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Hibiscus festivals celebrate the blooming of the flower and the arrival of summer, but modern festivals focus more on activities and community celebration. The festivals often include street fairs, live entertainment, community competitions, and food vendors. While the festivals have moved away from celebrating nature, the name and calendar period still connect them to the tropical hibiscus tree or flower. The festivals can range from large-scale events lasting many days to smaller events lasting just one day. The only requirement for a festival to be a hibiscus festival is the use of the hibiscus name and some reference to the ornamental shrub in advertising or decorations.
A hibiscus festival is any type of community gathering or celebration planned to coincide with the blooming of the hibiscus flower. Most hibiscus parties were originally designed to celebrate the flowering of the flower and with it the arrival of summer. However, a hibiscus festival today is likely to have little to do with the flower or the changing seasons. Festivals typically focus more on activities, often incorporating days of street fairs, live entertainment, community competitions, and food vendors.
The hibiscus flower is a tropical flower that blooms most of the year in warmer climates, but typically emerges in spring and is especially vibrant and fragrant in the summer heat. Some of the earliest examples of hibiscus festival events were designed to celebrate the beauty of the blooms and to welcome the change of seasons. Indigenous peoples and early settlers around the world hosted community gatherings about things like climate change and seasonal changes, and early hibiscus festivals fit that pattern.
Modern festivals retain the spirit of community celebration, but have largely moved away from the celebration of nature, the seasons, or even flowers in particular. In most cases, the only connection modern hibiscus festivals have to the tropical hibiscus tree or flower is the name and calendar period. However, it’s unusual to see a hibiscus festival in an environment where the flowers don’t grow naturally. Two of the largest hibiscus festival events in the world are held each year in Vero Beach, Florida and Suva, Fiji.
Each of these city festivals are large-scale events that often draw large crowds. The streets are often closed for days to allow for carnival entertainers, food vendors and entertainment. Community events such as charity contests, auctions, beauty contests, and cooking or horticultural displays can also be part of the festivities. In most cases, a hibiscus festival is a meeting place for the community and a way to attract business from surrounding areas.
There is no set formula for what a hibiscus festival should contain. Florida and Fiji’s festivals last many days and offer an extensive calendar of events, but this isn’t mandatory. For example, a school or religious group may sponsor a hibiscus festival that is designed to last just one day. Even private organizations can organize events with similar names for employees, customers or local communities. In fact, all that is required for a festival to be a specific hibiscus festival is the use of the hibiscus name and usually some reference to the ornamental shrub in advertising or decorations.
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