Carnival was born in 1954 as a series of small street festivals. The Tivoli Club, Aruba's oldest private social club, was the first to have a pre-Lenten celebration in Oranjestad in February 1944.
On November 11, 1966 at 11:11 a.m., Carnival's organizing body Stichting Arubaanse Carnaval (SAC) was founded.
Each year, the Carnival season officially begins at this precise moment.
The Lighting Parade, a twinkling nighttime extravaganza was produced by Tivoli Club in 1981.
Carnival on Aruba means weeks of events that bring you colorfully decorated floats, contagiously throbbing music, luxuriously costumed groups of celebrants of all ages, Soca and Caiso Contests, Tumba Contests for all ages, Prince and Pancho Elections, Queen Elections, Balloon Parades, electrifying Jump Ups, Torch Light Parades that wind their way through the streets at night, the Jouvert morning, the Children's Parades and finally the Grand Parade. Carnival on Aruba is the greatest party ever! All these and more Festivities delight and unite the entire country. Carnival culminates with a Farewell Parade and the burning of Momo indicating the end of Carnival and the beginning of Lent.
The set of 4 stamps illustrates just a few of the many activities that is celebrated during the Carnival Season.
The 90c stamp illustrates Steelpan players playing pan music in the streets of San Nicolas.
A small group of people from Trinidad, who came to Aruba to work in the Refinery, started playing their steelpans. This steelpan tradition still exists up to this date.
Carnival costumed participants can be seen moving through the streets dancing on the sweet steelpan music while the public is looking on, joining the festivity.
The 130c stamp illustrates a participant singing during the Soca and Caiso Contest, formerly known as Calypso & Roadmarch Contest. This music is an important part of Aruba's Carnival.
Contestants compete against each other during 3-4 days of rhythmic melodies in the pre-finals which finishes with a spectacular grand finale with the crowning of a Roadmarch Monarch (King or Queen).
That song becomes the Anthem for the remaining Carnival Parades. Various Roadmarch songs focus on dancing and are played during the parades where the Carnival participants and viewers are driven with the urge to dance. Calypso is a musical form focusing on political and social commentary in its lyrics, often humorous, but always timely and with a significant message about everyday life on Aruba and no subject is an exception.
Names from a few out of many past and new popular singers are:
+Lord Boxoe, +Young Quick Silver, +Lord Cobashi, + Ray Anthony Thomas, Mighty Reds, Rasta Linda, Mighty Talent, Mighty Cliffy, Lady J, Lady K., The Baron, Tattoo, T-Money, Lady Ambiance etc
The 220c stamp illustrates a Carnival Queen who is the central figure of our Carnival.
The representatives go out all the way to present a spectacular show for the viewers and compete against each other for the crown. They are judged for speech, costume and show.
The Queen is elected during the carnival period and represents either one of the many Carnival Groups, Districts or Schools. The categories range from Children, Youth, Adult & Mrs.
The role of the Carnival Queen is to lead all the Street Parades and to make a public appearance in all the Carnival activities. The Carnival Queen represents the Aruban Carnival at home and abroad during her reign.
The 420c stamp represents Aruba’s 65th Carnival Parade, the largest Grand Parade which always falls the Sunday before Ash Wednesday. A Parade filled with music and luxurious floats and costumes in various designs that are decorated with a wide variety of colorful rhinestones, feathers and payette creating unique displays.
It is the largest and longest of all Aruba’s Carnival Parades, having the most spectators and participants.
The Grand Parades are the final hooray of the Aruban Carnival season. The first takes place in San Nicolas, and the second in Oranjestad. All the participants bring their best to these daytime parades, blisters are ignored, trumpets are shined, and missing rhinestones are replaced in order to deliver spectacular final performances.
The burning of King Momo, a life-size effigy, takes place at the end of Aruba’s Carnival Grand Parade which signals the end of the Carnival Season.
