What is the name of the early morning street party that begins the Trinidad Carnival? J’Ouvert.
J’Ouvert comes from a French-Creole expression meaning “daybreak” or “break of day.” In Trinidad and Tobago, it begins before dawn on Carnival Monday, the first of the festival’s two principal days, and signals the start of the official street celebrations.
The tradition is closely linked to Canboulay, an Afro-Trinidadian celebration that developed from the experiences and cultural practices of formerly enslaved people. In the 19th century, colonial authorities tried to suppress drumming, torch-carrying and stick-fighting. The 1884 Peace Preservation Act established an official Carnival start time of 6 a.m.; early-morning J’Ouvert festivities grew partly as a response to those restrictions.
Unlike the glittering costumes worn later on Carnival Monday and Tuesday, J’Ouvert is intentionally rough, satirical and earthy. Revelers dance behind music trucks or bands while covered in mud, paint, oil or powder. It is not Panorama, the steel-pan competition, nor Dimanche Gras, the grand Sunday-night show. J’Ouvert typically starts between 2 and 4 a.m. and continues into mid-morning.