The annual Guelaguetza festival is one of the largest Indigenous celebrations in Mexico, preserving Oaxaca culture and tradition.
Women performing at the Guelaguetza Festival. Jen Wilton. CC BY 2.0
Oaxaca City’s Guelaguetza festival is a celebration of community and strength that occurs annually on the two Mondays after July 16. Also referred to as “Los Lunes del Cerro,” the festival has been a longstanding tradition in Oaxaca culture that predates Spanish colonization of the land in the 16th century. Although the cultural significance of the festival has shifted over the years, its core value of unity remains deeply rooted in the celebrations.
Prior to Spanish invasion, the festival had close ties to the religious celebration of the goddess of maize Centéotl in order to ensure a successful harvest season. While Centéotl still has a place in modern Guelaguetza celebrations, after Spanish colonization, festivities began to integrate Christian elements such as the feast day Our Lady of Mount Carmel which occurs on July 16.
The term “Guelaguetza” means “reciprocal exchanges of gifts and services” in the Zapotec language, which is the overarching structure of the festival. Historically, during Oaxacan celebrations, those attending would each bring some sort of item that was needed for the celebration such as food or supplies. These “guelaguetza” allowed the celebration to exist and exemplified the value of collaboration.
During the Guelaguetza festival in particular, inhabitants of Oaxaca’s eight regions unite, bringing their own unique traditions and knowledge to share with the larger community.
A couple dancing at the Guelaguetza Festival. Larry Lamsa. CC BY 2.0
Particularly, an exchange of culture occurs through song, dance and clothing. Individuals from each of the eight regions spend months prior to the festival perfecting song and dance routines to perform for the festival's attendees. After performing the number in their region's traditional clothing, they toss significant cultural items into the crowd. This exchange allows Oaxaca’s sub-cultures to not only exist but to thrive.
In addition to culture, there are plenty of other exchanges that occur during the festival, such as sharing traditional food that is prepared by inhabitants of each region and selling artisanal crafts in the city center.
The Guelaguetza festival has been traditionally celebrated on Cerro del Fortín, or Fortin Hill, in Oaxaca. In the 1970s an amphitheater was built specifically for the celebration. Seating 11,000 people, the amphitheater was built directly into a hill so that those looking down at the stage are able to clearly view the city below.
Oaxaca is home to sixteen different Indigenous groups in addition to its eight regions, so there is a vast array of cultures within the larger Oaxaca culture. Annual Guelaguetza celebrations have preserved these cultures over the years despite colonization and increasing tourism in the region, ensuring that Oaxacan traditions and stories will be preserved for coming generations.
Zara Irshad