All About Mardi Gras

Posted by: Jaksyn Peacock

Food, parades, dancing, and masks – learn about the Mardi Gras celebration.

Pre-listening vocabulary

festive: cheerful, exciting, celebratory
celebrate: to participate in fun activities because of a special event
parade: a public show of marching bands and floats moving through a street
tradition: a practice that a certain culture participates in for a specific event

Listening activity

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Gapfill exercise

Comprehension questions

[wp_quiz id=”19281″]

Discussion/essay questions

Do you celebrate Mardi Gras? If so, what kinds of traditions do you have? If not, what other holidays do you celebrate, and what kinds of traditions do you have for those holidays?

Transcript

Mardi Gras is a festive holiday celebrated all around the world. Mardi Gras parades often include colourful floats, feathered
masks, and lots of food. The name “Mardi Gras” is French, translating into “Fat Tuesday” in English. The celebration originated as a religious holiday, marking the day before the Christian tradition of Lent. Christians would often make pancakes on this day to use up all of the milk, butter, and eggs in their houses. This became known as Pancake Day, and later as Mardi Gras when people began to celebrate it in France. Today, Mardi Gras is celebrated by people of all cultures. In some places— such as New Orleans, Louisiana— the parties and parades can last for two weeks.

Written and recorded by Jaksyn Peacock for EnglishClub

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20 comments

chloe pasquier says:

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Snowy :D says:

I live in the country of China, I don’t knwo about this fesitival, I searched more information online to make a report. I found this very interesting and the festival looks so fun! I hope I could try to join in their holiday at least one time?
Nguyễn Thanh Hồng says:

As Vietnamese, we don’t have a Mardi Gras festival. Instead, there are Hung Temple Festival, Perfume Pagoda, Giong Festival, Lim Festival, Lantern Festival… and many other festivals. Even though we don’t celebrate Mardi Gras, I found it very interesting and I’m also happy to learn more about your culture. The Lunar New Year is a special festival in our hometown, on this day everyone who is far from home returns to their hometown to eat cozy family meals and go to celebrate Tet. It’s really interesting. Try to preserve and develop the traditional festivals of the nation
Lương Thị Lan says:

We don’t have a Mardi Gras festival in Vietnam. Instead, we have outstanding festivals such as Lunar New Year, incense pagoda festival, Hung King’s death anniversary, Giong festival. People will be wrapped in Chung cake on the Lunar New Year, welcome New Year’s Eve, wear new costumes to go out in the spring. This festival will bring the whole family together.
Trương Thị Kiều Trang says:

As Vietnamese we don’t have Mardi Gras festival. Instead, there are Hung Temple Festival, Perfume Pagoda, Giong Festival, Lim Festival, Tet Flower Festival… and many other festivals. Although we do not celebrate Mardi Gras, I find it very interesting and I am also very happy to know more about your culture. Lunar New Year is a special festival in our hometown, on this day everyone from far and wide return to their hometown to eat cozy family meals and go to celebrate Tet. It is really interesting.
Nguyễn Thị Phương Trang K47C-SPT says:

As Vietnamese, we don’t have a Mardi Gras festival. Instead of the Perfume Pagoda Festival, Tran Temple Festival, Hung Temple Festival… Although each country’s culture is different, Mardi Gras is a very interesting festival. In addition, there is a reunion festival, all people in the country can wear new clothes and meet, wish a long life, eat, and pack traditional items such as moon cakes, tet cakes, pork rolls. Along with that, we get to see our loved ones again after a long year of working away from home. Please share about your country’s festival.
Nguyen Thao Van - K47CSPT says:

As a Vietnamese, we don’t have Mardi Gras festival. Instead, we have Spring festival, Lunar New Year, Kitchen Guardians day, Hung Kings Commemoration, Giong festival, Do Son buffalo fighting festival, Perfume pogoda festival, Ban flower festival,… and many other festivals. However, each country has a different culture, Mardi Gras is a very interesting festival so that I can learn more custom of your country.
Nguyễn Thị Phương-K47D-SPT says:

As a Vietnamese, we don’t have Mardi Gras festival. Instead, we have Huong Pagoda Festival, Lim Festival, Hung Temple Festival…Although the culture of each country is different, Mardi Gras is a very interesting festival.Thanks for your sharing.
Khổng Hạnh Linh says:

As a vietnamese,we don’t celebrate Mard Gras.Instead,we celebrate sping festival.People can wear new clothes to celebrate Tet, eat traditional food on Tet holiday such as chung cakes, spring rolls, pork ..
Lê Thu Hương_K47A _SPT says:

It’s good
Ariana Vieira says:

I am from Brazil and here, it is not common this kind of celebration, even the name isn’t famous to us, also the food is well known here in Brazil as an American pancake.
We have here all over Brazil a celebration known Carnival, it happens normally on February or March, it is not a Christian celebration, and the Catholic Church doesn’t recognize it as a celebration, many people use to watch it on tv, alive and also take part of these parades. By the other hand, many families prefere to expend these days traveling or resting at home. The financial costs of Carnival are enormous and the people pay a lot of money to take part of it, specially foreign people (Americans, Europeans, Asians, etc). But this year, considering that all over the world is suffering about the Covid-19, Brazil didn’t celebrate the date.
Arelis Fuentes says:

Thanks for this lecture.
DELIA OROZCO says:

I am from Mexico and we celebrate Mardi Gras in the states of Veracruz and Sinaloa with parades.Christians here follow the Lent with special food like fish, “romeritos” ( a plant )cooked with mole, potaoes, nopales and shrimp buns. As a dessert in some regions of our country we prepare ” capirotada” It is made with fried white bread, cheese, raisins, peanuts and syrup made from “piloncillo” (a sweetener from sugar cane).
Jack says:

As a chinese，we have chinese new year——Spring Festival，Dragon Boat Festival and so on。Only few people know Mardi Gras which those living city。But I still interesting of what author said。Thank you for your sharing。
Stella says:

We don’t usually celebrate Mardi Gras. Instead, we celebrate Chinese New Year as Chinese. In this holiday, everyone wears new clothes and eat nice food
Elie touma says:

Mardi Gras is a wonderful holiday celebrated all around the world. Thanks for good stories
ALBERTO URIBE URIBE says:

I had never heard about this holiday. Is nice to know about traditions around the world. Culture is what make us a little difernt. thanks for the information.
Aury says:

This quiz was interesting ,learn about other traditional holiday is very important.Thanks very much
Ariana Vieira says:

Hi, thanks for this article, all of them used to be very interesting, my students like it and so do I. Best regards, Ariana from Brazil
ghanem says:

thank you for this quiz . i try to improove my english.then i hope you can help me with more exercise