Powder Day or Day of the Powder () is celebrated in the southern

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

village of

Tolox Tolox is a town and municipality in the province of Málaga in the autonomous community of Andalusia in southern Spain. The municipality has a population of 2,317 (2006). It is situated in the centre of the Sierra de las Nieves Nature Park at ...

Shrove Tuesday Shrove Tuesday (also known as Pancake Tuesday or Pancake Day) is the final day of Shrovetide, which marks the end of the pre-Lenten season. Lent begins the following day with Ash Wednesday. Shrove Tuesday is observed in many Christian state, Ch ...

, the final day of the annual Tolox

carnival Carnival (known as Shrovetide in certain localities) is a festive season that occurs at the close of the Christian pre-Lenten period, consisting of Quinquagesima or Shrove Sunday, Shrove Monday, and Shrove Tuesday or Mardi Gras. Carnival typi ...

. This local

tradition A tradition is a system of beliefs or behaviors (folk custom) passed down within a group of people or society with symbolic meaning or special significance with origins in the past. A component of cultural expressions and folklore, common e ...

involves the throwing of

talcum powder Talc, or talcum, is a clay mineral composed of hydrated magnesium silicate, with the chemical formula . Talc in powdered form, often combined with corn starch, is used as baby powder. This mineral is used as a thickening agent and lubricant. ...

at one another. One reason given for the custom is that it takes place the day before

Ash Wednesday Ash Wednesday is a holy day of prayer and fasting in many Western Christian denominations. It is preceded by Shrove Tuesday and marks the first day of Lent: the seven weeks of Christian prayer, prayer, Religious fasting#Christianity, fasting and ...

, on which the

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...

declares to the faithful "Remember, man, that you are dust, and unto dust you shall return"."Powder for everybody"

Aifos Promociones Inmobiliarias
/ref> A more likely origin of the tradition is said to have its roots in a

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

Moorish The term Moor is an exonym used in European languages to designate the Muslim populations of North Africa (the Maghreb) and the Iberian Peninsula (particularly al-Andalus) during the Middle Ages. Moors are not a single, distinct or self-defi ...

riot A riot or mob violence is a form of civil disorder commonly characterized by a group lashing out in a violent public disturbance against authority, property, or people. Riots typically involve destruction of property, public or private. The p ...

in the 16th century when Tolox, then under Christian control, had a large Moorish population. During Christmas of 1539 there was civil strife between the predominantly Moorish

peasant A peasant is a pre-industrial agricultural laborer or a farmer with limited land-ownership, especially one living in the Middle Ages under feudalism and paying rent, tax, fees, or services to a landlord. In Europe, three classes of peasan ...

s and the Christian landholders. One chronicler states that this custom originated in a dispute between a Moorish and a Christian girl who were in love with the same man. Both worked in a

bakery A bakery is an establishment that produces and sells flour-based baked goods made in an oven such as bread, cookies, cakes, doughnuts, bagels, Pastry, pastries, and pies. Some retail bakeries are also categorized as Coffeehouse, cafés, servi ...

and as the argument grew more heated, they ended up throwing all the

flour Flour is a powder made by Mill (grinding), grinding raw grains, List of root vegetables, roots, beans, Nut (fruit), nuts, or seeds. Flours are used to make many different foods. Cereal flour, particularly wheat flour, is the main ingredie ...

they could find at each other."Tolox - Fiestas and Gastronomy"
In years gone by, the custom evolved that young men wanting to request their girlfriends' hand in marriage would throw flour at them. Girls not wishing be subjected to this would refrain from going out on the streets, forcing the boys to come up with ingenious ways to powder their target. A young man would dust his hands with flour and try to enter a young girl's house and smother her face with flour. If doors and windows were closed, it meant he was not desired by the girl. If the lad was still keen, he had to smartly outwit her by climbing to the roof or breaking windows and doors to get her smeared with the flour, thus winning her heart in a symbolic way, or simply to impress her. Nowadays this tradition especially appeals to the young people who hurl

instead of flour at each other, without preference or distinction as to gender or origin, until they are completely covered with it. Many outsiders come to Tolox to take part in this peculiar fiesta. Up to 3,000

kilogram The kilogram (also spelled kilogramme) is the base unit of mass in the International System of Units (SI), equal to one thousand grams. It has the unit symbol kg. The word "kilogram" is formed from the combination of the metric prefix kilo- (m ...

s have been known to be thrown in the village."Malaga Festival & Traditions"

www.andaluciacar.com
/ref> A similar custom takes place in Alozaina, in which hundreds of people celebrate the "hariná", in remembrance of the times when their ancestors covered young women with wheat flour from the

mills Mills is the plural form of mill, but may also refer to: As a name * Mills (surname), a common family name of English or Gaelic origin * Mills (given name) *Mills, a fictional British secret agent in a trilogy by writer Manning O'Brine Places U ...

to show their love.

References

{{Culture of Andalusia Unofficial observances February observances Festivals in Spain Mardi Gras Holidays based on the date of Easter

See also

References