinking of areal forms in terms of the Christian tradition 4 .
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Any periodization is, of course, conditional. So, in the XVI-XVII centuries, and even later, "carnival proper" coexisted with "carnival after carnival", and sometimes successfully replaced it altogether. Equally conditional is the classification of carnival characters given by Dietz Rüdiger Moser: tempters, rulers, laymen, jesters, sinners.

Origin of carnival

The school of folklore, headed by Moser, seeks to establish universally in Germany the view of the origin of the carnival from the liturgy. Representatives of this school reject the presence of all sorts of pagan and pre-Christian-Germanic roots in the carnival, stating that this point of view is derived not from tradition, but from the historical mythology of the 19th century. and then supported by the Nazis for their propaganda purposes.

On the whole, the history of carnival can be viewed as the history of its incessant bans by the church, its secularization and gradual desecularization, which resulted in the semi-secular carnivals and masquerades of the 19th century organized by various guilds and the semi-commercialized carnival of the 20th century. The medieval carnival thus combines sometimes competing church and secular traditions.

Since ancient times, carnival has been associated with clerical holidays, with the amusements of the liturgical cycle - it either imitated them, or competed with them.

But in the same way, he is a product of the playful creativity of the urban masses, who ridiculed certain disorders and sought entertainment in masquerade and satire. In more recent times, especially in the 20th century, carnivals have taken on the character of commercial and entertainment enterprises on a huge scale, often with political overtones. Today, in many cities in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, there is a whole carnival industry. But at first it was primarily a procession, a procession not associated with any community, an organization that goes back to pagan customs, to the cult of spring festivities, pleasing the gods of fertility and natural forces.

Etymologists often derive the word "carnival" directly from Latin, from "char" - a festively decorated ship-shaped cart, an indispensable feature of any procession of antiquity. Many historians, including Sorbonne professor Jacques Heyers, consider such interpretations to be superficial. Ancient, often uncontrolled meanings in the Middle Ages are erased from memory, giving way to "Christian influences, new symbols of a gradually maturing ritual that developed according to its own rhythm" 5 . Much more accurate and justified is the interpretation of carnival as the last days on the eve of fasting, days of unlimited freedom, when you can still eat meat: carne vale. Thus, carnival is also a ceremony of transition from "Fat Tuesday" (Fetter Dienstag) to "Ash Wednesday" (Wednesday in the first week of Great Lent - Aschermittwoch), a celebration of abundance, pleasing the flesh, but also the fight against the coming Lent.
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Many folklorists (in particular, Uwe Schulz, the author of the well-known study "Feast. Its history in the aspect of culture from antiquity to the present day", Munich, 1988) 6 consider ancient Roman saturnalia to be the source of the carnival in Germany. The excavations of the Cologne archaeologists testify that the Hellenistic-Orientalist mystery cults penetrated the Rhine c at the latest in the 2nd millennium of our era. The Roman pantheon in its entirety moved here, as well as the veneration of those gods who were the forerunners of carnival amusements and buffoonish mischief.

The Roman conquerors and merchants brought the feast of Saturnalia with them everywhere, wherever fate threw them, or rather, the will of the emperor. Roman soldiers did not forget about their holidays during campaigns - they dressed in women's clothes, put on wigs with a scythe, took a spindle in their hand, and spoke in falsetto. Certain rituals of the Romans, associated with the seasonal alternation of death and becoming, light and darkness, the veneration of fertility magic and the taming of evil demons, later merged with Germanic cults and subsequently merged into Christianity. Many features of the Roman saturnalia have survived in a modified form in the carnival to this day.

The Romans held a seven-day festival in honor of Saturn in mid-December, during which the slaves were set free, and from among the representatives of the lower class a jester's king was elected, who surrounded himself with dignitaries elected by dice. Giving foolish orders and urging his retinue to drink, dance, rage and indulge in revelry, he thereby signaled the reign of a mad world. At the time of Saturnalia, city councils and courts stopped working, schools were closed. Everyone put on masquerade costumes, sat down at the tables and began to feast and give each friend all kinds of gifts, and above all wax candles. The main formative principles of Saturnalia were closely intertwined universal equality and turning the normal "upside down" - "the world turned upside down" ("the world inside out" - to use the idiom invented by Tick). Everyone put on a hat, which was considered a symbol of freedom. Slaves behaved like masters, allowing themselves to be served at feasts. Slaves were given four liters of wine in excess of the norm (because of which Cato dubbed the Roman carnival "wet days of Saturn"). Saturnalia ended with a cruel action: the jester's king was publicly executed.

Another holiday of the ancient Romans - lupercalia, held in February in honor of the god Faun (otherwise - Luperc) and associated with the ancient magic of fertility, also left its mark on the rituals of the Germans. Roman priests flogged passers-by, mostly women, with magical belts cut from the skins of sacrificial animals (according to legend, this stimulated fertility). In the rituals of the Germans, belts were replaced by rods, the blows of which were supposed to contribute to the fertility of the earth, people and animals. This custom was preserved for a very long time in the rural carnival, while in the city carnival the rods were transformed into beaters or rattles. In the Allemanian carnival, the flesh before the beginning of the 20th century. the custom of sectioning with an inflated pig bladder was preserved.
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The ancient Germans borrowed from the Romans many other pre-Christian cults and customs, which they also borrowed from other peoples, for example, various comic semantic reversals, equalization of the upper and lower social strata, the custom of carrying a luxurious ship on wheels during the procession ( known in ancient Babylon as an element of the procession in honor of the god Marduk, and in ancient Egypt as the "ship of Osiris" in the procession in honor of his wife, the goddess Isis, who went on a ship in search of the body of her murdered husband)

One of the finds of the Cologne archaeologists is noteworthy: an image (stone plaquette) of a Roman ship of fools, which art historians interpret as the personification of an orgy of drunken Eros 7 . The find clearly confirms the importance of the jester's ship (long before the literary image of Sebastian Brant's poem) as one of the most ancient pan-European carnival rituals. The lavishly decorated ship-shaped carriage passes through all the cultures of the ancient world and is firmly established in the carnival, where it is theatricalized in various ways, as can be seen in the example of the Cologne fastnacht or the Nuremberg Schembartlauf.

All these ancient rituals, with their mockery of the earthly bonds that bind a person, a short-term triumph over injustice, expressed a whole complex of ethical and aesthetic aspirations of a person of the pre-Christian era, the era of pagan myths: longing for a happy state of mankind before the emergence of the state with its forms of oppression, the desire to intervene in the cycle of nature and overcome death - and at the same time they represented the philosophy of the pra-carnival.

frankfurt carnival

The pagan traditions held out for a particularly long time in Frankfurt. Frankfurt carnivals until the beginning of the 17th century. were associated with light, fire and noise. The ancient Germans believed in nature spirits and demons. Ice and snow they considered the product of winter demons, who, fearing daylight and noise, did their deeds in the dark nights. Therefore, light and noise were the first means of combating these evil spirits. The magic of fire in German folk beliefs is associated with the veneration of the sun. In rural carnivals, the carrying and throwing up of torches and the descent of flaming wheels and rings down the mountain are common pastimes. The audience had the feeling that "the sun is falling from the sky" 8 .

Flaming torches in the festivities of the beginning of spring have been known since the early Middle Ages. The devastating fire in the monastery of Lorsch in 1090, according to the chronicles, happened precisely because of the carnival. From ancient times they burned an effigy of winter in the fire, hoping in this way to get rid of evil. This custom acquired its interpretation in medieval Frankfurt, where symbolic images of winter were thrown into the icy water of the Main and a magnificent carnival funeral was held.

The traditional Frankfurt carnival is older and more mischievous than the Mainz and even Cologne ones. Fearing the wildness of masked jesters, the city council already in 1355 banned the wearing of masks (Vermummungsverbot). On the margins of the historical document there is a laconic note by a scribe of a later time: "not observed during the carnival."
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Despite such decisions of the council, the people of Frankfurt did not abandon the carnival. Magnificent feasts of the patricians of the XV century. are described in the diaries of Bernard Rohrbach and his son Job, who belonged to the patrician society of Alten-Limpurg.

The carnival of 1466 turned out to be unusually magnificent. On Sunday and Monday, apprentices, together with women, arranged dinner in one of the houses, after which they started dancing. On Wednesday afternoon, the same company went in procession to the Sachsenhausen district, where the dances took place in three stops, after which the procession went to the church of St. Then the procession went to the church of St. Anthony, where they also arranged a dance. After the third dance, the procession returned. On Wednesday, the carnival society indulged in games, and a competition, a kind of tournament, was arranged near the Old Town Hall. On Thursday, in Becker's garden, the feast was repeated at the expense of the women, in the evening the procession returned to the house right for dinner. On Sunday we ate almond pie. The women who baked it were supposed to be kissed by the whole society. The feast this time continued all night. Monday began with a feast, and ended with apprentices bathing in the "white bath".

Young apprentices, who were not allowed into the house, arranged their carnival on the street, enriching it with various undertakings. A young man decorated with gingerbread (a variant of the carnival king) was carried on a stretcher through the whole city, while blazing bundles of straw were thrown into the sky. The procession ended with a visit to the monastery. In 1497, Job reported that on Shrovetide Tuesday, after a common dinner, the usual tour of the Frankfurt monasteries was undertaken to martyr with the monks and start dancing with the nuns 9 .

On the day after Ash Wednesday (Aschermittwoch; Wednesdays in the first week of Lent), the revelry ended. It ended before Ash Wednesday due to the fact that on Wednesday the penitential service and the most strict fast began. Traditionally, women served fresh green soup at the end of the carnival. On the evening of the first Monday of Lent, they ate only cheese with almonds, milk pudding, eggs and nuts - typical quick dishes.

While the Frankfurt patricians were celebrating in their homes, craftsmen, with the help of their guilds, from the 15th century. began to arrange mischievous carnival processions throughout the city. A particularly striking event was when the coopers combined the procession with the festive cooperage right on the frozen Main. Early on Tuesday morning, apprentices went out on the ice and made two huge barrels in front of the public. At the same time, they were watched by four experienced coopers, who were feasting in a tent together with caretakers, guild jurors. At dusk, dancing began around the finished barrels. Then they were solemnly carried to the wine market, which was located on the very embankment between the entrance gate and the gate of Leonard. At the end of the holiday on the following Saturday, both barrels were handed over to the city council. The town chronicles record seven such cooper carnivals between 1608 and 1838.
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Another carnival custom that persisted until the middle of the last century (Goethe describes it) is the children's singing "Hawele lone". On Tuesday, when the carnival was at its peak, the children went from house to house and sang the following rhymes of "Heischeverse" (a kind of carols):

Favorite Shrovetide foods from Epiphany to Maslenitsa in Frankfurt were crebbels (stuffed doughnuts) and sandwiches with fried lard. (In the 19th century, there was even a satirical carnival newspaper called the Frankfurt Krebbel-Zeitung.)

On February 1, 1519, after the death of Emperor Maximilian I, popularly known as the "last knight" of the Habsburg family, the Frankfurt city council issued a decree on the complete ban on carnivals and street processions: "no one has the right to walk the streets, day or night, indulging laughter" 11 .

The first carnival brotherhoods in Frankfurt arose in the 1850s, but they were fond of masquerade balls, and only in 1862 the clown fraternity again went out into the street, with the crowning of the "king of clowns" on the square near the Old Town Hall. In the old days, at the same time, wine flowed from the Fountain of Justice, a bull was roasted right there, and the king showered coins on his subordinates 12 .

Cologne fastnacht

The type of clownish festival in Cologne - Fastelovend or Fasteleer - is closely connected with the historical fate of this city. In the Middle Ages "holy Cologne" ("hillige Coellen") was the second largest city in Germany. Its carnival tradition is based primarily on the fact that the city was intended to embody not only the power of Rome, but also the superiority of Roman culture. In ancient Cologne, Germanic cults, and above all fertility rituals, mixed with Roman customs. Chronicles testify that there were about forty Roman, five Celtic and seven German deities. The fact that Cologne was a Roman colony, the capital of the Roman province of Germania Inferior, would seem to suggest that the Cologne carnival is par excellence a continuation and Christianized form of the Roman saturnalia and lupercalia. In the romantic Cologne carnival of modern times, contemporaries saw echoes of Saturnalia: as in Rome, an endless row of open carts stretched around the city, crowded with revelers in masks and without masks, as in Rome, spectators stared at the jubilant, raging carnival crowd from all windows .. It is also believed that the custom of decorating houses and streets for holidays with garlands of flowers and leaves is also from Roman times.
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But the roots of the daring, intoxicating Rhine carnival are much deeper - in the pagan customs of the Franks of the Germanic tribes who inhabited this land from the end of the 4th century. 13 According to the established view, the origins of the Cologne carnival (since the 12th century known as Fastabend), as well as the South German "fasnet", are in ancient rituals for the expulsion of winter and fertility rituals, in which Roman, Celtic and Germanic customs intertwined. Ancient customs - the cult of the deities of ancient Germanic mythology Isis and Nerthus, dressing up as bears, deer, goats and other animals associated with the ritual of fertility - were preserved in the Rhine villages until the 8th-9th centuries, while in Cologne the influence of the church was much stronger, and therefore traces of ancient cult rites are hardly readable here. Nevertheless, the mask (ritual-lema) of the bear is still preserved in the Cologne carnival, having almost lost the original meaning of the demon of fertility.

The struggle between paganism and Christianity is evidenced by the numerous prohibitions of ancient customs by the synod and city authorities. Pope Gregory II, at the request of the King of the Franks Karlman (Karlmann, ruled from 768 to 771), back in 742 issued a list of obscene pagan customs and superstitions. The abbot of the Benedictine monastery, Regino von Prüm, in his 900 sermons, strictly forbade the monks from watching "vile entertainment scenes" with a bear and indulging in such diabolical activities as wearing demonic masks. The influence of the church was significantly strengthened under Charlemagne (742-814), when the residence of the archbishop was transferred to Cologne, and under Archbishop Bruno (mid-10th century), under whom it became almost impossible to reveal one's sympathies for paganism. The sermons of this time forbade the February rite of expelling winter as pagan. The ancient rites were preserved largely thanks to the cunning of the stubborn pagan-baptizers, who managed to introduce pagan customs into Shrovetide holidays.

However, in the 10th century, during the time of Archbishop Bruno, the stubborn resistance of the church to pagan devilry was replaced by the gradual installation of carnival in the church calendar year and more flexible control over ineradicable pagan addictions. From century to century, carnival bans by the city authorities are repeated. So, in 1403, any "disguise in the days of fastnacht" was forbidden under the threat of traffic in five Cologne marks. However, from the second half of the XII century. the word "vastavent", "fastabend" is perceived naturally, in close connection with the subsequent post.
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The duration of the carnival at first was not the same for everyone. Monks and clergy, under the Greek-Byzantine influence, began to fast already on cheese days - the last Sunday before Great Lent (Sonntag Quinquagesima), while the profane - only on Quatecost - the first Sunday of Lent (Sonntag Quadragesima). From the 10th century the carnival began to begin for everyone on the same day - on Ash Wednesday, but the division into master's, priestly and old carnivals remained.

Many historians consider the behavior of church dignitaries of the Middle Ages to be evidence of double morality, on the one hand, anathematizing demonic games, on the other hand, happily indulging in carnival entertainment at the permitted time. The Archbishop of Cologne Ferdinand issued in 1644 a special instruction regulating church carnival practice. Particular attention was paid to the "feast of the subdeacons", popularly known as the "jester's carnival" (Narrenfest), whose homeland is considered to be France.

According to the canon, at first the buffoon's pope, or the buffoon's bishop, was elected. Then the lower rank, sitting on a donkey, escorted him to the church, where a song of praise sounded and worship was performed in the old manner. The jester's ceremony was accompanied by dancing and feasting. No less famous is the "donkey holiday". A luxuriously dressed young girl with a child in her arms was put on a donkey (a hint of Mary's flight from Egypt). Then the procession, accompanied by the clergy, went to the church, where a jester's liturgy took place, at which those standing around the donkey instead of "amen" bleated like a donkey.

The subdeacons of the Cologne Cathedral, together with the priests of the nearby cathedrals, also allowed themselves to fool around on Epiphany holidays. In 1645, the jester's king was even allowed to celebrate mass in the presence of the capitulprelates, Te Deum was sung by candlelight, as well as baptismal hymns and merry hymns. Monasteries and church shelters did not stand aside. This is how a young Cologne nun described the local carnival in her letter:
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Of course, this only happens outside the monastery walls... We experienced the carnival with all our passion... We danced and jumped all day long. At night, when the abbess had gone to bed, we drank tea, coffee, and chocolate, and played cards and checkers." 14 Often the nuns amused themselves like secular simpletons, tearing off each other's hats or jester's caps.

The masquerades and processions of the religious brotherhoods were distinguished by a special invention, burlesque and unbridledness. The Cologne diocesan synod testified in 1662: “The secular frivolity of stupid people has crept very far, even whole buffoon performances are staged with great noise, they beat the timpani, as if calling for a fight, amusing spectacles are shown for the public’s needs; women dress up as men; laughter, jokes, loud talk." The Cologne city council, wanting to support the indignant church fathers, strictly forbade clerics to wear masks.

Religious masquerades in the bosom of the church had a huge number of supporters, as evidenced by the text of the 15th century that has come down to us, which can be called a kind of manifesto of buffoonery: "Our ancestors were great and respectable men. They established the buffoon carnival according to wise understanding. Let's live like them and do what they did. We celebrate the jester's carnival to please ourselves, so that the buffoonery that we inherited may find an outlet at least once a year. Wine barrels will burst if they are not released from time to time air. We are all old casks, not so skillfully casked, and from which the wine of wisdom would vanish if we let it go on roaming, because of untiring attention in the service of the Lord. .." 15
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In the history of the burgher Cologne carnival, a huge role was played by guilds which flourished in the 12th century. As in many other cities, the care of carnival rites passed into the hands of apprentices. The first mention of the celebration of the carnival in Cologne on the pages of the city sworn book is dated March 5, 1341 (a short record forbids from now on issuing money for the carnival from the city treasury; this ban was repeated in 1272, 1395 and 1396). Starting from the 14th century, the premises of the guilds, along with the large state houses of the patricians, became places for organizing carnivals with obligatory feasts and round dances.

The Cologne fastnacht of these times is inextricably linked with the carnival tribute collectors (Heischegangen) walking around the city. The custom of stopping people on the street and forcing them to pay off with money (Krongeld - money for carnival wreaths) persisted until the beginning of the 15th century, until it acquired an ugly character and was banned (the ban, however, did not last long).

It is noteworthy that the carnival in medieval Cologne, which had a democratic constitution since 1396, did not abolish class division; clergy, patricians and artisans celebrated it separately. During the carnival, the patricians opened the doors of their houses to relatives and friends, the banquets culminating between two and four in the morning. The Chronicle of Count von Zimmern tells of one such feast in 1536 at the house of the mayor of Cologne, Wasserfras, giving details of costumes, food and drink.

The diary of Hermann von Weinsberg, who was one of the members of the city council, contains information about the carnival in burgher families, where it was customary to arrange mutual visits with funny pranks in masks 16 . In 1750, shops appeared in Cologne where you could rent masks.

The "offensive of freedom" was publicly proclaimed by the city fathers from the balcony of the town hall. A description of what happened after this proclamation has been preserved: “And then there was a crazy revival in all the streets, in all the Houses, which lasted three days. Trade of all kinds was suspended, time belonged to only one crazy passion. to indulge in buffoonery together
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Fun, or went out into the streets and played merry scenes in this or that house, in a tavern or inn, open day and night, or simply on the streets, crowded with joyful and jubilant townspeople, and all this either in mockery, or for the sake of a cheerful, pleasant pastime and fun. All the nights in a row there were balls, at which the masks continued friendly, playful, but often far from harmless fun, moving from dances to general practical jokes.

The organizers of the open, public, folk carnival were guilds that gathered apprentices into the so-called cliques (Banden). With deafening drumbeats and whistles, they marched around the city, playing skits, saying "spruhi" and whole speeches, leading round dances and dancing. Unfortunately, no documents have been preserved from which one could learn something about the content and political meaning of oral speeches, which, of course, touched the powerful of this world and expressed the opinion of the street.

Rooted in antiquity, a graceful but very dangerous sword dance was usually assigned to the guild of blacksmiths. Researchers point to the cult origin of this dance, mentioned by Tacitus and personifying the struggle between good and evil demons, between summer and winter 18 . The dancers were usually dressed in white shirts, with bells hanging on their legs and on their bodies. The following description, dated 1590, has been preserved in the archives of the guild: "Each dancer turned around himself, at the same time walking in a circle and defending himself from the swords of other dancers threatening him. Less dangerous, but perhaps even more skillful, was the hoop dance performed by young men "coopers. There were also graceful jumps and flips through the hoop. Some dancers danced on a rolling barrel, others swung the hoop during the dance, into which still others jumped" 19.

The Cologne carnival was considered the most mischievous in Germany. To this day, they say that a Cologne would sooner lay his bed in a pawnshop than refuse to participate in the carnival. The custom of "stopping and catching", in every way teasing fellow citizens on the street, thereby inducing them to participate in the carnival, persisted until the 19th century. Nowhere have young cliques and students under cover of masks hunted girls so wildly and so furiously. The pleasure of the girls was to allow themselves to be hunted and caught. The ban of 1431 picturesquely characterizes the rampant freemen of the Cologne carnival: “Even on Ash Wednesday, men and women dressed up in carnival costumes without any measure, which unusually embarrassed our fellow citizens, as it happened more than once in other times. In order to prevent the friction that occurs for this reason , the members of the city council decided that no one from any guilds, councils and any other societies henceforth on this day in the carnival has no right to participate in the carnival, that in the squares and in the villages only on Monday, following the Sunday of Estomini, an honest community of citizens games are allowed, but on the condition that at six o'clock everyone would already be sitting in their homes, and night feasts and nightly drunkenness, dancing with a sword and various costumes both in the squares and in the villages, along with grub beyond measure, libations , dances and all other easy thinking must be completely and completely abolished" 20 .
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The old market has also witnessed a lot of rather rough and wild entertainment. One of such scenes of the carnival of 1498 is described by the Kölhoff Chronicle. Five blind men, absurdly dressed, in heavy armor and with heavy clubs, were thrown into the bars, in which a tied pig rushed about, which the blind had to finish off. The blind beat each other most often. The audience reacted accordingly 21 .

XV-XVI centuries in Cologne - the era of carefree carnival fun of the people, interrupted for a long time by the counter-reformation of the Catholic Church, which was subject to the Jesuits, who were extremely hostile to the carnival, as well as the advent of wars - the Cologne War of 1583 and the Thirty Years War. The students of the Jesuit college were obliged to spend hours in prayer during the carnival. The Jesuits more than once (1600, 1645) staged penitential processions and performances, calling the carnival audience possessed by the devil to asceticism and piety.

The peace of Rashtat in 1714 once again returned its freedom to the carnival.

The baroque and rococo times, thanks to the flourishing of the court style, and partly to the powerful influence of Italy, enriched the Cologne fastnacht with new elements and forms. The people of Cologne took pleasure in comparing themselves with the Romans and the Venetians. Since 1730, a new, "noble" form of carnival entertainment for the court nobility appeared - masquerade balls (Redoute), following the example of noisy masquerades at the court of the Elector of Bonn. In the city chronicles, "fastnacht" began to be called "Carneval".
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The functions of the organizers of the masquerade were so significant that Cologne historians are inclined to call them directors 22 . Even their names have been preserved - for example, the organizer of one of the first was a certain Mr. Ferrari, and his follower was Josef El, who worked on the Dome Square. However, can they really be considered the forerunners of directing? In order to streamline the fun and avoid fights with swords, which were constant companions of the Cologne carnivals and more than once led to deaths, the city council introduced at the end of 1782 the "Regulations on night masquerades." All participants in the masquerade had to be masked, but swords and canes (in which swords could be hidden) were prohibited. "Whoever, under the cover of a mask, dares to say rudeness to another or begins to find fault with him, should be removed from the ball, regardless of personality."

The elector's court near Epiphany organized its own carnival, according to the court ceremonial, where canons dressed in carnival costumes, knights of various orders, and the monastic nobility flocked. The masquerade lasted until the morning, his magnificent costumes were the complete opposite of the rough burgher fasteleur. Excited guests indulged in coffee and cocoa - at that time rare and sometimes forbidden drinks. In winter, masquerade sleigh rides were organized between Cologne and Bonn.

The tradition of plying carriages with jesters goes back to antiquity; down to pagan customs. City chronicles brought to us a lot of information on this subject. In 1133 Cologne weavers were dragging a wagon with jesters around the city. In 1235, Isabella of England, the future wife of Emperor Frederick II, who arrived in Cologne, was honored by a wagon with 22 jester monks who made faces and performed other pranks. During the carnival of 1679, famous for its snowy winter, the Cologne townsfolk used sledges instead of wagons for jesters 23 . The wagon of jesters on the last Monday of Maslenitsa (Rosenmontag), which became customary in later times, certainly inherited this ancient tradition. This is one of the persistent rituals of the German carnival in general.

The usual street Carneval of this time was opened - after a solemn mass - by children. The procession of grotesque satirical characters that followed was often supplemented by the performance of scenes. The main event played out over the next three days. According to the established route (named, in imitation of the Italians, Corso) - from the Old Market to High Street, through the Hay Market, Maltsmühle, Mühlenbach, High Gates - a procession moved: apprentices, all kinds of cliques, students, on foot, on horses and wagons. A cheerful, not always harmless dialogue began between the audience, leaning out of the open windows and standing along the streets, and the comedians. As in the old days, they threw peas at each other, according to the Roman custom, they threw confetti, which were tiny plaster dragees. Like the Romans, on Tuesday evening they went out into the street with burning lamps. This procession also turned into a fun game: everyone tried to extinguish the fire in the hands of each other.
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It is noteworthy that the custom of burying Shrovetide came to Cologne quite late - in the 17th century, being borrowed from a rural fair.

In the Middle Ages, this day broke down barriers between classes, ignored the rules of decency and allowed open ridicule of power. It was a time of uncontrolled fun, relaxation and permissiveness. Schools and courts were closed. Misunderstandings and quarrels were forgotten. Even the wars stopped their course.

Anna Baklaga found out how the carnival was born and what traditions have survived to this day.

Carnival is a day of unimaginable transformations. Bright outfits, general jubilation, incendiary dances and jokes - it is difficult to ignore such a procession. Therefore, every year, in February, thousands of people come to the birthplace of this holiday - to Europe. The word carnival itself is of Italian origin and translates as: "goodbye meat." The fact is that initially, this event meant farewell to meat food and entertainment before Lent. And only on the day of the carnival people allowed themselves almost everything. The most important difference between the carnival and other holidays is the abolition of all social statuses. And if other official holidays demonstratively emphasized the hierarchical differences of people, then the carnival was their complete opposite. The man seemed to be reborn. The carnival site opened up the possibility of relationships that are completely unusual for a certain type of people.

During the carnival, people allowed themselves almost everything

The prototype of this holiday in the pre-Christian era can be called the Roman Saturnalia. They were associated with the end of agricultural work. The motive was rest, and the revolution of the existing world order. Power passed to a fictitious king, the lower classes became the highest. In a word, people changed places and did what they cannot afford in ordinary life. The mask on the face was the main component of the image. She allowed to remain unrecognized and avoid punishment for her tricks. Masked people could publicly criticize the unjust government and those who hid their immoral deeds. And this was done in an extremely strict form.

After some time, the tradition of carnival spread throughout Europe. Now, this holiday is celebrated all over the world. However, each country has its own history and unique style.

Venice Carnival

Carnival in Venice is considered one of the most popular in the world. It is characterized by mystery and mysticism. In addition to traditional rituals, which are a huge stage performance, the Venetian carnival takes place every year under a special theme. This spectacle captures the spirit of visitors and not only. The whole city becomes the scene of action. The opening ceremony of the carnival is held on the main square of the city, in front of the Cathedral of St. Mark the Apostle. It is from there that the first costumed parade begins.

In Italy, long-nosed white masks were worn during the plague, or killer

At the carnival in Venice, you can find a whole abundance of mysterious masks. And only there you can see the masquerade regatta of local gondoliers. By the way, a white mask with a huge nose, beloved by tourists, has unpleasant associations for the townspeople. Indeed, in Italy, such masks were worn during the plague, and a sponge with vinegar was placed in a long nose so as not to catch the disease. Also, it was worn by very mysterious people or murderers.

Brazilian Carnival

An unforgettable show, fantastic outfits, complete freedom of expression - all this resonated in Rio. The popular Brazilian carnival "came" to the country from Portugal. The capital of the procession is the city of Rio de Janeiro, where the celebration lasts four days and four nights. The main pride of the carnival in Brazil is the parade of samba schools. The best representatives of different schools compete on a 700-meter-long alley called the Sambadrome. There are from three to five thousand speakers. Each group of dancers is assigned a specific theme, which they choose annually. And, in accordance with the chosen theme, each team draws up a platform, choreography, presentation and costumes.

Brazilian carnival has 3,000 to 5,000 performers

Every detail in this show is thought out to the smallest detail, because the competition evaluates not only the skill of dance schools. Costumes, scenery, the artistic embodiment of the theme, rhythmic accuracy, as well as the degree of enthusiasm of the public are brought to the judgment of experts. At the time of the carnival, in Rio de Janeiro they forget about work and plunge into the rhythm of the samba, which is danced by almost the entire city.

cologne carnival

Numerous festivities, dressing up, musical performances and costume balls - all this did not bypass the inhabitants of Cologne. A grandiose carnival procession passes through the central streets and squares of the city. A few months before the main holiday, the organizers come up with the slogan of the carnival - a song with which the procession will take place, and three main characters. Traditionally, they are a prince, a peasant and a maiden. And already in February, carnival meetings, balls and processions begin to take place in the city. And this goes on for six days. From early morning, during the official opening of the holiday, the streets of the city are filled with women. They storm the town hall of Cologne and do whatever they want that day. All days the city is filled with bright musical and carnival events. At the end of the carnival, an obligatory ritual is held - the burning of a large straw effigy. Residents of the city believe that in this way, before Lent, they are forgiven all the sins that have accumulated over the year.

Carnival in Nice

The holiday in Nice is celebrated by residents of the city for two weeks. The main characters of the carnival are giant papier-mâché dolls. They weigh up to two tons and rise eight or twelve meters above the wagons. A whole prefabricated stadium is being erected on Place Massena, and the houses are dressed in 120,000 square meters of plywood, which is painted by 120 artists.

Carnival in Nice continues for two weeks

You can also see real flower processions there. About twenty platforms are decorated with fresh flowers. To do this long and painstaking work, florists need 4000-5000 stems. Later, during the walk, thousands of flowers fly into the crowd. A fun holiday is accompanied by concerts, fireworks, and His Majesty the Carnival, with his queen.

Carnival in Santa Cruz de Tenerife

The Spanish carnival is second in size only to the Brazilian procession. Dressed up in a variety of costumes, almost everyone participates in the carnival. Live music is played everywhere and various souvenirs and food are sold. There are various balls, performances and concerts. Not without a parade of incendiary dances to Latin American melodies. The selection of the carnival queen, who will participate in the celebration throughout all days, can also be called a significant event of the holiday.

Carnival costumes can weigh more than a dozen kilograms

Candidates for this are selected throughout the year. The queen should be not only beautiful, but also quite hardy. After all, all these incredible costumes that are sewn for the carnival can weigh more than a dozen kilograms.

Carnival in Barranquilla

This one-of-a-kind carnival features Caribbean folklore, poetry-infused dances, comedy theatre, costumed performances and bands. Carnival in Colombia has been named by UNESCO as "the intangible treasure of humanity". During the holiday, which is multicultural in nature, everyone in the city is immersed in an illusory world of dreams.

countries. It is accompanied by mass folk festivals with street processions and theatrical performances.

The carnival appeared in the 9th-10th centuries. The earliest references to periodic city festivals in various cities of Western Europe date back to this time. The first carnivals appeared in Italy - the Venetian carnival, where large independent cities appeared first of all. Then carnivals appeared in France, and later in Germany: Mainz, Dusseldorf and Cologne.

Etymology

Supporters of the origin from "carne" point to variants of this word in Italian dialects, claiming that the source is the words carne levare"remove meat" prohibited in Lent.

There is a version of the origin from the Roman name of the festival Navigium Isidis- "carrus navalis".

Folk etymology - the origin of the word from carne vale"farewell to the meat" (cf. meat-empty).

celebration

Folk festive forms usually made up the second, unofficial half of the holiday, while the first was associated with the performance of certain church rituals. Only in the XVIII and XIX centuries. they separated, and the carnival began to exist as one of the types of mass entertainment.

The main part of any carnival is the procession along the main streets of the city. Its leading motive is abundance, which must be sated before Great Lent. It can be expressed in huge piles of agricultural products, flowers, foods that are fed to everyone. Everything that happens during the procession is emphatically playful. The main figure at the carnival is the jester. He sets the tone for both the procession and the performance, which then unfolds in the central square of the city.

In each city, the carnival developed according to a certain scenario that has developed over many years. The carnival was usually led by the city's merchant corporations. For example, the organizer of the butter carnival in Nuremberg was traditionally a corporation of butchers, and in France - winemakers.

European cities (including some Russian ones) that hold traditional carnivals are united by the Association of European Carnival Cities (FECC).

A detailed description of the carnival is available in the novel by Francois Rabelais "Gargantua and Pantagruel".

Researchers point to the relationship between the Western European carnival and Russian Shrovetide. A foreigner who visited Moscow under Ivan the Terrible wrote: “Shrovetide reminds me of an Italian carnival, which departs at the same time and in the same way ... Carnival only differs from Shrovetide in that in Italy day and night at this time horse and foot city patrol guard and does not allow excessive rampage; but in Moscow the very guards get drunk with wine and, together with the people, self-will.

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Notes

Literature

• Bakhtin M. M.
• Belkin A. A.. - M .: Nauka, 1975. - 192 p. - (Institute of Art History of the Ministry of Culture of the USSR).
• Kolyazin V. F. // Kolyazin V. F. From Mystery to Carnival: The Theatricality of the German Religious and Square Stages of the Early and Late Middle Ages. - M.: Nauka, 2002, p. 88-118

Links

• - scenes of folk festivals. Deutsche Welle report (unavailable link since 17-02-2016 (1467 days))

An excerpt characterizing the Carnival

“Women, women, women’s fees,” Alpatych said to himself and drove off, looking around the fields, where with yellowed rye, where with thick, still green oats, where there are still black ones that were just starting to double. Alpatych rode, admiring the rare harvest of spring crops this year, looking at the strips of rye peli, on which in some places they began to sting, and made his economic considerations about sowing and harvesting and whether any princely order had been forgotten.
Having fed twice on the road, by the evening of August 4, Alpatych arrived in the city.
On the way, Alpatych met and overtook the carts and troops. Approaching Smolensk, he heard distant shots, but these sounds did not strike him. He was most struck by the fact that, approaching Smolensk, he saw a beautiful field of oats, which some soldiers were obviously mowing for food and along which they camped; this circumstance struck Alpatych, but he soon forgot it, thinking about his own business.
All the interests of Alpatych's life for more than thirty years were limited by one will of the prince, and he never left this circle. Everything that did not concern the execution of the orders of the prince, not only did not interest him, but did not exist for Alpatych.
Alpatych, having arrived in Smolensk on the evening of August 4, stopped beyond the Dnieper, in the Gachen suburb, at the inn, at the janitor Ferapontov, with whom he had been in the habit of stopping for thirty years. Ferapontov twelve years ago, with the light hand of Alpatych, having bought a grove from the prince, began to trade and now had a house, an inn and a flour shop in the province. Ferapontov was a fat, black, red man of forty, with thick lips, a thick bump on his nose, the same bumps above his black, frowning eyebrows, and a thick belly.
Ferapontov, in a waistcoat and a cotton shirt, was standing by a shop overlooking the street. Seeing Alpatych, he approached him.
- Welcome, Yakov Alpatych. The people are out of the city, and you are in the city, - said the owner.
- What is it, from the city? Alpatych said.
- And I say - the people are stupid. Everyone is afraid of the French.
- Woman's talk, woman's talk! Alpatych said.
- So I judge, Yakov Alpatych. I say there is an order that they won't let him in, which means it's true. Yes, and the peasants ask for three rubles from the cart - there is no cross on them!
Yakov Alpatych listened inattentively. He demanded a samovar and hay for the horses, and after drinking tea he went to bed.
All night long the troops moved in the street past the inn. The next day, Alpatych put on a camisole, which he wore only in the city, and went on business. The morning was sunny, and from eight o'clock it was already hot. Expensive day for harvesting bread, as Alpatych thought. Shots were heard outside the city from early morning.
From eight o'clock cannon fire joined the rifle shots. There were a lot of people on the streets, hurrying somewhere, a lot of soldiers, but just as always, cabs drove, merchants stood at the shops and there was a service in the churches. Alpatych went to the shops, to government offices, to the post office and to the governor. In government offices, in shops, at the post office, everyone was talking about the army, about the enemy, who had already attacked the city; everyone asked each other what to do, and everyone tried to calm each other down.
At the governor's house, Alpatych found a large number of people, Cossacks and a road carriage that belonged to the governor. On the porch, Yakov Alpatych met two gentlemen of the nobility, of whom he knew one. A nobleman he knew, a former police officer, spoke with ardor.
“This is no joke,” he said. - Well, who is one. One head and poor - so one, otherwise there are thirteen people in the family, and all the property ... They brought everyone to disappear, what kind of bosses are they after that? .. Eh, I would hang the robbers ...
“Yes, it will,” said another.
“What do I care, let him hear!” Well, we are not dogs, - said the former police officer and, looking around, he saw Alpatych.
- Ah, Yakov Alpatych, why are you?
“By order of his excellency, to the governor,” Alpatych replied, proudly raising his head and putting his hand in his bosom, which he always did when he mentioned the prince ... “They were pleased to order to inquire about the state of affairs,” he said.
- Yes, and find out, - the landowner shouted, - they brought that no cart, nothing! .. Here she is, do you hear? he said, pointing to the direction from which the shots were heard.
- They brought that everyone to die ... robbers! he said again, and stepped off the porch.
Alpatych shook his head and went up the stairs. In the waiting room were merchants, women, officials, silently exchanging glances among themselves. The door to the office opened, everyone got up and moved forward. An official ran out of the door, talked something to the merchant, called behind him a fat official with a cross around his neck, and disappeared again through the door, apparently avoiding all the looks and questions addressed to him. Alpatych moved forward and at the next exit of the official, laying his hand on his buttoned frock coat, turned to the official, giving him two letters.
“To Mr. Baron Ash from the general chief prince Bolkonsky,” he announced so solemnly and significantly that the official turned to him and took his letter. A few minutes later the governor received Alpatych and hurriedly said to him:
- Report to the prince and princess that I didn’t know anything: I acted according to higher orders - that’s ...
He gave the paper to Alpatych.
“And yet, since the prince is unwell, my advice is for them to go to Moscow. I'm on my own now. Report ... - But the governor did not finish: a dusty and sweaty officer ran in the door and began to say something in French. Horror appeared on the Governor's face.
“Go,” he said, nodding his head to Alpatych, and began to ask the officer something. Greedy, frightened, helpless looks turned to Alpatych when he left the governor's office. Involuntarily listening now to the close and ever-increasing shots, Alpatych hurried to the inn. The paper given by Governor Alpatych was as follows:
“I assure you that the city of Smolensk does not yet face the slightest danger, and it is unbelievable that it would be threatened by it. I am on one side, and Prince Bagration on the other side, we are going to unite in front of Smolensk, which will take place on the 22nd, and both armies with combined forces will defend their compatriots in the province entrusted to you, until their efforts remove the enemies of the fatherland from them or until they are exterminated in their brave ranks to the last warrior. You see from this that you have the perfect right to reassure the inhabitants of Smolensk, for whoever defends with two such brave troops can be sure of their victory. (Order of Barclay de Tolly to the civil governor of Smolensk, Baron Ash, 1812.)
People moved restlessly through the streets.
Carts loaded on horseback with household utensils, chairs, cabinets kept leaving the gates of the houses and driving through the streets. In the neighboring house of Ferapontov, wagons stood and, saying goodbye, the women howled and sentenced. The mongrel dog, barking, twirled in front of the pawned horses.