| Shrove Monday | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Frans Hals, Merrymakers at Shrovetide (c. 1616–1617) | |
| Date | Monday beforeAsh Wednesday |
| 2025 date | March 3 |
| 2026 date | February 16 |
| 2027 date | February 8 |
| 2028 date | February 28 |
| Frequency | Annual |
Shrove Monday (also known asCollopy Monday,Rose Monday,Merry Monday orHall Monday) is part of theShrovetide orCarnival observances and celebrations of the week beforeLent, followingQuinquagesima or Shrove Sunday and precedingShrove Tuesday orMardi Gras.[1]
The wordshrove is the past tense of the English verbshrive, which means to giveabsolution for someone'ssins by way ofconfession and forgiveness. Thus Shrovetide gets its name from the shriving that English Christians were expected to do prior to receivingabsolution immediately before Lent begins. Shrove Tuesday is the last day of "shrovetide", somewhat analogous to theCarnival tradition that developed separately in countries ofLatin Europe. The terms "Shrove Monday" and "Shrove Tuesday" are no longer widely used in the United States or Canada outside of liturgical traditions, such as in theLutheran,Anglican, andRoman Catholic Churches.[2][3]
The British nameCollopy Monday is after the traditional dish of the day, consisting of slices of leftover meat (collops ofbacon) along witheggs.[4] It is eaten forbreakfast and is part of the traditionalLenten preparations. In addition to providing a little meat, the collops were also the source of the fat for the following day's pancakes.[5] It is rarely celebrated these days.
In eastCornwall, it is sometimes calledPeasen Monday orPaisen Monday after the custom of eatingpea soup on that day.[6]
Shrove Monday is part of the German, Danish, and Austrian Carnival calendar, calledRosenmontag. In theRhineland, as part of the pre-lenten Fasching festival (or Feast of Fools), it is part of the parade season, a day of marching, revelry, and satirical floats.[7] In theCarnival in Denmark, it is calledfastelavnsmandag.
In theEastern Orthodox liturgical calendar (most years falling later than the Western Church, usually in March), the start of Lent is calledClean Monday. This is not identical to Shrove Monday, which precedes the start of (Western) Lent by two days. Clean Monday is the first day of theGreat Lent, and is traditionally considered the beginning of spring inGreece andCyprus, where it is a Bank Holiday.[8] Different traditions take place in different localities. In the town ofTyrnavos, for instance, feasts are followed by songs and dances withBacchic overtones.[9]
In the 19th-centuryTrinidad and Tobago Carnival, akambule (procession of people holding torches) took place in the earliest hours of Shrove Monday.[10]
Carnival Monday is a national holiday inAruba, with the purpose of resting after theCarnival.[11]
The Shrove Monday events of theNew Orleans andMississippi Gulf CoastMardi Gras, dating back to the 19th century, have since the late 20th century been namedLundi Gras ("Fat Monday").[citation needed]