Etymology

Carnation Revolution

Today it means: A revolution and military coup by left-leaning military officers that overthrew the colonialist and authoritarian Estado Novo on 25 April 1974 in Lisbon, Portugal, leading to major cultural and political changes. Full definition →

Portuguese Revolução dos Cravos
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The story

  1. Portuguese · calque ofRevolução dos Cravos
  2. English todayCarnation Revolution

Calque of Portuguese Revolução dos Cravos. So named because a woman who had carnations handed them out to soldiers in the early hours of the coup, and they were placed in gun barrels and became a symbol of the peacefulness of the coup.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.