Origins

"Throw me something, mister!" Grab your beads and masks and head on down to New Orleans for a Mardi Gras parade. This holiday, which means "Fat Tuesday" in French, originated from ancient pagan traditions that the Catholic Church eventually Christianized. 
 

The Catholic Church eventually legitimized the traditions of this festivity as it spread throughout Europe as a short celebration prior to Lent.

Fat Tuesday falls 46 days before Easter Sunday each year, but the exact date always varies.  It is always celebrated the day before Ash Wednesday, the start of the period of fasting and repentance known as Lent.
 
Mardi Gras is not a single-day affair, and includes a period of celebration during the days leading up to Fat Tuesday. Mardi Gras season, or "Carnival," starts on January 6 each year, the Twelfth Night feast of the Epiphany. Christian beliefs hold that the Epiphany is the day that the Wise Men visited Jesus Christ after his birth. Carnival lasts several weeks, concluding at midnight on the last day of celebration before the start of Lent: Fat Tuesday. "Carnival" can be translated to mean "farewell to flesh" from the Latin words "carnis" (flesh) and "vale" (farewell).

Traditions
 
Some Mardi Gras traditions can be traced as far back as mid 200 A.D. The Roman equivalent of Lent during this time was called the Fast of 40 Days, preceded by several days of feasting and festivities. People wore costumes and masks, and enjoyed life's pleasures to the fullest. The Catholic Church eventually legitimized the traditions of this festivity as it spread throughout Europe as a short celebration prior to Lent. As America became colonized, these traditions were brought to the New World.

The official Mardi Gras colors were chosen in 1872: purple for justice, green for faith, and gold for power. These colors are evident on everything from the colorful beads and masks to the
costumes worn during the celebrations.

Over-the-top parades with ornate floats, people in extravagant costumes and masks, and dancers are the norm in New Orleans about two weeks before Fat Tuesday. Each parade has its own theme, some incredible and some imperial. The Carnival club known as the "krewe," organizes the parade and chooses a theme.  The theme is reflected in the floats and people aboard them. Past themes have included historical figures, children's stories and fairy tales, legends, geography, entertainment, literature and mythology.

The krewe members aboard the various floats throw trinkets, often boasting their logo or the parade's theme, into the crowd. Items include medallion necklaces, plastic cups and colorful doubloons or coins. People shout, "Throw me something, mister" to get the attention of krewe members on the floats so that they can receive the sought-after "throws."

People can also enjoy the delicious king cake made during this period. This Danish dough delight is baked and covered with a sugar topping donning Mardi Gras' official colors. 

Items like coins, beans, pecans and peas originally were hidden inside of every king cake; rich Louisiana plantation owners occasionally placed precious stones or jewels in them during the late 1800s. A small plastic baby (symbolizing Baby Jesus) became the symbol of this Holy Day during the mid-1900s, and was placed inside of each king cake.

The tradition holds that each person takes a piece of cake with hopes of finding the baby inside. Whoever receives it is crowned king or queen for the day, and must host the following year's party and supply the king cake.