Fat Thursday

By country

France

Mardi Gras (French for Fat Tuesday) is a time when crepes would be served to use up stores of butter or lard and eggs, similar to the Shrove Tuesday tradition regarding pancakes in England.

Germany

Weiberfastnacht is an unofficial holiday in the Rhineland. At the majority of workplaces, work ends before noon. Celebrations start at 11:11 am in Germany. In comparison with Rosenmontag, there are hardly any parades, but people wear costumes and celebrate in pubs and in the streets. Beueler Weiberfastnacht ("women's carnival in Beuel") is traditionally celebrated in the Bonn district of Beuel. The tradition is said to have started here in 1824, when local women first formed their own "carnival committee". The symbolic storming of the Beuel town hall is broadcast live on TV. In many towns across the state of North Rhine Westphalia, a ritual "takeover" of the town halls by local women has become tradition. Among other established customs, on that day women cut off the ties of men, which are seen as a symbol of men's status. The men wear the stumps of their ties and get a Bützchen (little kiss) as compensation.

Greece

Main article: Tsiknopempti

Known as Tsiknopempti in Greece, it is part of the traditional celebrations of el (Απόκριες), the Greek Carnival season. The celebration, normally translated as Smelly Thursday, Charred Thursday, or Smoky Thursday, centers on the consumption of large amounts of grilled and roasted meats.

Italy

Giovedì grasso (Fat Thursday) is celebrated in Italy, but it is not very different from martedì grasso (Shrove Tuesday). In Venice at the turn of the twentieth century, for example, it was marked by "masquerades, a battle of flowers on the Plaza, a general illumination and the opening of the lottery". The English writer Marie Corelli mentioned giovedì grasso (as "Giovedi Grasso") in her second novel, Vendetta (1886), as a day when "the fooling and the mumming, the dancing, shrieking, and screaming would be at its height."

Netherlands

In Cologne, since 1824, the so-called Weiberfastnacht is known. On the Thursday before carnaval, women wear men's clothes, reversing the roles and thus literally "being the man". In the Dutch border village Groenstraat a precursor to the Auwwieverbal (Old women ball) or Auw Wieverdaag (old women day) was known already in the early 19th century. The people at that time earned a living by breeding goats and selling women's hair. The Thursday before carnaval, men would sell the hair to their French buyers. After the sale, as the man had plenty of money, they would go visit the pubs. Out of fear that their men would squander the money raised by their hair, the women would find their husbands to prevent them from wasting it on alcohol. The search along the pubs transformed later to the Ouwewijvenbal. The women, this time incognito, firmly asserted themselves to their husbands and other men.

Poland

In Poland, Fat Thursday is called tłusty czwartek. People purchase their favorite pastries from their local bakeries. Traditional foods include pączki (doughnuts), which are large deep-fried pieces of yeast dough, traditionally filled with fruit jam or rose petal jam (though others are often used) and topped with powdered sugar, icing or glaze. Angel wings (faworki or chrusty) are also commonly consumed on this day.

Slovenia

In Slovenia, Fat Thursday is celebrated with specific culinary traditions. People often enjoy special foods that are rich and hearty. A common treat is “krof,” a type of doughnut that is usually filled with jam, particularly apricot, and dusted with powdered sugar. These doughnuts are a staple of the celebration and are enjoyed by many.

Apart from krof, other fatty and rich foods are also consumed, reflecting the tradition’s focus on indulgence and enjoyment before the austerity of Lent. The celebration is not just about food; it’s also a time for social gatherings, family get-togethers, and community events, often accompanied by music and festivities.

Spain

In Spain this celebration is called jueves lardero or jueves de comadre and in Catalan-speaking areas, dijous gras, a children's holiday. In Albacete in Spain community of Castille-La Mancha, jueves lardero or Dia de la Mona is celebrated with a round pastry with a boiled egg in the middle called mona. In Aragon a meal is prepared with a special sausage from Graus while in Catalonia the tradition is to eat sweet Bunyols and Botifarra d’ou.

Other traditions

Syrian Catholics have celebrated the day as "Drunkard's Thursday" with dolmas as the traditional food.

References

References

1. Mroziak, Michael. (2017-02-23). "You've heard of Fat Tuesday, but there's also Fat Thursday". WFBO.
2. "Poles gorge themselves on Fat Thursday".
3. Fat Thursday in Poland – [http://lodzpost.com/entertainment/fat-thursday-in-poland-or-happy-doughnut-day/ Lodz Post – Poland in English] {{webarchive. link. (February 6, 2016)
4. [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/4220268/tyrone_daily_herald/ "Attack of the Giant Bananas: Germany Kicks off Carnival"] {{webarchive. link. (May 13, 2016 ''Tyrone Daily Herald'' (February 7, 1996): 9. via [[Newspapers.com]] {{open access)
5. [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/4220180/weiberfastnacht_in_1972/ "Mark in Germany"] {{webarchive. link. (May 13, 2016 ''Lake Park News'' (March 2, 1972): 7. via [[Newspapers.com]] {{open access)
6. [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/4220218/weiberfastnacht_in_beuel_1959/ "This was 'Weiberfastnacht,' and Milady Held the Reins"] {{webarchive. link. (May 12, 2016 ''Salt Lake Tribune'' (February 6, 1959): 35. via [[Newspapers.com]] {{open access)
7. Petra Pluwatsch: Weiberfastnacht – Die Geschichte eines ganz besonderen Tages. KiWi, Köln, {{ISBN. 978-3-462-03805-7
8. [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/4216941/fat_thursday_celebrated_by_the_romans/ "'Fat Thursday' Celebrated by the Romans"] {{webarchive. link. (February 2, 2017 ''Lebanon Daily News'' (February 27, 1930): 1. via [[Newspapers.com]] {{open access)
9. Dwight, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/4217001/carnival_in_venice_1899/ "Carnival of Venice Opens"] {{webarchive. link. (May 13, 2016 ''The Times'' (Philadelphia) (February 10, 1899): 7. via [[Newspapers.com]] {{open access)
10. link. (January 18, 2017 (Floating Press 2015): 376. {{ISBN). 978-1776587513
11. [http://www.goirlesbelang.nl/nw-7833-7-157193/nieuws/stichting_karnaval_ballefruttersgat_organiseert_het_aaw_wvebal.html Stichting Karnaval Ballefruttersgat organiseert het Aaw Wèèvebal – Goirles Belang] {{Webarchive. link. (3 December 2013 . Goirlesbelang.nl (28 January 2009). Retrieved on 2015-05-13.)
12. "Fat Thursday & Herring Night".
13. "Poland celebrates 'Fat Thursday'".
14. Brodziński, Piotr. (2011-03-03). "Słów kilka o zapustnych zwyczajach".
15. Ora W. L. Slater, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/4220348/barcelona_childrens_day_1928/ "Thursday before Lent is Barcelona Children's Day"] {{webarchive. link. (May 13, 2016 ''El Paso Herald'' (June 25, 1928): 10. via [[Newspapers.com]] {{open access)
16. Maxine Buren, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/4220329/prelenten_holidays_1960/ "February Has Many Pre-Lenten Holidays"] {{webarchive. link. (May 12, 2016 ''Oregon Statesman'' (February 13, 1960): 6. via [[Newspapers.com]] {{open access)
17. link. (September 13, 2015 ''Catholic Culture.org''.)