CARNIVAL TRADITIONS IN GREECE�

ERASMUS+KA2

SEIA, PORTUGAL, 17-21 February 2020

Carnival season or “Apokries”

• In Greece, Carnival or Carnival season is known as «Apokries» (no more meat)
• It is a period which begins 10 weeks before Orthodox Easter & ends on the weekend before «Clean Monday», the first day of Easter Lent, which lasts 40 days
• Carnival is incorporated into the Christian religion
• Carnival celebrations take place in February or March and last 3 weeks

“Tsikno Pempti” or “Smoke Thursday”

• The second Thursday before the beginning of Lent is called Tsikno Pempti (Smoke Thursday)
• According to Greek religious tradition, Tsikno Pempti, is the last day of eating meat until the end of Lent
• Greek people go to taverns or have barbeques at home
• They eat lots of grilled meat, drink a lot of wine & have fun

“Clean Monday”or “Koulouma” food

• The Carnival period ends on “Clean Monday”
• “Clean Monday” marks the beginning of Lent
• Some traditional dishes eaten on Koulouma are:
• Taramas (a red kind of caviar)

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• Lagana (flat oval-shaped bread)

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• Halva (a sweet made from sesame paste & sugar)

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• Bloodless Sea food (e.g. squid, octopus, shrimp)

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• Olives

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• Dolmadakia (vine leaves stuffed with rice)

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The flying of the kite

• On “Clean Monday”, the first day of Lent, the Greek people go outdoors & fly a colourful kite in the sky
• By flying a kite, man tries to communicate with God. And the higher the kite goes, the closer the person comes to God
• The first kite in Greece appeared in ancient times, around 400 BC. 
• At that time, mathematician & engineer Archytas, from Taranto, Italy, is said to have invented the first kite in Greece.

“Gaitanaki”

• The “Gaitanaki” dance is a unique Greek Carnival tradition
• There is a pole & 12 colourful ribbons
• One person holds the pole & 12 dancers hold each one of the 12 ribbons
• The 12 ribbons symbolise the 12 months

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“Kyra Sarakosti” or “Lady Lent”

• Children make a Kyra Sarakosti or Lady Lent, a doll made of paper or baked with flour with seven legs to represent the seven weeks of Lent. Every week the children cut off a leg to remember how many weeks remain until Easter.

Carnival parades

Carnival celebrations reach a peak on the last Sunday before «Clean Monday», when there are carnival parades in many big cities, towns and even villages all over Greece.

The Greek Carnival is like a big street party, where people of all ages dress up in fancy costumes, wear masks, dance and sing.

The roots of the Greek Carnival

• The Greek Carnival and its traditions have their roots in ancient times.
• In Ancient Greece, there were festivals at this time of year to celebrate the end of winter and the coming of spring.
• In these celebrations, the ancient Greeks worshipped Dionysos, the god of wine, fun & fertility.

The Ancient Greek Carnival

• Known as “Dionysia’
• 5^th century B.C.
• Dedicated to Dionysos

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• Celebrated in spring
• A lot of wine, dancing

& singing

• Celebrations all over

Greece

Carnival today

• Carnival street parades all over Greece

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Traditional Carnival costumes

Modern Carnival costumes

Carnival masks

Traditional & modern masks

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Big Carnivals in Greece

Carnival in Patras

• The largest & most famous Greek Carnival.
• The big parade is 180 years old. 
• On parade day, carnival floats & groups of people wearing different colourful costumes dance along the streets of the city.
• The parade closes with a fireworks show by the sea and the burning of the Carnival King.

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Carnival in Corfu

• It resembles the Carnival of Venice, Italy.
• It is more than 450 years old.
• People dress up in colourful Baroque costumes.
• There is a big parade & a local street theatre performance called the Petegoletsia (or gossip).

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Carnival in Xanthi

• The largest carnival in Northern Greece
• Carnival parade in the city’s central streets
• Over 50 folklore clubs join the parade
• The parade closes with the old custom of the “Burning of Tzaros” (Carnival King) in a big fire by the river

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Carnival in Naoussa

• The theme of the carnival is “Boules”, a very old & popular custom
• “Boules” are unmarried men who wear traditional costumes & masks and dance to folklore music

Carnival in Skyros

• During the Carnival period, there are parades of groups of 2 or 3 men, dressed up as “Yeros” (old man), usually in black & a girl or “Korela”, dressed in white
• “Yeroi” wear masks of goatskin & bells around their waist (up to 50 kg!) & make lots of noise, dancing the goat dance

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Carnival tradition in Galaxidi

• On Clean Monday, locals get together for the ”alevromoutzouromata”, where they throw coloured flour at each other. 
• The ‘flour war’ lasts all day and ends with everyone going to nearby tavernas to celebrate the start of Lent (the fasting season)
• This unique custom has its roots in Sicily, Italy

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