Paczki Day
Thus Shrove Tuesday gets its name from the shriving that English Christians were expected to do prior to receiving absolution immediately before Lent begins. Shrove Tuesday is the last day of "shrovetide", somewhat analogous to the Carnival tradition that developed separately in countries of Latin Europe.
Because of the increase in many immigrant populations and traditions since the 19th century "Mardi Gras" is much more widely-used.
The festival is widely associated with the eating of foods such as pancakes, and often known simply as Pancake Day, originally because these used up ingredients such as fat and eggs, the consumption of which was traditionally restricted during Lent.
Terminologies
Fat Tuesday
In countries of the Carnival tradition, the day before Ash Wednesday is known either as Fat Tuesday (Portuguese, Terça-feira Gorda; French, Mardi Gras; Italian, Martedì Grasso; Swedish, Fettisdagen; Estonian, Vastlapäev), or the "Tuesday of Carnival" (Spanish, Martes de Carnaval; Portuguese, Terça-feira de Carnaval; German, Faschingsdienstag). This is in reference to eating special foods before the fasting season of Lent.
For German American populations, such as Pennsylvania Dutch Country, it is known as Fastnacht Day (also spelled Fasnacht, Fausnacht, Fauschnaut, or Fosnacht).
The Fastnacht is made from fried potato dough and served with dark corn syrup. In John Updike's novel Rabbit Run, the main character remembers a Fosnacht Day tradition where the last person to rise would be teased by the other family members and called a "Fosnacht."
In Hawaii, this day is also known as Malasada Day, which dates back to the days of the sugar plantations of the 1800s.
The occupying Portuguese used up their butter and sugar prior to Lent by making large batches of malasada (doughnuts).
In Iceland the day is known as Sprengidagur ("Bursting Day") and is marked by the eating of salt meat and peas.
In Lithuania the day is called Užgavėnės. People eat pancakes (blynai) and Lithuanian-style doughnuts called spurgos.
In heavily Polish areas of the United States, such as Chicago and the Detroit suburb of Hamtramck, Pączki Day is celebrated with pączki eating contests, music and Polish food.
Semla.
In Sweden, the day is marked by eating a traditional pastry, called semla or fastlagsbulle, a sweet bun filled with almond paste and whipped cream.
Originally, the pastry was only eaten on this day sometimes served in a bowl of hot milk. Eventually the tradition evolved to eat the bun on every Tuesday leading up to Easter, as after the Reformation, the Protestant Swedes no longer observed a strict Lent.
The semla is now often eaten as a regular pastry, without the hot milk. The semla is also traditional in Finland but they are usually filled with jam instead of almond paste.
Fat Thursday
In Poland and areas with large Polish American, Christian populations (such as Chicago), it is known as Tłusty Czwartek (literally: Fat Thursday) and celebrated on the Thursday before Lent.
In Poland, pączki and faworki are traditionally eaten on Fat Thursday (Polish: Tłusty czwartek), i.e.
However, in areas of Detroit, Michigan with large Polish communities, they are eaten on "Fat Tuesday" due to French influence. Shrove Tuesday itself is sometimes referred to as "śledzik" ("little herring") and it is customary to have some pickled herring with vodka (Polish: wódka) that day.
The liturgical fasting emphasized eating plainer food and refraining from food that would give pleasure: In many cultures, this means no meat, dairy, or eggs.
Another holiday associated with pancakes (or in this case crêpes) is a French and Belgian festival called Chandeleur. Held on February 2 each year, this holiday is associated with the presentation of Jesus Christ in the temple.
The French may also eat crêpes for mi-Careme and Mardi Gras. Similar to Chandeleur is Candlemas, which is celebrated by Anglican communities.
Another traditional food for this season is a sweet fried dumpling called cenci, usually served in the shape of a loose knot (a 5cm wide, 20cm long strip of dough one extremity of which is passed through a slit in the middle).
In New Orleans and French-speaking communities, another traditional food is king cake. Traditionally the community king for Mardi Gras was found by the man who ate a bean baked in the cake.
A Festy cock is a Scottish dish made of a ball of finely ground meal, wetted until patted and rolled into a pancake shape, then roasted in the hot ashes from a mill kiln.
This was a dish to be eaten at Shrovetide.
In Estonia (Vastlapäev) and Finland (Laskiainen), this day is associated with hopes for the coming year. A toy is made from the ham bone by tying the bone to a string and spinning it around to make a whistling noise.
It is most often accompanied with hot red or black currant drink or sometimes, for adults, glögi - a heated mulled wine. In Germany, Austria and Slovenia people traditionally eat rich pastries such as Berliner, krapfen or krof.
Other Traditions
Many towns throughout England held traditional Shrove Tuesday football ('Mob football') games dating as far back as the 12th century.
The practice mostly died out with the passing of the Highway Act 1835, which banned the playing of football on public highways. with the signalling of a church bell. On Pancake Day, pancake races are held in villages and towns across the United Kingdom.
She raced out of the house to church while still carrying her frying pan and pancake.
In 1634 William Fennor wrote in his Palinodia:
"And tosse their Pancakes up for feare they burne."
But the tradition of pancake racing had started long before that. The most famous pancake race , at Olney in Buckinghamshire, has been held since 1445.
A similar race is held in North Somercotes of Lincolnshire in eastern England.
Also, in Scarborough, North Yorkshire, the foreshore road (beach) is closed off, schools close early and all residents are invited to skip in the road.
Pancake Day
In the United Kingdom, Shrove Tuesday is often known colloquially as Pancake Day or Pancake Tuesday. It is served immediately after preparation and was traditionally served with a meat-based stew, although in modern times a sprinkling of granulated sugar (fine sugar in the United States), or caster sugar (superfine sugar in the United States), and lemon juice has become more common.
Many other sweet and savoury toppings are used today (for example, in Canada pancakes are often served with maple syrup or preserves).
In Australia, UnitingCare Australia, the social services arm of the Uniting Church in Australia, has used Pancake Day to raise money for their work.
The Rehab UK Parliamentary Pancake Race also takes place every Shrove Tuesday, with teams from the House of Commons, the House of Lords and the Fourth Estate (press media) battling it out for the title of Parliamentary Pancake Race Champions. This relay race is held to raise awareness of the work of national brain injury charity Rehab UK and the needs of people with acquired brain injury.
The Pancake Greaze
Another local tradition, the Pancake Greaze, takes place every year at Westminster School in London.
http:www.britainusa.com/sections/articles_show_nt1.asp?d=0&i=60062&L1=0&L2=0&a=41276. http:www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_g1epc/is_tov/ai_2419100764.