La fiesta de la Mama Negra, uno de los patrimonios culturales intangibles de la ciudad de Latacunga, Ecuador

Our ancestors developed celebrations related to the cult of the stars in the need to fulfill the rituality of their creed. With the arrival of the Spaniards, the Church included the Christian thought in the cultural repertoire of the peoples, adapting it to these same festivities. This is why the festivities, in some cases, are the result of a mixture of local beliefs and Spanish traditions based on faith. This work presents a topic related to social folklore, festivals, and typical characters, from the study of the Festival of Mama Negra, in Latacunga, Cotopaxi Province, organized in honor of the Virgin of Mercy or the Holy Tragedy. The festival takes place in the months of September and November, so it was essential to use descriptive and field research –direct observation–, in the first instance to characterize each character –define functions– and, in the second, to confirm differences and similarities in both periods of celebration. Bibliographic sources were used, which included books, articles, and other documents related to the topic, intending to analyze and determine the folkloric fact of the festival, understanding it as a tourist attraction of Ecuador.