March 2 - 6th, 2000

It actually begins on the Tuesday before Lent). Float parades in which every float is characterized by its own hymn and a particular recitation in Sicilian dialect, (which involves complex oratory, never-ending sentences and the themes always allude to politics). Although Sciacca is a seaport, the feast is agricultural and rustic.

Italian-Americans in New Orleans will be intrigued to know that Sicily has had a Carnevale as a long time tradition. Certainly, Mardi Gras was influenced by the Italian Carnevale.

(English version translated by Alta Vista - below) Carnevale di Sciacca

The name "Carnival", attributed to this time of year, finds the experts offering fairly similar explanations. For penance, religious authority absolutely forbade consumption of any meat based food during Lent, and as the term "Carnilivari", used in Sicily, can still attest to, "carnival" derives from "carnem levare", a phrase depicting a time dedicated to preparing for the rigours of Lent, a period encompassing the forty days preceding Easter and during which meat and the pleasures of the flesh are renounced.

As with any other popular Italian tradition, it is nevertheless easy to recognize in this tradition the echo of celebrations from ancient Rome and in this case, those linked to celebrating the rituals of Saturn, the famous Saturnalia, during which, in occasion of the winter solstice, the people were permitted any liberty. Then too, in the tradition of very ancient Mediterranean propitiatory rites celebrating abundance and fertility, the King of the Saturnalia or the King of Festivities was, at the end of celebrations, brought to trial, sentenced, and burnt in effigy. The symbolic elimination of evil was to guarantee the people, cleansed of all sin, peace and harmony and a rich harvest.

In Italy, as well as in the greater part of the Christian world, Carnival has always been, throughout the centuries, incredibly disruptive of set customs and has always been representative of a time, albeit short, when social barriers between the classes and between the sexes could be shamelessly ignored, power mocked and every inhibition released in the obstacle-free search for the wildest pleasures. There are many Carnival traditions and customs that have not survived through the ages or of which there is but a trace left in today’s celebrations. In Venice, Florence and other Italian cities, Carnival was a period feared by all who had something dishonorable to hide. Often, masked, self proclaimed envoys of King Carnival would stand beneath the windows of the guilty in order to publicly mock them without pity. Cheated husbands, dishonest shopkeepers, tavern owners used to watering down wine, priests and chaplains unobservant of their vow of chastity, corrupt lawyers and notaries, well known drunkards and gluttons to the extreme, confirmed libertines and loose women, all were subjected to scorn and forced to keep silent, aware that any reaction would only intensify the ridicule.

The anonymity guaranteed by the mask worn by the Carnival messengers, ensured safety from vengeance on the part of those publicly scorned; for many, however, it also allowed liberties and freedoms, otherwise inconceivable during the rest of the year without the risk of heavy sanctions, particularly within the repressed societies of the past. The relationship between Carnival and masks, however, deserves a more ample discussion.

Plan your travels during carnevale season at Carnevale di Sciacca 2000. Find out more about Sciacca, and visit the official Comune de Sciacca web site.