The History Of Carnival In The Caribbean

Caribbean carnivals are a series of activities that happen before the beginning of lent which is towards the time the Christians observe their fast. The Caribbean carnival has a complicated history. The French and Spanish slave Lords, the European Catholic Priest along with their slaves settled in the Caribbean in places like Trinidad and Tobago, Dominica, Haiti and many other Caribbean Islands. The lent period marks the beginning of their abstinence from meat which lasts through Lent. Exclusively, only the slave Lords celebrated carnival. However, after the emancipation of slaves and the end of the slave trade, most of these slaves settled in the Caribbean to carry on the carnival tradition to mark the end of the slave trade.

Junkanoo Carnival in The Bahamas, Man dressed in his costume shaking the cowbells

The “recent time” Caribbean carnival started in Trinidad and Tobago around…