The modern human word carnival is associated with children's matinees, Harlequin and Pierrot costumes and colorful Brazilian samba. In fact, the history of mass holidays with mandatory dressed in carnival costume is rooted in the distant past. So far, that no historian can not say for sure, when there was a carnival and carnival costume.

Magic rituals and festivities with dressing goes back to the pagan times, long before the rise of Christianity. In the culture of the ancient peoples of many countries there were traditional ceremonies using costumes. Anticipating the success of the hunt or the new harvest, the people and animals depicted pagan gods. In those days, and there was the first carnival costume.

Roman Saturnalia - a prototype of a world without conditionalities and restrictions

The first masquerades based on the idea of ​​reincarnation, considered the Roman Saturnalia. Festival celebrated every year with the onset of days honoring the god Saturn's land and crops. These days the line between rich and poor. Slaves and gentlemen could feast at the table. And that class prejudices are not hindered joy, the participants covered their faces with masks. Do not make the fall in the upside-down world was considered indecent. Celebrations were accompanied by processions of maskers and dances imitating the cleaning and processing of the crop. In this way the Romans tried to improve soil fertility and appease Saturn.

The origins of the Venetian carnival

The idea of ​​the carnival in the form in which it exists now, belongs to the Venetians.

According to one version, the first Venetian carnival was held in 998. The reason for the celebration served as a victory over the Pirates young Venetians from Istria, who stole the local girls, brides, and the return of "valuable cargo" in Venice.

In official documents of the carnival is first mentioned in 1094. This year, the Republic of Venice from Byzantium received benefits in the taxation of products that promised her a benefit in Mediterranean trade, which was marked by popular festivities.

An official holiday carnival acquired in 1296, with the proclamation of the Senate of the Venetian Republic the last day before Lent a public holiday. The church used the pre-Christian traditions of Saturnalia to prepare Christians for the most prolonged post. Hence the most common version of the word carnival where «carne vale» literally means "farewell to meat".

During the Carnival, the Venetians wore masks and costumes that hide the face is not so much how much social status. Masks are so fond of residents that were used in everyday life, often hiding the face of the perpetrators of nefarious deeds.

The greatest flowering of the carnival acquired in XVI - XVIII centuries. At the same time there was a special kind of folk art areal Italian - commedia dell'arte. The performances were a street theater improvisation within a short story schema script. The plot - adultery, where the lovers with their Zanni (servants) fooled anyone who interfered with their happiness. All the actors except for the female roles were in masks and carnival costumes. With scaffolding comedy characters down to the masses. Thousands of people were dressed in costumes Pantaloon, Columbine, Pierrot and Harlequin. Until now, the traditional carnival costumes costumes are considered heroes of the commedia dell'arte.

At the end of the XVIII century interest in the carnival waned. Wars, revolutions, riots, epidemics contributed to the fact that the holiday was forgotten, and revived only two hundred years later in 1980.

Not only Venice

In ancient India, it was strictly forbidden to wear clothes of the opposite sex. Only once a year, the men were allowed to try on women's clothing. This, they paid tribute to women's maternal nature.

In medieval Europe, there was another genre of theatrical performance - a mystery. They played out scenes from the Bible, and the heroes were Faith, Hope, Love, Death, Avarice, Flattery and many other characters.

World Carnival epidemic

An epidemic of madness has spread rapidly around the world. At present, there are carnivals in almost all countries of the world. The most famous - Brazilian carnival - is derived from the Portuguese "ridiculous day." It held in February for four days and nights. At this time, the drums do not stop, do not stop dancing, and the most famous samba schools organize spectacular show of carnival costumes.

The modern world creates heroes. Along with the heroes of fairy tales characters appear on the carnivals of modern movies and animations: Harry Potter, Spider-Man, Jack Sparrow.

Carnival - this is inverted, but the real world. Therefore, every time has its own carnival costume.

Zavadskaja Inna

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