' is a

Fasnacht The Swabian-Alemannic Fastnacht, Fasnacht (in Switzerland) or Fasnat/Faschnat (in Vorarlberg) is the pre-Lenten carnival of Alemannic folklore in Switzerland, southern Germany, Alsace and Vorarlberg. Etymology Popular etymology often links ' ...

tradition of

Liestal Liestal (, Standard ), formerly spelled Liesthal, is the capital of Liestal District and the Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Basel-Landschaft in Switzerland, south of Basel. Liestal is an industrial town with a Cobbled street, cobbled-street ...

Basel-Landschaft Canton of Basel-Landschaft or Basel-Country, informally known as Baselland or Baselbiet (; ; ; ; ), is one of the 26 cantons forming the Swiss Confederation. It is composed of five districts and its capital city is Liestal. It is traditional ...

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

. On the Sunday night after

Ash Wednesday Ash Wednesday is a holy day of prayer and fasting in many Western Christian denominations. It is preceded by Shrove Tuesday and marks the first day of Lent: the seven weeks of Christian prayer, prayer, Religious fasting#Christianity, fasting and ...

, the night before the ''

Morgestraich The Carnival of Basel () is the biggest carnival Carnival (known as Shrovetide in certain localities) is a festive season that occurs at the close of the Christian pre-Lenten period, consisting of Quinquagesima or Shrove Sunday, Shrove Mon ...

'' in

Basel Basel ( ; ), also known as Basle ( ), ; ; ; . is a city in northwestern Switzerland on the river Rhine (at the transition from the High Rhine, High to the Upper Rhine). Basel is Switzerland's List of cities in Switzerland, third-most-populo ...

city, a procession begins of people carrying burning bundles of pinewood chips (called ', the

Alemannic German Alemannic, or rarely Alemannish (''Alemannisch'', ), is a group of High German dialects. The name derives from the ancient Germanic tribal confederation known as the Alemanni ("all men"). Distribution Alemannic dialects are spoken by approxi ...

for "pinewood besom") through the medieval town center along the ''Rathausstrasse'', entering through the city gate from the south. In more recent decades the Chienbäse have been augmented with carts carrying bonfires, with flames often reaching as high as the houses. The parade is attended by thousands of spectators from

as well as from countries around the globe, closely packed on either side of the small street. The origins of the custom are open to speculation. Often identified as a "

pagan Paganism (, later 'civilian') is a term first used in the fourth century by early Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic religions other than Christianity, Judaism, and Samaritanism. In the time of the ...

spring ritual" due to the archaic qualities of the fire spectacle, the earliest report of a procession of torch bearers dates to 1869. A tradition of bonfires before

Lent Lent (, 'Fortieth') is the solemn Christianity, Christian religious moveable feast#Lent, observance in the liturgical year in preparation for Easter. It echoes the 40 days Jesus spent fasting in the desert and enduring Temptation of Christ, t ...

has a longer history of attestation, dating from at least the 16th century.

References

External links

Chienbäse Society Website
(German)
How they melt away winter at Liestal’s Chienbäse Festival
(English) {{DEFAULTSORT:Chienbase Carnivals in Switzerland Swiss folklore Liestal