You will not be held guilty of any grammatical atrocity whether you
choose to write carnival, carnaval or carnavale. Anything goes in
the spelling of this revelry at which anything goes.
Carnival comes from the Latin words ?carne vale?, meaning ?good-bye flesh?. The name implies that once the party is over, so should be all
pleasures related to flesh and meat. This for 40 days and forty nights, the time of Lent.
Mardi Gras (Fat Tuesday, or Shrove Tuesday) as an upshot, used to be
the last day before Lent, and Catholics would empty their pantries and ?eat gras? (fatly), by opposition to the lean period to follow.
The date of Mardi Gras varies according to astronomical data. It involves the position of the sun, the moon, and a host of other factors. No matter how tortuous the calculations may be, the date always falls between February 3 and March 9.
Matters get even more complicated considering that the Orthodox
Church celebrates Easter at least one week out of synch with the Catholics.
Carnaval lovers should simply memorize the dates for the next five Mardi Gras, and schedule their winter break (summer break if they live in the southern hemisphere), to start the previous Wednesday when the festivities pick up speed in carnival countries.
Please, highlight, copy, save, or print:
March 4, 2003
February 24, 2004
February 8, 2005
February 28, 2006
February 20, 2007
Then, start getting yourself in shape....
(The Traveller, Tuesday, February 12, 2002)
03-12-02, 05:37 AM
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