Today is Tuesday — specifically “Fat Tuesday.” You may know that today is Mardi Gras — that means Fat Tuesday in French, and it’s the end of the celebratory carnival that leads up to the beginning of Lent.
The term Fat Tuesday refers to the practice of consuming all the food forbidden while fasting during Lent, which begins on Ash Wednesday. During Lent, meat is traditionally abstained from and that’s where the word carnival was (originally) derived — the Latin expression carne levare meaning “the removal of meat.”
You may have also heard today referred to as “Shrove Tuesday.” Since tomorrow is Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent — a period of fasting and penitence during the 40 weekdays before Easter, devout people were supposed to go to confession on Shrove Tuesday. In Medieval England, Shrove is from shrive, an archaic verb meaning “to confess one’s sins especially to a priest.”
If you’ve been in England this time of year, you’ve probably heard the day before Ash Wednesday referred to as Pancake Day.
The Mardi Gras “festival” was first celebrated on what are now American shores in 1699. Carnival “season” begins on Twelfth Night (January 6) and ends on Fat Tuesday. The most famous carnival in the U.S. is in New Orleans — I was there once, and there were more people than I’ve ever seen, far and away the biggest crowd I’ve ever been a part of. Carnivals, on a much smaller scale, are held in other U.S. cities and there are really large, well-known festivities in Brazil and Venice, Italy.
I remember, when in New Orleans, hearing laissez les bon temps rouler (pronounced lay-say le bon tom roo-lay) over and over — it means “let the good times roll” in Cajun French.
Today, Mardi Gras, is the last day of carnival, so make the most of it — you’re about to fast for 40 days… eat everything in the house!
— 30 —