Culture of Trinidad and Tobago

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

The culture of Trinidad and Tobago reflects the influence of Indian-South Asian, African, Indigenous, European, Chinese, North American, Latino, and Arab cultures. The histories of Trinidad and Tobago are different. There are differences in the cultural influences which have shaped each island. Trinidad and Tobago is an English-speaking country with strong links to the United Kingdom.

Historical membership in the British Empire left a major influence on the country, including the differences of the English language and the popularity of the two top sports in the country, football, and cricket.

Festivals

Carnival

Members of a Costume band parade in Port of Spain during Carnival

The most influential single cultural factor in Trinidad and Tobago is

Trinidad Carnival. Carnival was originally confined to the upper classes, which rode the streets in floats, or watched from the upper stories of residences and businesses. The night was given over to the lower classes. The first few hours of Carnival Monday morning, from about 4 am until sunrise was known as J'ouvert
(a contraction of jour ouvert). Costumed and masked by the darkness, J'ouvert allowed the wealthy to mix with the poor in relative anonymity. Monday night (night 'mas) had a similar, but lesser function.

Mas'

The daytime of Carnival Monday and Tuesday are dominated by costumed masqueraders. Until World War II, most of these masqueraders portrayed traditional African influenced characters including the Midnight Robber, Police and Thief, Wild-American Indian, Bat', and Jab Mola individuals gave way to organized bands, which today can include thousands of masqueraders. Peter Minshall is often considered the greatest mas' designer.[why?]

Carnival fetes

Carnival takes place most heatedly during the week before the actual parade of bands on Carnival Monday and Tuesday. However, traditionally, the Carnival season begins on Boxing Day December 26 and soca and calypso music reign supreme over the airwaves. The fetes that take place from year end through carnival (usually in February) are generally carnival-themed and feature live music from bands and soca artists who are promoting their song contributions for the year.

Christmas

.

In

fruit cake, sweet bread (paime)[clarification needed] are customary eats; Peardrax,[2] ponche de creme ("punch a crem'"), ginger beer, sorrel wine are the drinks. As most of the residents are Christian
, Christmas is one of the biggest celebrations in Trinidad and Tobago..

Divali

Divali Nagar in Chaguanas, Caroni County, Trinidad and Tobago.
Divali night in Trinidad and Tobago
.

Divali is a Hindu festival, a celebration of the victory of good over evil. The Divali Nagar is a fair that originated in Trinidad and Tobago
.

Hosay

tadjah
at Hosay in the 1950s.

Remembrance of Muharram in Trinidad and Tobago[3] (where is it spelled Hussay). The name Hosay comes from "Husayn", whose martyrdom is commemorated in the festival.[why?
] Recently it has been revived elsewhere.

Phagwah

Phagwah
.
Phagwah
.

A Hindu spring festival, celebrated as a festival of colours.

Maha Shivratri

Maha Shivratri
festival

A Hindu Festival celebrated annually in which thousands of devotees spend night in over 400 temples across the land, offering special jhal (a mixture of milk, dahi (yogurt), honey, flowers, bael leaves, pipal leaves, paan leaves, sugar-cane juice, and sugar) to Lord Shiva.[4]

Music

Legislative Council, and the elected town councils of Port of Spain and San Fernando. As English replaced patois (Creole French) as the dominant language, calypso migrated into English, and in so doing it attracted more attention from the government. Calypso continued to play an important role in political expression, and also served to document the history of Trinidad and Tobago.[clarification needed
]

Calypso

Calypso is a style of

French Antilles
in the 18th century.

Soca

Soca is a dance music which is a mix of Trinidad's calypso and Indian music and rhythms, especially

Shorty's classic compositions "Ïndrani" and "Shanti Om". Soca and its derivatives (Chutney soca, Groovy soca, Power soca) have largely displaced mainstream calypso as the music of Carnivaless
.

Chutney

Chutney was born out of the East Indian influence in Trinidad, and derives elements both from traditional Indian music and popular soca music.

Chutney Soca

Chutney soca music is a crossover style of music incorporating

English
lyrics.

Rapso

Rapso is a uniquely Trinidadian music that grew out of the social unrest of the 1970s, though it is often described as a fusion of soca and calypso with American hip hop.

Parang

Parang is a music with Caribbean and Latin American cultural influences. The word is derived from two Spanish words: Parranda, meaning "a spree or fete" and Parar meaning "to stop". Parang is a popular folk music originating out of Trinidad and Tobago, it is part of the Island's Hispanic heritage that originated from over 400 years ago during Spanish rule via Venezuela.

Pichakaree

Pichakaree is an

English words. The musical form was devised by Ravi Ji, spiritual leader of the Hindu Prachar Kendra.[when?] Pichakaree competitions are an integral part of Phagwa celebrations hosted by the Hindu Prachar Kendra.[who?
]

Steelband

The

steelband developed during wartime By people of African ancestry.[5] They were preceded by the Tambu Bamboo bands, which used percussion instruments based on bamboo
. The steelband movement developed in the postwar period with many bands taking names from war movies like Casablanca, Tokyo, Free French and Tripoli.

Cuisine

The

]

African Creole food commonly includes

]

Theatre

The first permanent folk-dance company and theatre in Trinidad was the

Ram Leela has been incorporated into Trinidad and Tobago's culture.[citation needed
]

Literary scene

Trinidad and Tobago has produced many noted writers, including Nobel laureates Sir Vidia Naipaul, and other award-winning authors such as Earl Lovelace, Lakshmi Persaud and Michael Anthony.

Religion

The largest religious groups are the

Pentecostal" by most Trinidadians (although this designation is often inaccurate). The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
(LDS Church) and the Seventh Day Adventist (SDA) Church) has also expanded its presence in the country since the mid-1980s.

References

  1. ^ "Trinidad Cornmeal Pastelle - Simply Trini Cooking". Simplytrinicooking.com. 29 November 2008. Archived from the original on 7 July 2015. Retrieved 2 August 2017.
  2. ^ Vanished UK drink is toast of Caribbean, an April 2007 article from the BBC website
  3. ^ Korom, Frank . Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Texas, Austin. Imagining India(ns): Cultural Performances and Diaspora Politics in Jamaica (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2008-12-19. Retrieved 2006-11-07.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  4. ^ "Grand Shivratri Carnival celebrated in Trinidad and Tobago. Devotees also stay up to midnight chanting the lords name". IANS. news.biharprabha.com. Retrieved 1 March 2014.
  5. ^ "Home". Pantrinbago.co.tt. Archived from the original on 4 July 2015. Retrieved 2 August 2017.