Tsiknopempti ( el, Τσικνοπέμπτη, ) is part of the traditional celebrations of (), the Greek Carnival season. The celebration, normally translated as ''Smelly Thursday'', ''Charred Thursday'', or ''Smoky'' ''Thursday'', centers on the consumption of large amounts of grilled and roasted meats.

Celebration

Apokries (Carnival season) in Greece is made up of three themed weeks of celebration. These weeks are, in order: (, 'Preannouncement Week'), (, 'Meat Week'), and (, 'Cheese Week'). Tsiknopempti is the Thursday of and represents a highlight in a weeklong celebration of meat consumption. The festivities on Tsiknopempti revolve around large outdoor parties where massive amounts of meat are grilled or roasted. Often Tsiknopempti-like celebrations will occur again, generally on a smaller scale, the following Sunday which marks the final day meat can be eaten before the beginning of the Great Lent, the strict fasting season that leads up to

Easter Easter,Traditional names for the feast in English are "Easter Day", as in the '' Book of Common Prayer''; "Easter Sunday", used by James Ussher''The Whole Works of the Most Rev. James Ussher, Volume 4'') and Samuel Pepys''The Diary of Samuel ...

. In the

Greek Orthodox The term Greek Orthodox Church ( Greek: Ἑλληνορθόδοξη Ἐκκλησία, ''Ellinorthódoxi Ekklisía'', ) has two meanings. The broader meaning designates "the entire body of Orthodox (Chalcedonian) Christianity, sometimes also cal ...

tradition,

fasting Fasting is the abstention from eating and sometimes drinking. From a purely physiological context, "fasting" may refer to the metabolic status of a person who has not eaten overnight (see " Breakfast"), or to the metabolic state achieved after ...

on Wednesdays and Fridays is important, therefore Thursday is the best day for Tsiknopempti."Apokries. Carnival in Crete & Greece"
''Living in Crete.net''. Retrieved 2017-08-28. Tsiknopempti is celebrated 11 days before

Clean Monday Clean Monday ( el, Καθαρά Δευτέρα), also known as Pure Monday, Ash Monday, Monday of Lent or Green Monday, is the first day of Great Lent throughout Eastern Christianity and is a moveable feast, falling on the 6th Monday befor ...

(often referred to in English as Ash Monday, to allude to Ash Wednesday in the West, however in Orthodox tradition there is no imposition of ashes). After Tsiknopempti, the next major celebration of Apokries is () during the week of which focuses on the consumption of cheese, eggs, and dairy. In

Lebanon Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to Lebanon–Syria border, the north and east and Israel to Blue ...

, a similar tradition exists and is known as '' Khamis el sakara'' (Thursday of drinking). Similar celebrations known as ''

Fat Thursday Fat Thursday is a Christian tradition in some countries marking the last Thursday before Lent and is associated with the celebration of Carnival. Because Lent is a time of fasting, the days leading up to Ash Wednesday provide the last opport ...

'' are held in many other countries.

Etymology

The Greek word (Tsiknopempti) is made up of the words (, lit. 'the smell of roasting meat') and (, 'Thursday').{{cite book, publisher=Εταιρεία Ελληνικών Εκδόσεων, year=1977, edition=2nd, location=Athens, page=715, language=el, script-title=el:Λεξικό της Δημοτικής. Ορθογραφικό, ερμηνευτικό, ετυμολογικό

References

Greek traditions Thursday observances Holidays based on the date of Easter

Celebration

Etymology

See also

References