Carnival is a Western Christian festive season that occurs before the liturgical season of Lent. The main events typically occur during February or early March, during the period historically known as Shrovetide. Carnival typically involves public celebrations, including events such as parades, public street parties and other entertainments, combining some elements of a circus. Elaborate costumes and masks allow people to set aside their everyday individuality and experience a heightened sense of social unity. Participants often indulge in excessive consumption of alcohol, meat, and other foods that will be forgone during upcoming Lent. Traditionally, butter, milk, and other animal products were not consumed "excessively", rather, their stock was fully consumed during Shrovetide as to reduce waste. This festival is known for being a time of great indulgence before Lent, with drinking, overeating, and various other activities of indulgence being performed. For example, pancakes, donuts, and other desserts are prepared and eaten for a final time. During Lent, lacticinia and animal products are eaten less, and individuals make a Lenten sacrifice, thus giving up a certain object or activity of desire.
The Notting Hill Carnival is an annual Caribbean festival event that has taken place in London since 1966 on the streets of the Notting Hill area of Kensington, each August over two days.
Moss Side is an inner-city area of Manchester, England, 1.9 miles (3.1 km) south of the city centre, It had a population of 20,745 at the 2021 census. Moss Side is bounded by Hulme to the north, Chorlton-on-Medlock, Rusholme and Fallowfield to the east, Whalley Range to the south, and Old Trafford to the west.
The Krewe of Endymion is a New Orleans Mardi Gras super krewe and social organization.
The Toronto Caribbean Carnival, formerly known as Caribana, is a festival of Caribbean culture and traditions held each summer in the city of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is a pan-Caribbean Carnival event and has been billed as North America's largest street festival, frequented by over 1.3 million visitors each year for the festival's final parade and an overall attendance of 2 million.
The Leeds Carnival, also called the Leeds West Indian Carnival or the Chapeltown Carnival, is one of the longest running West Indian carnivals in Europe, having been going since 1967. The carnival is held in the Chapeltown and Harehills parts of Leeds every August bank holiday weekend. Attendance is estimated at about 150,000.
The Carnival of Brazil is an annual Brazilian festival held the Friday afternoon before Ash Wednesday at noon, which marks the beginning of Lent, the forty-day period before Easter. During Lent, Roman Catholics and some other Christians traditionally abstained from the consumption of meat and poultry, hence the term "carnival", from carnelevare, "to remove meat."
Cowley Road is an arterial road in the city of Oxford, England, running southeast from near the city centre at The Plain near Magdalen Bridge, through the inner city area of East Oxford, and to the industrial suburb of Cowley. The central shopping is at 51.746°N 1.232°W
Leicester Caribbean Carnival is an annual event, held in early August in Leicester, England.
The West Indian Day Parade Carnival is an annual celebration of West Indian culture, held annually on around the first Monday of September in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, New York City. It is organized by the West Indian American Day Carnival Association (WIADCA).
The Antiguan Carnival is a celebration of the emancipation of slavery in the country held annually from the end of July to the first Tuesday in August. The most important day is that of the j'ouvert, 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.
Batabano is the name of the Caribbean Carnival held in the Cayman Islands. The festival takes place annually during the first week of May in George Town. Batabano is a time for people of all different descents to gather with a common interest and celebrate community spirit. The Cayman Islands are home to over 100 different nationalities, all brought together and embraced by the festival. It is a cultural celebration filled with music, dance, and elaborate costumes that reflect the landscapes, heritage, and culture. International interest is growing in the Batabano celebrations, despite only having existed for about 30 years.
The Alexandra Blossom Festival is an annual event that is held for 17 days each September in Alexandra, New Zealand that celebrates the advent of Spring. The Festival is the longest-running community event of its kind in New Zealand.
The Jamaican diaspora refers to the body of Jamaicans who have left the country of Jamaica, their dispersal and to a lesser extent the subsequent developments of their culture. Jamaicans can be found in the far corners of the world, but the largest pools of Jamaicans, outside of Jamaica itself, exist in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, and all across the Caribbean Coast of Central America, namely Panama, Cuba, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, and Honduras.
A flower parade is a parade in which the floats, vehicles, boats, participants, animals and other things are decorated or covered in flowers. Often there are other elements like marching bands and people in costumes. Flower parades are held in several countries, many of which celebrate the forthcoming of the seasons. The oldest flower parade dates back to the 1800s.
Manchester Pride is a leading charity that campaigns for LGBTQ+ equality across the United Kingdom, predominantly in Greater Manchester. The Charity offers dialogue, training, research and policy analysis, advocacy and outreach activities focusing on LGBTQ+ rights.
Now known as the Toronto Caribbean Carnival, Caribana began as a one-time celebration of the Canadian Centennial in Ontario's provincial capital city. The festival continues to brings a full display of Caribbean culture and traditions, attracting more than a million viewers each year. Caribana has continued to draw people from across the world to Toronto, with travellers coming from places such as the Caribbean, Europe and the United States.
Haitian Carnival is a celebration held over several weeks each year leading up to Mardi Gras. Haitian Defile Kanaval is the Haitian Creole name of the main annual Mardi Gras carnival held in Port-au-Prince, Haiti.
Carifiesta is an annual Caribbean Carnival held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It was established in 1974, and is held in July. The parade was cancelled in the 1990’s due to conflict and gun violence. As the situation progressed most of the participants moved to Toronto Caribana. In 2010 the parade was called off due to a legal battle between promoters Henry Antoine and Everist Blaise, the city of Montreal. .This resulted many groups to pull out and a struggle to maintain a street parade. The organization had put in place in 2019 a new president: Jason Forbes, who resigned in 2021 because of profit and organization issues. In 2023 The parade was cancelled. The city of Montreal denied the funding of the parade. The event is coordinated by the Caribbean Cultural Festivities Association, a nonprofit organization. Carifiesta was established prior to some Carnivals that take place in the Caribbean, for example, Cayman Carnival Batabano. Carifiesta has also been named the largest North-American running Caribbean Street Parade.
