If you find yourself fortunate enough to be in Nassau, Bahamas around the Christmas holidays (specifically the day after Christmas and New Year’s Day), you must make a point of seeing the celebration known as Junkanoo.
Junkanoo is believed to have gotten its start during the 16th and 17th centuries, when Bahamian slave holders gave their slaves permission around the winter holiday to leave the plantation and spend it with family and friends. Once at home, the celebrants partied hearty with African dance, music and costumes.
The party continued after emancipation and has moved from a simple celebration to one that’s more organized and sophisticated, complete with parade, fabulous costumes, music, and even highly coveted prizes.
As for how Junkanoo got its name, some believe it hails from the French word L’inconnu (the “unknown”) because of the masks parade participants wore. Others believe settlers from Scotland called the parades “junk enoo” (or “junk enough”). Some also think it could be the name of a tribal chief from Africa, “John Canoe,” who demanded of the slaveholders that his people be able to celebrate the holidays as they did in the West Indies.
Costumed parade goers (similar to Mardi Gras in) and bands (these are known as “rushing in the streets") move along Bay Street in Nassau early on December 26 (known in the Bahamas and Britain as Boxing Day). Costumes are made by taking tiny strips of crepe paper and gluing them to wood, cardboard and clothing.
Be warned (in a good way), Junkanoo can get loud! Dance troupes of more than 1,000 people are not unheard of (that’s just one troupe, FYI) and the bands also can be made up of dozens of musicians. These musical groups play on whistles and horns, cowbells, goatskin drums, whatever can make a lot of noise and help create a pulsating beat or rhythm.
The parade can take a couple of hours or more to pass by. And, if you want to sing and dance along, you’re welcome to!
If you can’t make Junkanoo at its traditional time, come back to Nassau in the summer for the Junkanoo Summer Festival, held each year during June and even July, and pick a few favorite Nassau tours to do.
