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Bacchanalia |
Also found in: Dictionary/thesaurus, Wikipedia, Hutchinson | 0.09 sec. |
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Bacchanalia (băkənā`lēə), in Roman religion, festival in honor of Bacchus, god of wine. Originally a religious ceremony, like the Liberalia Liberalia (lĭbərā`lēə), in Roman religion, festival of Liber and Libera. ..... Click the link for more information. , it gradually became an occasion for drunken, licentious excesses and was finally forbidden by law (186 B.C.). Bacchanaliaor DionysiaIn Greco-Roman religion, any of the festivals of the wine god Bacchus (Dionysus), which probably originated as fertility rites. The most famous Greek festivals included the Greater Dionysia, with its dramatic performances; the Anthesteria; and the Lesser Dionysia, characterized by simple rites. Bacchanalia were introduced from lower Italy into Rome, where they were at first secret, open only to women, and held three times a year. They later admitted men and became as frequent as five times a month. In 186 BC their reputation as orgies led the Senate to prohibit them throughout Italy, except in special cases. How to thank TFD for its existence? Tell a friend about us, add a link to this page, add the site to iGoogle, or visit webmaster's page for free fun content. |
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The City of Brotherly Love kicks off the first of the spring and summer pride extravaganzas with four days of non stop bacchanalia at Philadelphia Black Pride. Carnival is the once-a-year Lenten bacchanalia that symbolizes much of what Rio is, and what the city and its history embody. 4) While bourgeois Victorian values of solitude, nature, and family "self-worship" were widely propagated, even among the middle classes themselves, older saturnalian pleasures survived in gambling, ribald humor, and a tendency to bacchanalia that remained strong in 1900. |
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