Toronto Caribbean Carnival and Caribana
People use both names for Toronto's Caribbean festival. Here is what each one means, where they came from, and how they are connected.
Caribana: where the festival began
Caribana is the name the festival began under in 1967, when West Indian volunteers in Toronto gave Canada a Caribbean festival for its centennial. Many people still call the festival Caribana today. The Caribana Arts Group holds the registered Caribana® trademark.
Toronto Caribbean Carnival: the name of today's parade
According to The Canadian Encyclopedia and Wikipedia, the festival has been organized since 2006 by the city-appointed Festival Management Committee, and its official name has been Toronto Caribbean Carnival since 2015. For parade dates, routes, tickets and band registration, please use the festival organizer's own website.
How the name changed
Sources report that the festival was renamed after a dispute over use of the Caribana name, with a 2011 settlement leading to "Scotiabank Caribbean Carnival" and then, in 2015, "Toronto Caribbean Carnival". Sources differ on some of the years.
What the Caribana Arts Group does
The Caribana Arts Group keeps Caribana's history, founders' stories and archive alive, and works with the community on projects such as Share Your Memories and Road to 60. It does not run the Toronto parade.