Trinidad Carnival
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The Trinidad and Tobago Carnival is an annual event held on the Monday and Tuesday 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 ...
in
Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago, officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean, comprising the main islands of Trinidad and Tobago, along with several List of islands of Trinidad and Tobago, smaller i ...
. This event is well known for participants' colorful costumes and exuberant celebrations. There are numerous cultural events such as "band launch" fetes running in the lead up to the street parade on Carnival Monday and Tuesday. Traditionally, the festival is associated with
calypso music Calypso is a style of Caribbean music that originated in Trinidad and Tobago from Afro-Trinidadians during the early- to mid-19th century and spread to the rest of the Caribbean Antilles by the mid-20th century. Its rhythms can be traced back ...
, developed by Afro-Trinidadians in 17th century Trinidad; however,
Soca music Soca music, or the "soul of calypso", is a genre of music that originated in Trinidad and Tobago in the 1970s. It is considered an offshoot of Calypso music, calypso, with influences from Afro–Trinidadians and Tobagonians, Afro-Trinidadian a ...
has begun to replace calypso as the more popular
musical genre A music genre is a conventional category that identifies some pieces of music as belonging to a shared tradition or set of conventions. Genre is to be distinguished from musical form and musical style, although in practice these terms are sometim ...
for Carnival.
Costume Costume is the distinctive style of dress and/or makeup of an individual or group that reflects class, gender, occupation, ethnicity, nationality, activity or epoch—in short, culture. The term also was traditionally used to describe typica ...
(sometimes called " mas"),
stick-fighting Stick-fighting, stickfighting, or stick fighting, is a variety of martial arts which use blunt, hand-held "sticks" for fighting, most typically a simple, non-lethal, wooden staff or baton. Schools of stick-fighting exist for a variety of weapon ...
,
limbo The unofficial term Limbo (, or , referring to the edge of Hell) is the afterlife condition in medieval Catholic theology, of those who die in original sin without being assigned to the Hell of the Damned. However, it has become the gene ...
, and
steelpan The steelpan (also known as a pan or steel drum) is a musical instrument originating in Trinidad and Tobago from Afro–Trinidadians and Tobagonians, Afro-Trinidadians. Steelpan musicians are called pannists. In 1992, the steelpan was declared ...
competitions are important components of the festival.
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 ...
, as it is celebrated in Trinidad and Tobago, has spread to many other Caribbean islands as well as several cities worldwide. These celebrations include Toronto's
Caribana The Toronto Caribbean Carnival, formerly and affectionately 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 ...
, Miami's Miami Carnival, Houston Carifest, London's
Notting Hill Carnival The Notting Hill Carnival is an annual Caribbean Carnival event that has taken place in London since 1966
, as well as
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
's Labor Day Carnival.


Origin

The annual Carnival in Trinidad dates back to the 1780s, when an influx of immigrants from the
French West Indies The French West Indies or French Antilles (, ; ) are the parts of France located in the Antilles islands of the Caribbean: * The two overseas departments of: ** Guadeloupe, including the islands of Basse-Terre, Grande-Terre, Les Saintes, Ma ...
emigrated to Trinidad in response to the Cédula de Población. These immigrants included French planters and 'free coloureds' (free people of mixed race), as well as enslaved Africans. The Mas tradition started in the late 18th century with French plantation owners organizing masquerades (mas) and balls before enduring the fasting of
Lent Lent (, 'Fortieth') is the solemn Christianity, Christian religious moveable feast#Lent, observance in the liturgical year in preparation for Easter. It echoes the 40 days Jesus spent fasting in the desert and enduring Temptation of Christ, t ...
. Enslaved Africans, who could not take part in Carnival. They are said to have staged their own mini-carnivals, but using their own
rituals A ritual is a repeated, structured sequence of actions or behaviors that alters the internal or external state of an individual, group, or environment, regardless of conscious understanding, emotional context, or symbolic meaning. Traditionally ...
and
folklore Folklore is the body of expressive culture shared by a particular group of people, culture or subculture. This includes oral traditions such as Narrative, tales, myths, legends, proverbs, Poetry, poems, jokes, and other oral traditions. This also ...
and imitating or mocking their masters' masquerade balls. Enslaved Africans also formed parallel celebration called " Canboulay". Canboulay (from the French ''cannes brulés'', meaning burnt
cane Cane or caning may refer to: *Walking stick, or walking cane, a device used primarily to aid walking * Assistive cane, a walking stick used as a mobility aid for better balance * White cane, a mobility or safety device used by blind or visually i ...
) The festival was characterized by drums, singing, calinda dancing, chanting, and
stick-fighting Stick-fighting, stickfighting, or stick fighting, is a variety of martial arts which use blunt, hand-held "sticks" for fighting, most typically a simple, non-lethal, wooden staff or baton. Schools of stick-fighting exist for a variety of weapon ...
. Canboulay is considered is a precursor to Trinidad and Tobago Carnival, and has played an important role in the development of the music of Trinidad and Tobago. Calypso music was developed in Trinidad in the 17th century from the West African Kaiso and canboulay music brought by African slaves imported to that Caribbean island to work on sugar plantations. These slaves, brought to toil on sugar plantations, were stripped of all connections to their homeland and family and not allowed to talk to each other. They used calypso to mock the slave masters and to communicate with each other. Many early calypsos were sung in French Creole by an individual called a
griot A griot (; ; Manding languages, Manding: or (in N'Ko script, N'Ko: , or in French spelling); also spelt Djali; or / ; ) is a West African historian, storyteller, praise singer, poet, and/or musician. Griots are masters of communicatin ...
. As calypso developed, the role of the griot became known as a chantuelle and eventually,
calypsonian A calypsonian, originally known as a ''chantwell'', is a musician from the anglophone Caribbean who sings songs of the Calypso music, calypso genre. Calypsos are musical renditions having their origins in the West African griot tradition. Origin ...
. Additional traditions were introduced to Trinidad by enslaved Africans during the 18th century. These include the calinda, a form of martial art involving stick-fighting. The calinda is likely of African origin, and is accompanied by music and dancing. In 1833, the
British government His Majesty's Government, abbreviated to HM Government or otherwise UK Government, is the central government, central executive authority of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
passed the Slavery Abolition Act, and Emancipation took effect August 1, 1834. After Emancipation, freed Africans first celebrated their freedom on 1 August the anniversary of their emancipation, and soon began celebrating emancipation during the Carnival season. As part of this transformation, they started carrying burning sugarcane in celebration of Canboulay. The carnival soon featured dancing by men and women in masks. During the mid- and late-1800s, the colonial government tried various ways to suppress Carnival and Carnival festivities. These prohibitions resulted in civil disorder, including the Canboulay riots of 1881 and 1884.Sogren, Michele, and Ruth J. Parsons. 2008. “Carnival Fete or Conflict?” ''Caribbean Journal of Social Work''6/7 (December): 167–85. In 1884, the colonial government passed the
Peace Preservation Act Peace is a state of harmony in the absence of hostility and violence, and everything that discusses achieving human welfare through justice and peaceful conditions. In a societal sense, peace is commonly used to mean a lack of conflict (such a ...
, in an attempt to prevent violence breaking out during the Carnival. The Act prohibited public carrying of torches, drumming, blowing horns, and stick-fighting (or the assembly of ten or more people with sticks). It also established the official start of Carnival as 6:00 A.M. (the Monday before
Lent Lent (, 'Fortieth') is the solemn Christianity, Christian religious moveable feast#Lent, observance in the liturgical year in preparation for Easter. It echoes the 40 days Jesus spent fasting in the desert and enduring Temptation of Christ, t ...
). Steelpan Stick fighting and African percussion music were banned in 1881, in response to the Canboulay Riots. They were replaced by
bamboo Bamboos are a diverse group of mostly evergreen perennial plant, perennial flowering plants making up the subfamily (biology), subfamily Bambusoideae of the grass family Poaceae. Giant bamboos are the largest members of the grass family, in th ...
"Bamboo-Tamboo" sticks beaten together, which were themselves banned in turn. In 1937 they reappeared, transformed as an orchestra of frying pans,
dustbin A waste container, also known as a dustbin, rubbish bin, trash can, garbage can, wastepaper basket, and wastebasket, among other names, is a type of container intended to store waste that is usually made out of metal or plastic. The words "r ...
lids and oil drums. These
steelpan The steelpan (also known as a pan or steel drum) is a musical instrument originating in Trinidad and Tobago from Afro–Trinidadians and Tobagonians, Afro-Trinidadians. Steelpan musicians are called pannists. In 1992, the steelpan was declared ...
s (or pans) are now a major part of the Trinidadian music scene and are a popular section of the Canboulay music contests. In 1941, the
United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...
arrived on Trinidad, and the panmen, who were associated with lawlessness and violence, helped to popularize steel pan music among soldiers, which began its international popularization. J'ouvert
J'ouvert J'ouvert ( ) (also Jour ouvert, Jouvay, or Jouvé) is a traditional Carnival celebration in many countries throughout the Caribbean. The parade is believed to have its foundation in Trinidad & Tobago, with roots steeped in French Afro-Creole t ...
(translated from French as "break of day") symbolizes the start of the official two days of Carnival. Beginning early Monday, revelers parade through town in the tradition of the Canboulay celebrations. "Jouvay" (as it is commonly pronounced and spelled) features a variety of homemade or satirical costumes. The celebration involves participants dousing themselves in oil, mud, and powder, and dancing to calypso and soca music through the streets. This is a stark contrast to the attractive and more formal costumes that are donned later in the day on Carnival Monday and on Tuesday.


Carnival dates

The table shows a list of Trinidad and Tobago Carnival dates from 2009 to 2026.


Characters

A few specific characters have evolved during the history of Trinidad and Tobago's Carnival. Among these characters are: * Burrokeet – A donkey-riding character, from ''burroquito'' (Spanish for 'little donkey'). The costume is constructed so as to give the illusion of a dancer riding a small burro or donkey. This masquerade was brought to Trinidad by Venezuelan settlers. * Dame Lorraine – A voluptuous woman. The costume parodies the dress of 18th-century French aristocratic women and is stuffed in the hips and bust. Often performed by men. * Jab Jab – A devil character, from the French Patois ''diable'' (meaning 'devil). There are Jab Jabs of different colors, including the "Jab Molassi" (molasses devil) cover their bodies in oil from head to toe. * Midnight Robber – A storytelling character who brags about himself and his valor. The character and costume is influenced by West African dress and storytelling as well as the American
Wild West The American frontier, also known as the Old West, and popularly known as the Wild West, encompasses the geography, history, folklore, and culture associated with the forward wave of American expansion in mainland North America that bega ...
. The character wears an oversized hat, which comes in different shapes and colors. * Minstrels – A group of singers, often with instruments. The singers would sometimes dress in whiteface, parodying the white American minstrels who dressed in
blackface Blackface is the practice of performers using burned cork, shoe polish, or theatrical makeup to portray a caricature of black people on stage or in entertainment. Scholarship on the origins or definition of blackface vary with some taking a glo ...
. * Moko jumbie – A stilt dancer. The character is of African origin. Originally the character wore a hat made of dried wild cucumbers, and the stilts were striped. * Pierrot Grenade – A jester pretending to be a scholar. The character is a paradoy of the Pierrot character, which was a character from the Carnival balls held by the French planter class in late 18th century Trinidad. The Pierrot character was a well-dressed scholar who boasted about his knowledge. The Pierrot Grenade's costume is made of scraps of cloth pieced together.


References


External links


Official Trinidad and Tobago Tourism Site

Calendar of Events at the Trinidad Tourism Site

National Carnival Commission Official Website

The Birth & Evolution of Trinidad Carnival
{{Carnival around the world Culture of Trinidad and Tobago Music festivals in the Caribbean Annual events in Trinidad and Tobago Carnivals in Trinidad and Tobago Winter in Trinidad and Tobago Folk festivals in Trinidad and Tobago