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Mardi Gras is a Christian holiday and popular cultural phenomenon that dates back thousands of years to pagan spring and fertility rites. It's most famously celebrated with parades in New Orleans New Orleans Social Clubs or Gentlemen's Clubs play a very large part in the Mardi Gras celebration. The oldest is The Boston Club (third oldest in the United States), founded in 1841 as a place for its members to congregate and partake in the fashionable card game of Boston , Rex Royalty is chosen from among its ranks. New Orleans was established in 1718 by Bienville. By the 1730s, Mardi Gras was celebrated openly in New Orleans, but not with the parades we know today. In the early 1740s, Louisiana's governor, the Marquis de Vaudreuil, established elegant society balls, which became the model for the New Orleans Mardi Gras balls of today. What is the History of Mardi Gras? Mardi Gras originated in New Orleans the day Iberville stood on our land in 1699. Since then, balls have become a tradition of the season to represent members of society. From the past to the present, Mardi Gras is full of traditions. Mardi Gras balls began in the 1700s and still exist today. The History of New Orleans Mardi Gras . Although the date of the first organized celebration of Mardi Gras in New Orleans is debatable, the 1730 account of one Marc-Antoine Caillot (a young clerk sent to Louisiana by the French Company of the Indies) mentions a celebration with music and dance, mask-wearing and costumes—including cross-dressing. The very first American Mardi Gras celebration took place in March 1699 after two French settlers landed near present-day New Orleans and brought their traditions with them. The French colonists who followed over the proceeding decades introduced the "Galette des Rois," or king cake, which is how it became a New Orleanian symbol. In the United States the principal Carnival celebration is in New Orleans, Louisiana.The Carnival season there opens on Twelfth Night (also called Epiphany, which is observed on January 6) and climaxes with the Mardi Gras festivities commencing 10 days before Shrove Tuesday. Mardi Gras History and Traditions Learn about the famed celebration's cultural roots and traditions. Mardi Gras is so much more special when you understand what you’re celebrating and what each tradition means to the generations of parade-goers who have stood on parade routes before you. Four years later, Mardi Gras not only provided the perfect excuse to extend the celebration over the Super Bowl Saints into a New Orleans-style party marathon. It was also a golden opportunity to affirm the progress of the city’s recovery and what Mardi Gras and the true “spirit of New Orleans” were all about. Mardi Gras Colors. In 1872, Rex, the king of Carnival, proclaimed the official colors of Mardi Gras to be purple, green and gold. While Arthur Hardy believes they were probably chosen simply because they looked good together, Rex assigned a meaning to the colors in his 1892 parade titled Symbolism of Colors: Purple represents justice, green stands for faith, and gold signifies power. Apparently, most of New Orleans is wrong about the origin of Mardi Gras colors. Yes, they’re purple, green and gold. And in 1892, the Rex parade theme "Symbolism of Colors" gave meaning to these colors. While many believe Mardi Gras originated in New Orleans, the truth is the celebration as you know it today originated in the U.S. as the Mobile, Alabama Mardi Gras. The first Mardi Gras celebration happened in Mobile in 1703 and the first Mardi Gras parade was held there in 1840. Celebrations in New Orleans didn't start until the 1730s. The colors have become so intertwined with Mardi Gras that their mere presence can evoke the spirit of the celebration, even in places far from New Orleans. Cultural Evolution and Global Influence. The impact of these Mardi Gras colors has spread well beyond their initial purpose, inspiring artists, designers, and cultural festivities globally. In New Orleans, the celebration of Mardi Gras started 300 years ago. People only started throwing out favors during the 1840s, though , and it wasn’t until the 1880s that glass beads became a Since New Orleans is known for its Mardi Gras celebrations, many of these Mardi Gras symbols also New Orleans symbols! These symbols are featured in our free printables for the holiday including this word search, word scramble and these coloring pages. Mardi Gras parade. One of the most interactive Mardi Gras symbols is the Mardi Gras parade. The Mardi Gras Indians symbolize a unique connection between African and Indigenous heritage in the Crescent City. As a New Orleans Tourism and Cultural Fund board member, he stood firm in his The cake originated in the Middle Ages, and France brought the king cake tradition to New Orleans in the 1870s. Since then, New Orleans' bakeries have created variations of this historic treat, filled with flavors like cream cheese, cinnamon, chocolate, pecan, and fruit. Mardi Gras in New Orleans In the heart of New Orleans, where jazz notes linger and the aroma of delectable treats fills the air, King Cakes stand as symbols of joy, unity, and indulgence. These oval-shaped wonders, adorned in royal hues of purple, green, and gold, carry profound significance, symbolizing justice, growth, prosperity, and wealth Mardi Gras, New Orleans style, owes as much to Afro-Caribbean customs and the Latin American carnival tradition as it does to the French colonists who established it in their new city. The Mardi Gras celebrations actually last for several weeks. About a month before the main carnival, a season of elaborate balls and parties begins: the official Mardi Gras masks in particular originated in ritual celebrations. New Orleans has been celebrating Mardi Gras for hundreds of years, and is the largest masked party in North America. In the beginning, masks worn during Mardi Gras allowed wearers to escape society and class constraints.
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