Parachico
Encyclopedia
The Parachico or Parachicos are traditional dancers from Chiapa de Corzo
, Chiapas
, Mexico
, who dance on the streets of the town during the Great Feast festivity, which takes place from January 4th to 22nd every year. The festivity takes place in honor of the local patron saints Our Lord of Esquipulas, Saint Anthony Abbot and Saint Sebastian.
The festivities, which include Roman Catholic religious ceremonies, music, dancing and local cuisine, have been included in UNESCO's
Intangible Cultural Heritage Lists on November 16th, 2010, listed as "Parachicos in the traditional January feast of Chiapa de Corzo".
Parachicos wear wooden masks with Caucasian
features, such as light skin, facial hair and blue eyes, in contrast to the indigenous people's features. They also wear a round headdress, colorful ribbons, striped serapes, embroidered shawls, usually over black or dark shirt and trousers.
Parachicos use metallic rattles
locally known as chinchin or chinchines, with colorful ribbons attached to the top and/or handles, which are shaken as they dance and chant.
Chiapa de Corzo, Chiapas
Chiapa de Corzo is a small city and situated in the west-central part of the Mexican state of Chiapas. Located in the Grijalva River valley of the Chiapas highlands, Chiapa de Corzo lies some 15 km to the east of the state capital, Tuxtla Gutiérrez...
, Chiapas
Chiapas
Chiapas officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Chiapas is one of the 31 states that, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 118 municipalities and its capital city is Tuxtla Gutierrez. Other important cites in Chiapas include San Cristóbal de las...
, Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
, who dance on the streets of the town during the Great Feast festivity, which takes place from January 4th to 22nd every year. The festivity takes place in honor of the local patron saints Our Lord of Esquipulas, Saint Anthony Abbot and Saint Sebastian.
The festivities, which include Roman Catholic religious ceremonies, music, dancing and local cuisine, have been included in UNESCO's
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
Intangible Cultural Heritage Lists on November 16th, 2010, listed as "Parachicos in the traditional January feast of Chiapa de Corzo".
Attire
Caucasian race
The term Caucasian race has been used to denote the general physical type of some or all of the populations of Europe, North Africa, the Horn of Africa, Western Asia , Central Asia and South Asia...
features, such as light skin, facial hair and blue eyes, in contrast to the indigenous people's features. They also wear a round headdress, colorful ribbons, striped serapes, embroidered shawls, usually over black or dark shirt and trousers.
Parachicos use metallic rattles
Rattle (percussion)
A rattle is a percussion instrument. It consists of a hollow body filled with small uniform solid objects, like sand or nuts. Rhythmical shaking of this instrument produces repetitive, rather dry timbre noises. In some kinds of music, a rattle assumes the role of the metronome, as an alternative to...
locally known as chinchin or chinchines, with colorful ribbons attached to the top and/or handles, which are shaken as they dance and chant.
See also
- Chiapa de CorzoChiapa de Corzo, ChiapasChiapa de Corzo is a small city and situated in the west-central part of the Mexican state of Chiapas. Located in the Grijalva River valley of the Chiapas highlands, Chiapa de Corzo lies some 15 km to the east of the state capital, Tuxtla Gutiérrez...
- UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage Lists