One of the oldest known popular expressions, the Carnaval It is one of the biggest celebrations in the world, especially in Brazil.
But the popular festival did not appear on Brazilian soil, and it is a much older celebration than many people can imagine.
According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, the event may have arisen during the , where pagans celebrated the actions of the god Saturn, while the Roman Catholics took advantage of the festivities that preceded the , a period that takes place about forty days before Easter.
There are even older records of celebrations that resembled Carnival, such as the parties for the goddess Isis in Ancient Egypt; or even celebrations for the beginning of spring in Mesopotamia.
In Brazil, the first records of celebrations similar to the festival we know are dated around 1530with the arrival of the first in the Pernambuco region.
According to the article “The Origin of Carnival”from the Federal University of Recôncavo Baiano (UFRB), the celebration may have arisen from the “Shrovetide”a game that took place in the three days before Lent, where revelers threw water, flour, eggs, sand and fruit at each other.
On the other hand, slaves celebrated their own version of Carnival with songs, dances and customs brought from Africa, which would later merge with Portuguese traditions to create customs that continue to this day in the country.
Around 1830, the first Carnival dances in the countryand it was only in 1899 than the first, by Chiquinha Gonzaga.
Samba, which is commonly associated with the festivities, was only introduced into the celebration in the 1910s, and from then on, it became one of the most popular rhythms in Brazil.
“The Greatest Show on Earth”
A from the 1920sthe popularity of Carnival grew exponentially. It was at this time that what is now called “samba school“, with the group “Deixa Falar”, which paraded through the streets of Rio de Janeiro.
After the popularization of the media, mainly radio and television, parties became even more accessible to all parts of Brazil. Traditional carnival celebrations in the North and Northeast of the country have become increasingly famous attractions, attracting tourists from all over the world to follow their parades and cultural events such as frevo.
Carnival blocks inspired by ancient Shrovetide were taking shape, becoming a form of celebration that involves . This type of expression has gained even more strength over the years, and today it attracts thousands of people. Galo da Madrugada, for example, managed to bring together more than 2.5 million people on the streets of Recife in 2024.
Furthermore, Carnival moves the country not only culturally, but also financially. According to the Goods, Services and Tourism (CNC), the party had a turnover of around . Furthermore, the demand for labor in temporary jobs generated around 66,699 jobs last year, and is expected to grow even further in 2025.
Today, the party can be considered a milestone in the history of the Brazilian population, which values the difference and cultural importance of each region, disseminates rhythms to the most diverse types of people, and promotes unity between the most diverse types of people.
