Carnival Limon: One of the Best Dancing Traditions in Costa Rica´s Afro-Caribbean Culture

Carnival Limon is an important event in Limon which has some relevant characteristics such as dance that define the culture of Limon people; in addiction, it has a history that shows relevant aspects of Limon.   

  

Carnival in Limon is known for catch the attention of everyone, it is a traditions event in Limon where the important aspect is local dance. This carnival was established in 1949; in addiction, it is a famous party in Costa Rica´s culture because it commemorates Christopher Columbus historic arrival in Costa Rica’s Caribbean coast in 1502. The people from Limon said that idea of this special carnival was created by Alfred Smith and his friends; moreover, this idea was developed by them while they were having a conversation at Smith’s barber shop in the downtown of Limon. Likewise, Alfred Smith and his friend had an objective with this carnival and it was to join Costa Rica’s culture with the Afro Caribbean’s which in the past had a difficult relation between them; nowadays, this carnival is considered as one of the most popular in the country and it means a lot for Costa Rica´s culture. Also, this carnival is celebrated nowadays to remember that merged between Costa Rica´s culture and Afro- Caribbean’s culture.

In this event, Costa Rica women, especially African descent, wear traditional dress and those women move their hips according to the Caribbean rhythm during the all parades. In this carnival, spectators can see different types of floats which were made by local people.

In those carnivals the people can enjoy of different activities that promote the culture of Limon such as to see group of dance, to hear the magnificent music of troupes which play tropical rhythms as Brazilian samba and to see people with coloring costumes dancing.

To sum up, this carnival is very special for the local people because it fosters local culture and it makes emphasis on dance which is an important element on Limon´s culture.

Interview

Name: Adrían Zumbado Avilés

Date: 29^th March 2016

Age: 18 years old

He is from Limon and he studies International Relations in Universidad Nacional

Questions

• How do Limon people enjoy dance? Explain and give examples

The main activity where the people dance is in carnivals and in those carnivals you can find variety of dances. There are a lot of place where you can go and dance for example there are a lot of people who dance contemporary dance, Calypso or dances with tropical rhythms such as salsa. In every institution or school from Limon you always will find a Calypso dance group.

• Which aspects do you consider important in activities such as Carnival Limon that promote the local dance?

Some important aspects are that in Carnival Limon you can see different types of local dances, a variety of coloring costumes and also flashy floats. Also, there is a lot of artist that use this carnival to get known and move on.  Carnival Limon promote local culture such as calypso music and local dances.

Resources

Outward Bound. History of Carnival Limon. Outward Bound Costa Rica. 29 March. Web. n.d.

Isenberg, Robert. Week-long Carnavales de Limón liven up Caribbean. The Tico Times. 29 March. Web. 14 Oct 2014.