The well-known Acadian folklorist and historian Georges Arsenault will give an illustrated talk on two ancient and popular Acadian winter celebrations. The first is known as Chandeleur (Candlemas) and takes place on February 2. The second, called Mi-Carême, is celebrated a few weeks later in the middle of Lent. Georges Arsenault has researched the origins of these joyful traditions and how they were observed in Acadian communities in Eastern Canada. Published by Acorn Press and translated by Sally Ross, the English titles of his two books on these winter festivities are: Acadian Traditions on Candlemas Day: Candles, Pancakes, and House Visits and Acadian Mi-Carême: Masks and Merrymaking. Candlemas Day was at one time an important religious and social festivity. Pancakes were the symbolic food of choice. In many Acadian villages, young men went from door-to-door collecting food either for a communal feast or to give to the poor. To celebrate Mid-Lent, people visited each other's homes dressed up in masks and costumes, as they still do in the Chéticamp region of Cape Breton. In some villages, a scary woman called the Mi-Carême distributed candies to good little children. In his presentation, Arsenault will trace the evolution of these traditions, highlight modern-day celebrations, and look at the role they still play in Acadian culture.

Georges Arsenault is a prominent Acadian historian and folklorist who has been writing about the Acadians of Prince Edward Island since the early 1980s. His landmark book, Les Acadiens de l’Île, 1720-1980, won both the Champlain and France-Acadie prizes. In 2002, he wrote Acadian Legends, Folktales and Songs from Prince Edward Island, and with the publication of Acadian Christmas Traditions in 2007, he expanded his research to include Acadian traditions throughout Eastern Canada. The original French version of this book, La Mi-Carême en Acadie (published by La Grand Marée), received the 2008 Prince Edward Island Book Award. Sally Ross is an historian and translator from Nova Scotia. She has translated three other books by Georges Arsenault: The Island Acadians, 1720-1980 (Ragweed Press, 1989); Acadian Legends, Folktales, and Songs from Prince Edward Island (Acorn Press, 2002); and Acadian Christmas Traditions (Acorn Press, 2007).

Georges Arsenault's profile page