Samba originated in colonial Brazil in Bahia. It was brought to Brazil by Angolan slaves and is derived from the Angolan music called "semba" derived from the word "Mesamba" from the Yoruban tribe of Africa, meaning "to pray". This was performed in conjunction with a dance similiar to today's samba to please the gods and gain their favor. In Bahia samba was danced by slaves to the beat of African drums and percussion in religious houses known as "terreiros de candomble" to invoke the gods.

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Slavery ended in Brazil in 1888, resulting in mass migration from Bahia to Rio. Samba schools began to spring up all over the city, especially in deprived areas of the city. During carnival, samba was performed in the shanty towns and neighboring areas, favelas, but was regarded as obscene by the upper classes of Rio, who viewed the dance as overtly sexual.

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By the 1920's, samba had become the music and dance of choice at the annual carnival festival in Rio. Early on, samba schools, in teams of no more than 50 people, would go out onto the streets to dance. Later on, they would start to compete against each other in terms of who had the best costumes and dancers, and so the modern face of the Rio Carnival was born. Carmen Miranda put samba, brazil, and carnival on the international map giving exposure to her beloved home country through song, dance and performance in Hollywood movies in the 1930's.

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By the 1930's, the Brazilian government got involved in carnaval, giving money to the samba schools so that they could come up with elaborate national themes for the carnaval parades. For the first time, the parades featured theme songs and live percussion sections in addition to the costumed dancers of the samba schools. 

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During the 1950's, 60's and 70's, businesses began sponsoring the samba schools so they could put on even more elaborate productions. The negatives of this where that the businesses often controlled the themes of the parades for their own agendas and the carnaval took on a more political tone. This changed during the 1980's, when the samba schools took back control of the parades, setting their own themes. 

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Today, samba schools in Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo, Brazil of up to 5,000 members per school, celebrate a large lavish carnaval parade the week before Fat Tuesday, which is the last hoorah before lent. Salvador, Bahia, celebrates carnaval parading through the streets in Blocos Afros, strong infuences of Afro-Brazilian culture and community participation.

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