Carnival came to Brazil in the 17th century, influenced

by the carnival celebrations in Europe.

In the 17th century the Portuguese brought one of their most popular festivals to Brazil. It was a
simple and lighthearted celebration. People gathered in the streets and had fun, throwing water, eggs
and flour over each other. It can be said that this was the pre-history of Brazilian carnival. At that time,
the French and Italians used to enjoy a more sophisticated carnival. People wore masks and costumes.
Brazilians began to organize more European-influenced carnival celebrations in the 19th century. At the
end of that century, the first carnival groups began to appear in Brazil. In the 1920s carnival became the
largest popular festival in Brazil, thanks to the popularity of samba, the marchinhas, and the emergence
of the first samba schools.

In Brazil, the character King Momo became part of carnival in 1933. For decades, the king was
chosen in a competition. The candidate had to be likeable, cheerful and and very heavy. The character of
King Momo was inspired by Greek mythology, where “Momos” was the god of irreverence. Because of his
habit of making fun of the other gods, he was expelled from Olympus. As for the characters Pierrot,
Harlequin and Columbine, they emerged in the 16th century in Italy. The Italians created the Commedia
dell “Arte, a kind of popular theater whose goal was to entertain the humblest people.
The character Columbine was a pretty girl who made two men fall in love with her. Pierrot was
romantic, naïve and head-over-heels in love with Columbine. His rival, Harlequin, was mischievous and
playful.

www.maganews.com.br
 C
A
R
➢ Italians / masks / popular N
➢ celebrations / samba /
A
➢ French / marchinhas / fun V
A
L
*
I
N
*
B
R
A
Z
I
L

1. How did the carnival in Brazil?

2. Which countries have influenced the carnival in Brazil?

3. Talk individually about the characters: King Momo, Columbine, Pierrot and Harlequin.

1. The pre-history of carnival in Brazil came 2. The carnival has become the most popular
from: festival in Brazil:
( ) In Europe ( ) 17th century
( ) From Portugal ( ) 18th century
( ) From France ( ) 19th century
( ) From Italy ( ) 20th century

3. The character of King Momo has to be:
( ) Friendly, cheerful and very heavy.
( ) Heavy, very sad and beautiful.
( ) Friendly, beautiful and very heavy.
( ) Very heavy, romantic and cheerful.
4. The characters were in love with Columbine,
respectively:
( ) Romantic, naive, mischievous and playful.
( ) Mischievous, playful, romantic and smart.
( ) Romantic, naughty, playful and naive.
( ) Romantic, naughty, heavy and irreverent.