carnival

Where does the word "carnival" come from? It comes from Latin carne levare, passing through Italian before entering English (1500s-1600s).

Carnival’s story begins in Latin: carne levare meant “to remove meat.” Literally "to remove meat", marking the start of Lent's fasting. By medieval, the word had taken hold in Italian as carnevale. Named the festive period before Lent's fasting began. It reached English by 1500s-1600s as carnival. The feast before Lent, when meat was given up; Venice's carnival was famous across Europe. Today, carnival means a public festival or celebration, often with music, costumes, and parades.

1. Stage 1 · Latin · medieval carne levare "to remove meat", literally "to remove meat", marking the start of Lent's fasting.
2. Stage 2 · Italian · medieval carnevale "the festive pre-Lenten season", named the festive period before Lent's fasting began.
3. Stage 3 · English · 1500s-1600s carnival "a festive public celebration", the feast before Lent, when meat was given up; Venice's carnival was famous across Europe.