For the Canary Islands, see its section under Europe.
Carnival was introduced by Portuguese settlers. It is celebrated on each of the archipelago's nine inhabited islands. In Mindelo, São Vicente, groups challenge each other for a yearly prize. It has imported various Brazilian Carnival traditions. The celebration in São Nicolau is more traditional, where establishe…

In the late 18th century, the "cordões" (literally "cords", laces or strings in Portuguese) combined with the "dança do coco" (literally "coconut dance" an Afro-Brazilian dance troupe form) were introduced in Rio de Janeiro. These were pageant groups that paraded through city avenues performing on instruments and dancing. Today they are known as Carnaval blocos (blocks), consisting of …