Carnival In Bolivia: The Vibrant Festival's Date Revealed

Bolivia's Carnival, a mix of Catholic and pre-Columbian customs, is a religious and cultural festival held every year. The Carnival of Oruro, a UNESCO Cultural Heritage Site, is the most famous and sought-after Bolivian Carnival, attracting 400,000 visitors annually. The festival is held on the Saturday before Ash Wednesday, with the main parade lasting up to 20 hours, covering four kilometres, and featuring 20,000 dancers, 10,000 musicians, and 150 groups. The Carnival of Oruro combines Catholic and indigenous symbolism, with the Virgin Mary and the Devil blending with Andean gods and Pachamama, the Earth Mother. The Carnival is a unique and ancient celebration, offering a memorable experience of Bolivian culture and tradition.

The Carnival of Oruro is a religious and cultural festival

The Carnival of Oruro is a unique and colourful spectacle, famous for its folk dances, extravagant costumes, beautiful crafts, lively music, and continuous partying for up to 20 hours. The festival attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors each year and is considered Bolivia's most sought-after tourist attraction. The main event of the carnival is the procession or "entrada", during which dancers walk a four-kilometer route, repeating the journey for up to 20 hours without interruption.

The Carnival of Oruro is a blend of Catholic and pre-Columbian customs, reflecting a religious syncretism where Christian icons and pagan indigenous cults mix. The festival gives rise to a variety of popular arts expressed in masks, textiles, and embroidery. The dances of the Oruro Carnival are based on the legend of the Virgin del Socavon and the ancient Uru tale of Huari, depicting the struggle of Archangel San Miguel against the Devil and the seven deadly sins.

The Carnival of Oruro also has a deep connection to the town's mining history. Oruro is a mining town, and the dancers participate in the carnival to repent of their sins and to thank the Virgin Mary of Socavon, as they believe she watches over the mines and keeps them safe. The carnival begins with a ceremony dedicated to the Virgin of Socavon, and the most famous character is the 'Tio de la Mina', who transforms into the Devil during the festival.

The Carnival of Oruro is a true symbol of Bolivian national culture and has been recognised by UNESCO as a "Masterpiece of Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity" in 2001. The festival preserves the cultural traditions of Bolivia's Andean region and showcases the country's diverse cultural and religious influences.

It is held in the small mining town of Oruro, Bolivia

Bolivia's Carnival is held in the small mining town of Oruro, situated at 3,700 metres in the arid Altiplano region of the country. The town was founded by the Spanish in 1606, who used the land, which was already being mined by the Indigenous population, as a base to obtain the rich minerals in the surrounding hills.

Oruro was once a pre-Columbian ceremonial site and a religious destination for the Aymara and Quechua people of the Andes, who would worship Andean deities and pray for protection. The Uru people also celebrated Ito, a religious festival from which Carnival is thought to have originated.

When the Spanish arrived, they tried to ban the Uru Uru rituals and traditions. However, the Indians continued to observe their traditions under the guise of Catholic rituals, with Christian icons used to conceal portrayals of Andean gods. The Andean divinities became saints, and the Ito festival was transformed into a Christian ritual celebrated on Candlemas (2 February).

The Carnival of Oruro is a religious and cultural festival that has been celebrated since the 18th century. It is held every year on the Saturday before Ash Wednesday, with the main parade taking place on Saturday and lasting up to 20 hours. The festival features folk dances, extravagant costumes, crafts, and lively music. Over 20,000 dancers and 10,000 musicians take part in the procession, which still shows features dating back to medieval mystery plays.

The Carnival is a unique blend of Catholic and Indian rituals, mixing the Virgin and Devil teachings of Catholicism with the Indian ideas of Pachamama and Tio Supay. El Tio, the God of the Mountains, is a key figure in the Carnival, with indigenous miners believing he is the owner of the mine's minerals and the overseer of their safety.

The Carnival of Oruro is recognised by UNESCO as one of the Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity. It is a fascinating blend of ancient traditions and modern religion, celebrating the rich cultural identity of Oruro and Bolivia.

The carnival is a mix of Catholic and pre-Columbian customs

The Carnival of Oruro is a religious and cultural festival held in Bolivia. It has been celebrated since the 18th century and is a mix of Catholic and pre-Columbian customs.

The festival takes place in Oruro, a mining town in the arid Altiplano region of Bolivia. The town is located at an altitude of 3,700 metres in the mountains of western Bolivia and was once a pre-Columbian ceremonial site. The area that is now Oruro was a religious pilgrimage centre of the Andean world, where pilgrims would trek to the "Sacred Mountain of the Urus" to call upon protective deities.

The Carnival of Oruro originated as an indigenous festival, but later incorporated Christian rituals. The Spanish banned native Itu ceremonies in the 17th century during their rule over Upper Peru. However, the Uru people continued to observe the festival in the form of a Catholic ritual on Candlemas, which takes place in the first week of February. They concealed portrayals of Andean gods behind Christian icons and replaced minor Andean divinities with Christian saints.

The Carnival of Oruro is held forty days before Easter and starts with a ceremony dedicated to the Virgen del Socavon. It features folk dances, extravagant costumes, crafts, music, and continuous partying. Over 28,000 dancers and 10,000 musicians from about 50 groups take part in the procession, which covers a four-kilometre route over three days and three nights. The highlight of the festival is the parade of folk dancers to the Shrine of the Tunnel. The traditional Llama llama or Diablada dance became the leading dance of the festival.

The Carnival of Oruro is a blend of Catholic and pre-Columbian beliefs and rituals. It reflects the diverse aspects of Oruro's rich cultural history. The festival tells the story of how the Spaniards conquered the Aymara and Quechua people of Bolivia and celebrates the battle between good and evil. It is a complex interlacing of Catholic ideals and ancient pagan expression.

It features folk dances, extravagant costumes, crafts, and music

Bolivia's Carnival of Oruro is a religious and cultural festival that has been celebrated since the 18th century. It is held annually on the Saturday before Ash Wednesday, with the 2024 event taking place on 17 February. The Carnival is one of UNESCO's Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity.

The Carnival is renowned for its folk dances, extravagant costumes, crafts, and music. Over 50 folklore groups, comprising around 28,000 dancers, perform in the festival, representing the various indigenous groups throughout Bolivia. The dances share an Oruro origin and tell the story of how the Spaniards conquered the Aymara and Quechua people of Bolivia. The Carnival is a complex blend of Catholic ideals and ancient pagan expression, reflecting the diverse aspects of Oruro's rich cultural history.

The most famous folk dance is La Diablada or the Dance of the Devils, which was first performed in 1904. It is a ritual representing the victory of good over evil and has remained unchanged since colonial times. The dance was born out of the indigenous miners' fear that El Tio, the god of the underworld, would be jealous of the attention they paid to the Virgin, who was named the patron of the Carnival. The demonic costumes are extravagant, frightening, and heavy, featuring horned masks, velvet capes, shimmering breastplates, and boots decorated with serpents.

Other dances accompanying La Diablada include the Caporales, the Llameradas, the Morenadas, the Tobas, the Phujllay, and the Tinkus. The Morenada dance, for example, is inspired by the Spanish colonization of the 16th century, which saw the importation of African slaves to work in the mines of Potosi. The dance presents, in a satirical way, the difficult working conditions of the miners, and the melancholic music reflects their pain and suffering. The Saya dance and its music originate from the valley of Yungas and are representative of the Andean Afro culture. The rhythm of Saya is given by the loud sound of a drum, with the dancers' costumes being relatively simple in comparison to other dances.

The carnival lasts for 10 days

The Carnival of Oruro is a religious and cultural festival in Bolivia. It is a 10-day festival that gives rise to various art forms, including masks, textiles, and embroidery. The Carnival is a blend of Catholic and pre-Columbian customs, reflecting a certain religious syncretism. The Christian icons of the Catholic Virgin and the devil are mixed with the pagan indigenous cults of the Pachamama and Tio.

The Carnival of Oruro is held annually and lasts for 10 days, ending on Fat Tuesday, known as Mardi Gras or Martes Gordo in Spanish. This falls exactly 40 days before Easter, which is also the day that Lent begins, known as Ash Wednesday. The Carnival is a national holiday in Bolivia and is a huge tourist attraction, drawing crowds of up to 400,000 people annually. The festival features spectacular folk dances, extravagant costumes, beautiful crafts, lively music, and continuous partying for up to 20 hours a day.

The Carnival of Oruro has its origins in the religious practices of the Andean natives, who worshipped the Pachamama (Mother Earth) and their ancient god Tio. The Carnival is also believed to have originated from an ancient belief that a virgin once helped a wounded man return home near the silver mines of Oruro, becoming a symbol of protection for Bolivian miners.

The main event of the Carnival is the procession or entrada, where dancers walk a four-kilometer route for up to 20 hours without interruption. More than 28,000 dancers and 10,000 musicians, organized into about 50 groups, take part in the procession. The dances of the Carnival of Oruro are based on the legend of the Virgin del Socavon and the ancient Uru tale of Huari, depicting the struggle of Archangel San Miguel against the Devil and the seven deadly sins.

The Carnival of Oruro is a true symbol of Bolivian national culture and has become a strong regional tradition. It is known for its colourful spectacle of costumes and folk dances, influencing parades worldwide.

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