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carnival
carnival communal celebration, especially the religious celebration in Catholic countries that takes place just before Lent . Since early times carnivals have been accompanied by parades, masquerades, pageants, and other forms of revelry that had their origins in pre-Christian pagan rites, particularly fertility rites that were connected with the coming of spring and the rebirth of vegetation. One of the first recorded instances of an annual spring festival is the festival of Osiris in Egypt; it commemorated the renewal of life brought about by the yearly flooding of the Nile. In Athens, during the 6th cent. BC, a yearly celebration in honor of the god Dionysus was the first recorded instance of the use of a float. It was during the Roman Empire that carnivals reached an unparalleled peak of civil disorder and licentiousness. The major Roman carnivals were the Bacchanalia, the Saturnalia, and the Lupercalia. In Europe the tradition of spring fertility celebrations persisted well into Christian times, where carnivals reached their peak during the 14th and 15th cent. Because carnivals are deeply rooted in pagan superstitions and the folklore of Europe, the Roman Catholic Church was unable to stamp them out and finally accepted many of them as part of church activity. The immediate consequence of church influence may be seen in the medieval Feast of Fools, which included a mock Mass and a blasphemous impersonation of church officials. Eventually, however, the power of the church made itself felt, and the carnival was stripped of its most offending elements. The church succeeded in dominating the activities of the carnivals, and eventually they became directly related to the coming of Lent. The major celebrations are generally on Shrove Tuesday (see Mardi Gras ); however, in Germany the carnival season, or Fasching, begins on the Epiphany (Jan. 6) in Bavaria and on Nov. 11 in the Rhineland. In recent times, the term carnival has also been loosely applied to include local festivals, traveling circuses, bazaars, and other celebrations of a joyous nature, regardless of their purpose or their season. |
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"carnival." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. 28 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "carnival." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. (May 28, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-carnival.html "carnival." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Retrieved May 28, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-carnival.html |
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Carnival
Carnival (1961), a musical play by Michael Stewart (book), Bob Merrill (music, lyrics). [Imperial Theatre, 719 perf.; NYDCC Award.] The orphan Lili ( Anna Maria Alberghetti) joins a French carnival and falls for an egotistical magician ( James Mitchell), but she is truly loved by the bitter puppeteer ( Jerry Orbach). Yet when he speaks to Lili through his puppets, his true emotions are revealed and she learns to love him back. Notable songs: Love Makes the World Go Round; Grand Imperial Cirque de Paris; Always Always You; Mira. David Merrick produced this enchanting musical tale, based on the 1953 film Lili, which was enhanced by Gower Champion's inventive staging that created a circuslike atmosphere with lights and movement. Bob MERRILL [né Henry Lavan] (1921–98), a native of Atlantic City, first found fame as the author of many pop songs on the charts in the 1950s. His early Broadway scores were for New Girl in Town (1957) and Take Me Along (1959), both based on Eugene O'Neill plays. Merrill provided lyrics for Jules Styne's music in Funny Girl (1964) and Sugar (1972). His other scores include Henry, Sweet Henry (1967) and cult failures Breakfast at Tiffany's (1966) and Prettybelle (1971).
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Gerald Bordman and Thomas S. Hischak. "Carnival." The Oxford Companion to American Theatre. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. 28 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. Gerald Bordman and Thomas S. Hischak. "Carnival." The Oxford Companion to American Theatre. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. (May 28, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O149-Carnival.html Gerald Bordman and Thomas S. Hischak. "Carnival." The Oxford Companion to American Theatre. 2004. Retrieved May 28, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O149-Carnival.html |
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carnival
car·ni·val / ˈkärnəvəl/ • n. 1. a period of public revelry at a regular time each year, typically during the week before Lent in Roman Catholic countries, involving processions, music, dancing, and the use of masquerade. ∎ fig. an exciting or riotous mixture of something: the whole evening was a carnival of fun. 2. a traveling amusement show or circus. DERIVATIVES: car·ni·val·esque / ˌkärnəvəˈlesk/ adj. |
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"carnival." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. 28 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "carnival." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. (May 28, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-carnival.html "carnival." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Retrieved May 28, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-carnival.html |
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carnival
carnival a period of public revelry at a regular time each year, as during the week before Lent in Roman Catholic countries, involving processions, music, dancing, and the use of masquerade. Recorded from the mid 16th century, the word comes via Italian from medieval Latin carnevelamen, carnelevarium ‘Shrovetide’, from Latin caro, carn- ‘flesh’ + levare ‘put away’.
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ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "carnival." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. 28 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "carnival." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. (May 28, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-carnival.html ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "carnival." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Retrieved May 28, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-carnival.html |
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carnival
carnival (orig.) season of revelry immediately preceding Lent. XVI. — It. carne-, carnovale, f. L. carō, carn- flesh (see CARNAL) + levāre lighten, raise; lit. ‘cessation of flesh-eating’.
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T. F. HOAD. "carnival." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 28 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. T. F. HOAD. "carnival." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (May 28, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-carnival.html T. F. HOAD. "carnival." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Retrieved May 28, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-carnival.html |
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carnival
carnival. The name given in RC countries to the period of feasting immediately before Lent.
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E. A. LIVINGSTONE. "carnival." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. 28 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. E. A. LIVINGSTONE. "carnival." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. (May 28, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O95-carnival.html E. A. LIVINGSTONE. "carnival." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. 2000. Retrieved May 28, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O95-carnival.html |
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carnival
carnival
•Ethel • lethal • brothel • betrothal
•Cavell, cavil, gavel, gravel, ravel, travel
•Havel, larval, marvel, Marvell, rondavel
•bedevil, bevel, devil, dishevel, kevel, level, revel, split-level
•daredevil • she-devil • eye level
•naval, navel
•coeval, evil, Khedival, medieval, primeval, retrieval, shrieval, upheaval
•civil, drivel, shrivel, snivel, swivel
•carnival • Percival • perspectival
•festival • aestival (US estival)
•adjectival, arrival, deprival, genitival, imperatival, infinitival, outrival, relatival, revival, rival, substantival, survival
•archival
•grovel, hovel, novel
•oval
•approval, removal
•Lovell, shovel
•interval • serval • narwhal
•coequal, equal, prequel, sequel
•bilingual, lingual, monolingual, multilingual
•rorqual • Hywel
•Daniel, spaniel
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"carnival." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. 28 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "carnival." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. (May 28, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-carnival.html "carnival." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Retrieved May 28, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-carnival.html |
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