Section SOCIETY
TOPIC

CITY OF XANTHI
Carnival of Xanthi - Thracian Folk Festivals

"It is an institution with dynamics that do not easily meet. It is a "platform" on which many events may take place, of a nature constantly changing, which manages every year to serve a variety of thematic fields of culture, to proceed with the look in future, take care and highlights the past and reflect a rich indigenous activity in an area where different social and ethnic groups harmoniously coexist" (Royal Sirakoulis: Carnival of Xanthi - Thracian Folk Festival, Forty years 1966-2005, Municipal Xanthi Development - PAKETHRA, Xanthi 2005).

This event is open to all residents of the city and to all its visitors from the Region of Eastern Macedonia and Thrace and from many parts of Greece (Thessaloniki, Athens, Serres and other cities with university student populations). 

10 days.

The institution with the longest life is that of the Carnival of Xanthi - Thracian Folk Festivals that started in 1966, as a revival of popular carnival customs, in a time of economic decline and general crisis of our country. Born into an era of urbanization and industrialization - a time critical in financial and identity issues, has traversed a course of more than fourty years, passed various evolution and transformation phases reaching up today. During the last years crowd from many parts of Greece swarm in Xanthi Carnival. During this period, the hotels of the wider region operate at their maximum occupancy, bars, restaurants and café’s stifled from visitors and the local economy is triggered. The Carnival of Xanthi boasts a series of events around music, dance and theater, art exhibitions or other content, lectures, book presentations and film screenings. During these two weeks of events in the city of Xanthi, another form of social accomplishing holds a very important position: the feast, which one encounters in many different places and formats. The institution closes with the carnival parade and the custom of burning the effigy of Tzara.
  • N.P.D.D. - CULTURAL CENTRE OF MUNICIPALITY OF XANTHI
  • N.P.I.D. - RADIO OF MUNICIPALITY OF XANTHI 

City of Xanthi, Municipality of Xanthi.
  1. Economic development.
  2. Increase in tourism visitors in the area.
  3. Cultural development and dissemination of local customs and traditions.
  4. Promotion and increase of sales for local products.
     

There are not any particular benefits for the Local Government entity itself, the Municipality of Xanthi or the Center of Culture.

The benefits are related to the city, and the wider region of Xanthi and as it was mentioned above, they are the following:

  • Economic development.
  • Increase in tourism visitors in the area.
  • Cultural development and dissemination of local customs and traditions.
  • Promotion and increase of sales for local products.