Carnival is a Christian festival celebrated before Lent that traditionally allows revelry before the fasting season. It starts on November 11th and climaxes on Rosenmontag, the Monday before Ash Wednesday. Carnival traditions vary regionally, known as Karneval in the Rhineland, Fastnacht near Mainz, and Fasnet or Fasnacht in other parts of Germany and Austria. The modern Carnival celebrations grew out of pre-Christian winter rituals intended to scare away spirits of darkness and winter and welcome the spring.