A fair is a gathering of people to display or trade produce or other goods, to parade or display animals and often to enjoy associated carnival or funfair entertainment. The Nottingham Goose Fair is an annual fair held in Nottingham, UK, during the first week of October Carnival is a festival season which occurs immediately before Lent; the main events are usually during February and March Traveling carnival A funfair or simply fair (eg " County fair" " state fair" is a small to medium sized traveling Fair Activities at fairs vary widely. Some are important showcases for businessmen in agricultural, pastoral or horticultural districts because they present opportunities to display and demonstrate the latest machinery on the market.
Fairs are also known by many different names around the world, such as agricultural show, carnival, fete or fête, county or state fair, festival, market and show, etc. An agricultural show is a public event showcasing the equipment animals sports and recreation associated with Agriculture and Animal husbandry. Carnival is a festival season which occurs immediately before Lent; the main events are usually during February and March Fête is a French word meaning Festival or Holiday, which has passed into English as a label that may be given to certain events Fête is a French word meaning Festival or Holiday, which has passed into English as a label that may be given to certain events Flea markets are sometimes incorporated into a fair. A flea market or swap meet is a type of Bazaar where inexpensive or secondhand goods are sold or bartered
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Fayre
Fayre is an archaic spelling of fair, used mostly from the 15th to the 17th century. In Language, an archaism is the use of a form of speech or writing that is no longer current This spelling is now confusingly used for both fair and fare, the latter in the sense of 'food and drink'. In itself, the word means a gathering of stalls and amusements for public entertainment. See also Entertainment (disambiguation and The Entertainer (disambiguation Entertainment is an activity designed to give people The alternate spelling is an old fashioned affectation and is used in order to remind revellers and participants of medieval fayres and markets. Sao Paulo Stock Exchangejpg|thumb| Virtual market arena where buyer and seller are not present and trade via intemediates and electronical information
Fairgrounds
The fair is an ancient tradition, and many communities have long had dedicated fairgrounds; others hold them in a variety of public places, including streets and town squares, or even in large private gardens. Fairs are often held in conjunction with a significant event, such as the anniversary of a local historical event, a seasonal event such as harvest time, or with a holiday such as Christmas. In Agriculture, the harvest is the process of Gathering mature crops from the fields Reaping is the cutting of Grain Lists of holidays The words holiday or vacation have related meanings in different English-speaking countries and continents but will usually refer to one of
That part of a fair (commonly an American fair such as a county or state fair) where amusement park rides, entertainment and fast food booths are concentrated is called the midway, after the avenue of amusements at the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Rides redirects here For the album by Reef see Rides (album, and for the BBC television series see Rides (TV series. See also Entertainment (disambiguation and The Entertainer (disambiguation Entertainment is an activity designed to give people Fast food is the term given to food that can be prepared and served very quickly A midway at a Fair (commonly an American fair such as a county or state fair is the location where Amusement rides Entertainment and Fast The World's Columbian Exposition (also called The Chicago World's Fair) a World's Fair, was held in Chicago in 1893 to celebrate the 400th anniversary Chicago (ʃɪˈkɑːgoʊ is the largest City by population in the state of Illinois and the American Midwest of the United States.
History
In Roman times, fairs were holidays on which there was an intermission of labour and pleadings. The Roman Empire was the post-Republican phase of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial Lists of holidays The words holiday or vacation have related meanings in different English-speaking countries and continents but will usually refer to one of In later centuries, on any special Christian religious occasion (particularly the anniversary dedication of a church), tradesmen would bring and sell their wares (even in the churchyards). A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, a monotheistic Religion centered on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth A churchyard is a patch of land adjoining or surrounding a church which is usually owned by the relevant church or local Parish itself Such fairs then continued annually, usually on the feast day of the patron saint to whom the church was dedicated. The patron saint of a particular group of people is a Saint who would protect and 'love' the group and its members This custom was kept up until the reign of Henry VI, by which time there were a great many fairs kept on these patronal festivals, for example at Westminster on St. Peter's day, at London on St. Bartholomew's (the famous Bartholomew Fair, celebrated in Ben Jonson's play of the same name) and at Durham on St. Cuthbert's day. Henry VI (6 December 1421 &ndash 21 May 1471 was King of England 1422–1461 (though with a Regent until 1437 and then 1470–1471 and a claimant to the kingdom Westminster is an area of Central London, within the City of Westminster. London ( ˈlʌndən is the capital and largest urban area in the United Kingdom. Saint Bartholomew was one of the twelve Apostles of Jesus. Bartholomew (Βαρθολομαίος transliterated "Bartholomaios" comes from Bartholomew Fair is a Comedy in five acts by Ben Jonson, the last written of his four great comedies Benjamin Jonson ( c 11 June 1572 &ndash 6 August 1637) was an English Renaissance Dramatist Durham (ˈdʌrəm in RP, locally ˈdʏrəm is a small city and main settlement of the City of Durham district of County Durham, England For the Dungeons & Dragons deity see Saint Cuthbert (Dungeons & Dragons St Cuthbert of Lindisfarne (c
Pie-powder courts
Because of the great numbers of people attracted by fairs they were often the scenes of riots and disturbances, so the privilege of holding a fair was granted by royal charter. In England, a Court of Piepowders was a special Tribunal organised by a Borough on the occasion of a Fair or Market. A Royal Charter is a Charter granted by the Sovereign on the advice of the Privy council to legitimize an incorporated body such as a city company At first they were only allowed in towns and places of strength, or where there was some bishop, sheriff or governor who could keep order. In time, various benefits became attached to certain fairs, such as granting people the protection of a holiday, and allowing them freedom from arrests in certain circumstances. The officials were authorised to do justice to those that came to their fair; eventually even the smallest fair would have had a court to adjudicate on offences and disputes arising within the fairground, which was called a pye powder court (from Old French pied pouldre, an itinerant trader, which literally means "dusty feet"), or pedes pulverizati. Old French was the Romance Dialect continuum spoken in territories which span roughly the northern half of modern France and parts of modern Belgium
Free fairs
Some fairs were free; others charged tolls and impositions. At free fairs, traders, whether natives of the kingdom or foreigners, were allowed to enter the kingdom, and were under royal protection while travelling to and returning from the fair. The traders, their agents, and their goods were exempt from all duties and impositions, tolls and servitudes; merchants going to or coming from the fair could not be arrested, or have their goods stopped.
Such fairs (especially those of the Mediterranean region and some inland regions, particularly Germany), were extremely important in the commerce of Europe. Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. The most famous were those of:
- Plovdiv, (Bulgaria)
- Frankfurt, (Germany)
- Leipzig (Leipzig Trade Fair), (Germany)
- Poznań (Poznań International Fair), (Poland)
- Milan, Fiera di Senigaglia
- Rome, Porta Portese
- Novi, in the Milanese region of northern Italy
- Riga, (Latvia)
- Archangel
- St. Germain, at Paris, (France)
- Lyon, (France)
- Guibray, Normandy, (France)
- Beauclaire, Languedoc, (France)
- Portobelo, (Panama)
- Veracruz, (Mexico)
- Havana (Cuba)
- Sweden and Uppsala, the Disting
- Zagreb (Zagrebački velesajam)
- Banská Bystrica, Slovakia (Radvanský jarmok)
See also
- World's Fair
- State fair
- Trade fair
- Art fair
- Street fair
- Agricultural show
- Auto fair
- Christmas Without Cruelty Fayre
- Court jester
- Traveling Carnival
External links
- A vivid description of Bartholomew Fair (in 1825) from Hone's Every Day Book
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