Origin of Venetian Carnival
The word carnival (Italian: carnevale) possibly comes from the Latin carnem levare or carnelevarium, which means to take away or remove meat!. A more probable option is that the word carnevale may be derived from the Latin carne + vale, meaning “farewell to meat”. Developed around the Roman Catholic festival of Lent (Quaresima – derived from the Latin term Quadragesima, or “the forty days”), carnevale was associated with the pre-Lenten festivals practiced on and around Martedí Grasso (Shrove Tuesday) or Mardi Gras (trans. Fat Tuesday).
It’s a fantastic time for italians a chance to get dressed and join in the celebrations around Italy. If you’re in Venice today.. lucky devil! Check out how beautiful it really is (photos from Winetours Venice and Pinterest):
Source: flickr.com via Charmaine on Pinterest