Who
has not heard of Saci Pererê, Mula-sem-Cabeça, Cuca, Curupira and so many other
figures from Brazilian folklore?
These characters are part of Brazilian culture
but in these days of the Internet, cell phones and satellite TV they are losing
ground in the imagination of today’s kids.
But at least during August, Folklore
Month, these myths of the popular imagination will be remembered all over
Brazil.
Get to know a little more about these ever-lasting characters
SACI PERERÊ - Saci Pererê is a smart
kid that lives in the forest and has only one leg. He uses to walk at nights
and he likes to play tricks on animals and hide toys from the kids. Saci wears
a red hood and hold a pipe in his mouth.
CURUPIRA - Curupira is ugly, with
green teeth and he has a different way to walk as if he were walking backwards.
He protects the forests, the woods and the animals, scaring away hunters and
passers-by. This mythic character appeared in the North.
CUCA - Certainly the best
known myth of childhood fears (remember the song - “Nana neném que a Cuca vem
pegar...?”). It is said that Cuca would take kids to a mysterious and distant
farm to be devoured or used in some kind of magic. In Monteiro Lobato’s books,
Cuca took the form of a great big green alligator.
MULA SEM CABEÇA (The
Headless Mule) - The headless mule, so the story goes, appeared out of the
romance between a woman and a priest. This forbidden love came at a high cost
to the beautiful woman: she was punished by being turned into a mule. Not just
a normal mule, you understand, but a mule with fire in the place of its head, a
mule which only appears at night on Thursdays or Fridays when there is a full
moon.
NEGRINHO DO PASTOREIO - There is a legend that
says the Negrinho do Pastoreio is pure, without sin, and a good angel. He lives
to find things that we have lost and to put them where they can be found.
BOTO - A well-dressed, handsome,
dancing man who appears at night to charm the girls and take them to the banks
of the Amazon river where they become pregnant. However, before dawn the man
turns into an Amazon river dolphin and disappears into the waters. When night
falls, the story repeats itself