Shaking and shaking at ‘Africa’s biggest party’

Olympia De Maismont / AFP Nigeria: Dancers in silver blouses and orange skirts with pompoms jump down a street at the Calabar carnival.

Christmas revelers descended on the southern Nigerian port city of Calabar this weekend for its festive carnival dubbed “Africa’s largest street party.”

Emmanuel Adegboye / EPA A woman participating in the Calabar carnival smiles while wearing a huge red feather headdress.

The dazzling parade featured floats and dancers from many of Nigeria’s different ethnic groups.

Olympia De Maismont / AFP A woman in a silver carnival skirt and vest helps a participant dressed in matching clothes tie her golden boots - Calabar, Nigeria

A month of celebrations in December draws many attendees to Calabar, the capital of Cross River State and home to many Christian communities. According to the organizers, up to two million people will attend, reports the AFP news agency.

Olympia De Maismont / AFP A group of men participating in the Calabar Carnival pose for a photograph wearing black pants, black suspenders and sunglasses. Her breasts are bare and covered in golden glitter. Some wear black bow ties.

This year at least 14 bands have reportedly participated in performances and competitions.

Olympia De Maismont / AFP A group of men dressed in white suits and large-brimmed black hats play trumpets as they parade down a street in Calabar, Nigeria.

Most carnival attendees danced to Afrobeats hits, blaring through giant speakers.

Olympia De Maismont / AFP Women in silver outfits and straw hats with gold brims and chains hanging from their smile as they pose for the camera in Calabar, Nigeria.

The carnival celebrates two decades since its beginning. “We see different designs, different outfits,” Grace Job, an attendee, told AFP. “There’s a lot of energy.”

Emmanuel Adegboye / EPA Four women in sequined costumes and purple feather headdresses attached to horns as handlebars at the Calabar carnival smile at the camera

The carnival attracts a wide variety of people to the streets. The group shown below is from the University of Calabar, wearing suits printed with the institution’s logo.

Some of the costumes referenced the city’s ties to the Atlantic slave trade. The one below shows manillas, the brass bracelets introduced as a form of currency by Portuguese traders and used between the 16th and 19th centuries.

Emmanuel Adegboye / EPA A man in a gold sequin suit with a giant manilla behind him holding golden wings participates in a carnival in Calabar, Nigeria.

This woman’s outfit dates back to colonial times and she is dressed as a giant British West African penny from the reign of British monarch George VI. Nigeria gained independence from Great Britain in 1960.

Olympia De Maismont / AFP A woman dressed as a giant British West African penny from 1937 parades down a street in Calabar, Nigeria

Olympia De Maismont / AFP A woman in a large straw hat and off-the-shoulder dress holds a pink electric fan as she participates in the Calabar carnival, Nigeria.

“Everyone is trying to show tradition and culture,” Rejoice Elemi, a 25-year-old dancer and civil engineering student, told AFP.

Emmanuel Adegboye / EPA Parade spectators look through the legs of performers in gold and pink and orange boots.

On Friday night, at a stadium in Calabar, Nigerian music stars Runtown and Iyanya performed in a carnival concert. Calas Vegas won the coveted title of best carnival band for the second year in a row.

Olympia De Maismont / AFP A performer in a gold costume, gold glove sleeves and a large silver headdress makes jazz with his hands during the Calabar Carnival.

Cross River State sees the carnival, now the largest in Nigeria, as a way to attract visitors not only from across Nigeria but also from the diaspora.