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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 In places like New Orleans, Mardi Gras is not just a holiday; it is a celebration of the city’s unique cultural heritage. New Orleans has long been a melting pot of different cultures, including French, Spanish, African, and Creole influences. Mardi Gras reflects this diversity through its music, food, art, and traditions. 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] What is Mardi Gras and why do we celebrate it? Did you know that Mardi Gras is actually a religious holiday? Mardi Gras, also called Fat Tuesday, is a Christian feast day that occurs during a period of time known as Carnival. Carnival begins on January 6 (known as Epiphany or Three Kings Day) and concludes with Mardi Gras. 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. Why is Mardi Gras celebrated? Mardi Gras is celebrated in many countries around the world, though mainly in places with large Roman Catholic populations. It's believed that Mardi Gras emerged from the wild ancient Roman festivals of Saturnalia and Lupercalia. These pagan celebrations involved days of feasting, masquerading, dancing, and drinking. The all-male krewe has been staging Mardi Gras events in New Orleans since 1872 and are the ones who started the tradition of using the holiday’s famous colors: yellow, purple, and green. At the heart of it, Mardi Gras is also a Christian holiday traced to pagan spring and fertility rites dating back thousands of years that has become a popular cultural phenomenon worldwide. And although Mardi Gras is today most closely associated with New Orleans, Louisiana, it is observed in hundreds of cities in more than fifty countries. The Mardi Gras holiday is tied to Easter, because Easter marks the end of Lent. And since the date of Easter is determined by the first full moon after the spring equinox, it changes each year, shifting the date of Mardi Gras, too. Also good to know: the Mardi Gras season actually begins in January, with the start of Carnival. In the On March 2, 1699, French-Canadian explorer Jean Baptiste Le Moyne Sieur de Bienville arrived at a plot of ground 60 miles directly south of New Orleans, and named it "Pointe du Mardi Gras" when his men realized it was the eve of the festive holiday. Bienville also established "Fort Louis de la Louisiane" (which is now Mobile) in 1702. Mardi Gras, also known as Fat Tuesday, is a vibrant celebration filled with parades, music, and colorful costumes. But what exactly is Mardi Gras, and why is it celebrated? Mardi Gras marks the last day before Lent, a period of fasting and reflection for many The first Mardi Gras celebration in America was celebrated in 1703 in the settlement of Fort Louis de la Mobile. Mardi Gras was celebrated soon after the city of New Orleans was founded in 1718 Mardi Gras is the climax of Carnival season and is celebrated the day before the Christian season of Lent begins on Ash Wednesday. In French, Mardi Gras means “Fat Tuesday,” another name for Why does New Orleans celebrate Mardi Gras? Although it is a Christian holiday now, Mardi Gras is a holiday that dates back thousands of years to pagan spring and fertility rites, according to the Mardi Gras became an “official” Christian holiday in 1582, when Pope Gregory XIII instituted the namesake Gregorian calendar still in use today. By recognizing Mardi Gras as an overture to Lent, the idea was for all the partying and foolery to be over with when it came time to observe the requisite austerities. Mardi Gras is celebrated the day before the Christian holiday of Ash Wednesday. This year, it won't happen until March 4, leaving revelers with over eight weeks to celebrate the season. As with many Christian holidays, the celebrations of Carnival and Mardi Gras were probably adapted in some way from pagan festivals. It may be rooted in a primitive festival celebrating the rebirth of nature; in Italy, it may be linked to the pagan Saturnalian festival of ancient Rome.[#1782] And in a way, maybe that’s for the best. Because while Mardi Gras is usually seen as an American excuse to indulge decadence (as if Americans need an excuse) the holiday’s history might get a rare chance to shine for once. And that history is far more religious than we usually recognize. Mardi Gras is French for ‘Fat Tuesday.’ For party animals, few holidays match the joy (and mayhem) of Mardi Gras. If you count yourself among them, you know that the vibrant New Orleans tradition takes place on Fat Tuesday—that’s The beginning of March launches the first of several holidays and traditions with Roman Catholic roots: Mardi Gras, Ash Wednesday, Lent and St. Patrick’s Day.
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