Cape Minstrel Carnival

The Cape Minstrel Carnival is the current name of the oldest carnival in South Africa, taking place annually in Cape Town on the 2nd of January (referred to as Tweede Nuwejaar i.e. "Second New Year").

Also called the Cape Carnival on occasion, but not to be confused with the much more recent Cape Town Carnival (2010-) .

For information on the concept of carnival and the carnivalesque in South Africa and the various carnivals in the country, see the general entry on Carnival

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On the name

Originally the event was referred to as the Coon Carnival, but also known as the Cape Coon Carnival or The Cape Coons (In Afrikaans: die Kaapse Klopse or simply Die Klopse) Also known as the Cape Coon Carnival or The Cape Coons (In Afrikaans: die Kaapse Klopse).

Performers in the carnival were long referred to as Coons in English and Klopse in Afrikaans.

Today the use of the denigrating term Coon has fallen away, though Klopse, which does not carry the baggage of the English term, has remained in use.

Sources

http://www.findtripinfo.com/south-africa/cape-town/festivals-cape-town.html#capeminstrels

The term "coon"

The term derives from raccoon, it was used in America to refer to performers in black-face entertainments, hence also any black man.

A more recent derivative of the term in the USA has been the term "coonery"[1], which refers to matters such as the antics and behavior displayed by certain individuals (usually African Americans) which may embarrass the rest of the Black community or reinforce and perpetuate commonly held racial stereotypes about their own community.

While it has other meanings, such as a racial slur for a black person as in the American usage, the term coon is most prominent in South Africa with reference to a performer in the Cape Town Coon Carnival, with its early association with the Christy's Minstrels and other "blackface" performers from America who visited the country.

See for example definitions provided by http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coon and http://www.thefreedictionary.com/coon

Carnival

See also Festival

The Coon Carnival in the Cape =

Also known as the Cape Coon Carnival or The Cape Coons (In Afrikaans: die Kaapse Klopse or simply Klopse).

Today the use of Coon has fallen away in the name of the carnival, though Klopse has remained.

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