Rennes (AFP)
The 49th edition of the Festival interceltique of Lorient, which had as a guest of honor Galicia, welcomed 800,000 festival goers, one of the highest dating ever recorded, announced Monday the organizers.
The ten days and ten nights of the Breton festive gathering, the first in France in terms of attendance, ended Sunday evening.
About 75,000 people followed on August 4 the Great Parade of the Celtic Nations, parade of 3,500 musicians and dancers in traditional costumes.
The Interceltic Festival of Lorient celebrates the Celtic nations, including Acadia, Asturias, Cornwall and Galicia, a region located in northwestern Spain, a guest of honor this year on the theme "At the end of the way, the joy and warmth of the Southern Celts ".
The Celtic nations are scattered along the Atlantic arc: Scotland, Ireland, Isle of Man, Wales, Cornwall, Brittany, Asturias and Galicia. Not to mention the diasporas: America, Australia or Asia have hosted over the centuries many Celtic communities of Ireland, Brittany or Spain, who brought with them languages and cultures they keep living traces.
Apart from its Grande Parade, the Interceltic Festival of Lorient offers 200 concerts but also conferences, screenings, fest-noz (typical Breton festivals mixing music and dance).
The next edition of the interceltic Festival, which will be the fiftieth, will take place from August 7 to 16, 2020 and Brittany will be in the spotlight.
© 2019 AFP