{"id":227139,"date":"2023-02-08T13:28:19","date_gmt":"2023-02-08T13:28:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/swissfederalism.ch\/storia-tradizioni-carnevale\/"},"modified":"2023-02-09T09:46:48","modified_gmt":"2023-02-09T09:46:48","slug":"history-traditions-swiss-carnival","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/swissfederalism.ch\/en\/history-traditions-swiss-carnival\/","title":{"rendered":"History and traditions of the Swiss Carnival"},"content":{"rendered":"

History and traditions of the Swiss Carnival<\/span><\/h1>\n

Carnival is celebrated in many different ways: carnival parades, music, masks and dressing up play an important role.<\/em><\/span><\/h3>\n
\"Fasnachtsumzug<\/a>
Fasnachtsumzug Luzern Bild von Werner Sidler auf Pixabay<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The term ‘carnival’ derives from the Latin ‘carnem levare’ (i.e. to remove meat) and refers to the eve of Lent, the forty-day period of fasting before Easter, which begins on Ash Wednesday. The period of fasting recalls the 40 days of fasting and penance spent by Jesus in the desert.<\/span><\/p>\n

During the Middle Ages, everyone in Christian Europe had to observe the obligation to fast and carnival was used to exhaust the last winter supplies, feast, dance and make music.<\/span><\/p>\n

In many places in Catholic areas, carnival opens at 11.11 a.m. on 11 November. This date always has something to do with fasting, in fact, a period of fasting before Christmas used to be observed starting on St Martin’s Day. Because of the Bible’s ten commandments, moreover, the number eleven symbolised excess, overstepping boundaries and buffoonery. Real carnival parades and celebrations take place everywhere in February or March regardless of whether the carnival opens on St Martin’s Day or just before Ash Wednesday.<\/span><\/p>\n

In Switzerland, carnival is one of the most popular festivities that takes place in practically every municipality and originates from a mixture of Christian rituals, traditional customs and pagan celebrations, even centuries old. Participants, wearing scary masks to ward off evil spirits and imaginative disguises, temporarily assume a new identity as they parade through the streets to the sound of music.<\/span><\/p>\n

Of particular note are the carnivals of the City of Lucerne<\/strong> and Basel<\/strong> (the latter being part of the UNESCO intangible cultural heritage). In some cantons, Carnival is based on the pre-Christian custom of driving out winter and evil spirits to welcome the rebirth of spring.<\/span><\/p>\n

The alpine season as candidate for the intangible cultural heritage of UNESCO<\/a><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

The night of St. Lawrence between traditions and legends<\/strong><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

Schmutziger Donnerstag or Fat Thursday<\/span><\/h2>\n

Fat Thursday falls on the Thursday before Ash Wednesday and marks the beginning of the carnival season. ‘Schmutz’ (also ‘Schmotz’) is an Alemannic dialect term for fat and in the past, in order to survive Lent (from Ash Wednesday), people used to eat as much fat as possible on Fat Thursday.<\/span><\/p>\n

Fasnachtsdienstag or Fat Tuesday<\/span><\/h2>\n

Also called Faschingsdienstag, or Karnevalsdienstag, in German-speaking countries, it is known as Fat Tuesday and marks the last day of carnival, before the beginning of Lent. In some regions where it is celebrated, it is the climax of carnival festivities.<\/span><\/p>\n

The most famous and characteristic Swiss Carnivals<\/span><\/h2>\n

Basel Carnival<\/span><\/h3>\n

In the 16th century, Basel also adhered to the Protestant Reformation by abolishing the fasting period before Easter and with it the carnival; however, the authorities failed to impose themselves, so that this city is among the few Swiss Protestant cities where a traditional carnival is still celebrated today.<\/span><\/p>\n

According to some local historians, the throwing of confetti is a typical Basel tradition that has since spread to the rest of the world. Originally, sweets called confetti were given or thrown to the crowd during the parade, but this practice was banned in the 19th century and replaced with small scraps of paper. In the Basel German dialect, confetti is called R\u00e4ppli<\/em>.<\/span><\/p>\n

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\"Morgestraich<\/a>
Morgestraich – Carnival Basel Photo by Theusursus, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

This Carnival has a history spanning centuries and was included in the UNESCO intangible cultural heritage<\/strong> in 2017 and is the largest in Switzerland. Starting at 4 a.m. on the Monday after Ash Wednesday, when the bells of St Martin’s Church ring out, all the lights in the town centre are switched off and the music and festivities begin at the command “Morgestraich, vorw\u00e4rts marsch!”<\/strong><\/em> and the traditional melody of the Morgenstreich march is sung. In the completely darkened city, lanterns with representations of past carnival themes and accompanying drums shine. Many restaurants and bars in the old town also open their doors and remain open for the next 72 hours.<\/span><\/p>\n

One of the oldest ensembles are the Cliques<\/strong>, which march through the old town playing the piccolo and basler drums: these consist of a Vortrab (vanguard), the Pfeifer (pipers), the Tambourmajor (drum major) and the Tambouren (drummers).<\/span><\/p>\n

The Gugge<\/strong> (brass bands) play the Guggenmusik during Carnival by marching and playing and performing in the Guggekoncerts.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Schnitzelbank<\/strong> singers are jesters who sing satirical verses in Swiss German about current events in Basel and around the world. The singers regularly perform in restaurants and bars on Monday and Wednesday evenings and in clique-cellars (local assembly halls) on Tuesdays.<\/span><\/p>\n

On Monday and Wednesday afternoons, two large ‘Cort\u00e8ge<\/strong>‘ processions with masks, costumes and the traditional Guggenmusik take place, while Tuesday afternoon is dedicated to children, dressed in themed costumes and armed with confetti and candy. In the evening, it is time for music in the city’s main squares. Flour soup, onion cake and a caraway bretzel called ‘Fastenw\u00e4he’ accompany the three days of celebrations.<\/span><\/p>\n

The city’s typical masks are the ‘Waggis<\/strong>‘, a character with a big nose and colourful clothes, and the ‘Alti Tante<\/strong>‘ (old aunt), an elegant Basel lady.<\/span><\/p>\n

These three days of festivities are called ‘drey scheenschte D\u00e4\u00e4gi<\/strong>‘ or the three most beautiful days of the year by the citizens of Basel.<\/span><\/p>\n

St. Gallen Carnival<\/span><\/h3>\n

This carnival is famous for the ‘F\u00f6b\u00fc-Verschuss<\/strong>‘, where each year a new ‘honorary citizen’, i.e. the person who has done the craziest thing in the past year, is chosen in front of the statue of Vadiano. The choice is made by the Schnitzelb\u00e4nkler (satirical storytellers), the Gugger and the carnival associations, and the name of the winner is announced with a cannon shot from which coloured confetti is fired.<\/span><\/p>\n

Lucerne Carnival<\/span><\/h3>\n

This carnival is considered to be the biggest annual event in the city. It traditionally opens on Fat Thursday with the Fritschi<\/strong> arriving aboard a boat on Lake Lucerne at 5 a.m. to announce the opening of the carnival with a thunderous roar known as the ‘big bang’, which marks the start of the six-day celebration. The Fritschi, an old man accompanied by his wife and son, seems to take his origins from a symbolic figure from the past, a straw puppet called Fridolin<\/em>.<\/span><\/p>\n

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