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Mardi Gras is a festive day celebrated in France on Shrove Tuesday (the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday), which marks the close of the pre-Lenten season. The French name Mardi Gras means Fat Tuesday, from the custom of using all the fats in the home before Lent. At Mardi Gras in New Orleans, social clubs called krewes organize the festival’s parades and balls. Each organization chooses a king, queen, and court from the families of its members. As Lent approaches, the Mardi Gras season is marked by parades during the day and at night. The famous Rex parade takes place the day before Ash Wednesday. Mardi Gras, festive day celebrated in France on Shrove Tuesday (the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday), which marks the close of the pre-Lenten season. The French name Mardi Gras means Fat Tuesday, from the custom of using all the fats in the home before Lent in preparation for fasting and abstinence. See Carnival. At the Carnival parade in Einsiedeln, Switzerland, demon masks are worn and large bells clanged to drive out evil spirits and announce the end of winter. In the United States, the principal Carnival celebration is New Orlean’s Mardi Gras festivities. Mardi Gras means Fat Tuesday, from the custom of using all the fats in the home before Lent. Mardi Gras is a celebration of life’s excesses before the austerity of the season of Lent. The duration of the carnival season varies according to national and local traditions. In Germany the pre-Lenten celebration, called Fasching, either begins at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month (November 11 at 11 am ) or on Twelfth Night New Orleans - French Quarter, Jazz, Mardi Gras: The decision to found New Orleans, or Nouvelle-Orléans, was made in Paris in 1717 by John Law’s Company of the West, which had taken control of Louisiana that year. The colony’s new proprietors envisioned New Orleans (named for the French regent, Philippe II, duc d’Orléans) as a “port of deposit,” or transshipment centre, for future MARDI GRAS meaning: the Tuesday before the beginning of Lent that is often celebrated with parades and parties From high-energy parades to colorful beads and masks, there are dozens of traditions involved in Mardi Gras, also known as Fat Tuesday. The holiday which is less than a week away, is just ahead of Mardi Gras (UK: / ˌ m ɑːr d i ˈ ɡ r ɑː /, US: / ˈ m ɑːr d i ɡ r ɑː /; [1] [2] also known as Shrove Tuesday) is the final day of Carnival (also known as Shrovetide or Fastelavn); it thus falls on the day before the beginning of Lent on Ash Wednesday. [3] Mardi Gras celebrations fill the streets of New Orleans, Louisiana, every year. ©2025 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. By continuing to use this site, At midnight on Mardi Gras the mayor of New Orleans, with a police escort, traditionally walks down Bourbon Street declaring an end to festivities. An iconic part of Mardi Gras (“Fat Tuesday”) in New Orleans is the king cake, an iced ring-shaped pastry that is sprinkled with gold, green, and purple sugar and typically contains a plastic figurine representing the baby Jesus. Traditionally, the person who receives the piece of king cake containing the figurine is named “king” or A Mardi Gras Indian takes part in a parade in New Orleans, Louisiana. The Mardi Gras Indians are African Americans who dress in elaborately decorated costumes that honor Native Americans for their role in helping Blacks escape slavery in the 19th century. The costumes can take a whole year to create. Mardi Gras is French for "Fat Tuesday," according to Britannica. Historically, on Mardi Gras, people were meant to use "all the fats in the home before Lent in preparation for fasting and Other articles where Mardi Gras is discussed: Edmund Goulding: The 1950s: Goulding’s last film was Mardi Gras (1958), a musical starring Pat Boone. After suffering several years of declining health, Goulding died in 1959. Other articles where Mardi Gras is discussed: Creedence Clearwater Revival: demanded greater prominence, resulting in Mardi Gras (1972), which was dominated by their songs. Its critical and commercial failure led to the band’s demise later that year. Unlike many 1960s acts, Creedence never staged a reunion. Tom Fogerty pursued a solo career until his death. Cook and Clifford worked as King cake is a sweet, ring-shaped pastry that is served from Epiphany through Shrove Tuesday in the Christian calendar. It is associated with Mardi Gras, the festive pre-Lenten season in the United States, and it is usually baked with a symbolic trinket hidden inside, often to represent the baby Jesus. By continuing to use this site, you consent to the terms of our cookie policy, which can be found in our Privacy Notice. In the United States the principal Carnival celebration is in New Orleans, where the Carnival season opens on Twelfth Night (January 6) and climaxes with the Mardi Gras festivities commencing 10 days before Shrove Tuesday. The French name Mardi Gras means Fat Tuesday, from the custom of using all the fats in the home before Lent. Mardi Gras. Email; Back to Article; Related resources for this article. Articles Websites View search results for: ©2025 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
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