Etymology Dictionary

CAROUSAL,  (1) a drinking-bout; (2) a kind of pageant.  (1. F.,—G.; 2. F.,—Ital.)   1. There is no doubt that carousal is now generally understood as a mere derivative of the verb to carouse, and would be so used.  2. But in old authors we find cárousél (generally so accented and spelt) used to mean a sort of pageant in which some form of chariot-race formed a principal part.   'This game, these carousels Ascanius taught, And, building Alba, to the Latins brought;' Dryden's Virgil, Æn. v. 777, where the Latin text (v. 596) has certamina.   And see the long quotation from Dryden's pref. to Albian and Albanius in Richardson.—F. carrousel, a tilt, carousal, tilting-match.—Ital. carosello, a corrupt form of garosello, a festival, a tournament, a sb. formed from the adj. garosello, somewhat quarrelsome, a dimin. form of adj. garoso, quarrelsome.   The form carosello is not given in Meadows' Dict., but Florio gives caroselle or caleselle, which he explains by 'a kind of sport or game used at Shrovetide in Italie.'—Ital. gara, strife, debate, contention.   [Perhaps connected with Lat. garrire, to prattle, babble, prate; unless it be another form of guerra, war, which is from the O.H.G. werra, war, cognate with E. war.]   ¶ No doubt garosello was turned into carosello by confusion with carricello, a little chariot or car, dimin. of carro, a car; owing to the use of chariots in such festivities.   See Car.