The festive period of balls, masquerades, parades, and general revelry held in the pre-Lenten season, over periods of time ranging from between Christmas and Shrove Tuesday to the last few days before Lent, varying from one country or city to another. For traveling or seasonal amusement enterprises consisting of sideshows, games of chance, rides, and other similar entertainments, use "carnivals."
Source: Art & Architecture Thesaurus
http://vocab.getty.edu/page/aat/300069281
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