Baby jumping (Spanish: El Colacho) is a traditional Spanish festival dating back to 1620.
01 · What it is
Living Tradition
Documented cultural tradition on record; family classification awaits an editor.
02 · Where & name
Spain
Written in its own script on record as El Colacho.
03 · How it is doing
□□□□ (Not yet assessed)
Documented in open cultural records, but no cited field assessment of its current vitality has been added here yet.
04 · Proof & reuse
2 cited sources
Every claim links to a public record below. Free to quote, teach, and share under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Chapter Takeaways
DescriptionDuring the act, known as El Salto del Colacho (the devil jump) or simply El Colacho, men dressed as the Devil (known as the Colacho) in red and yellow suits jump over babies born during the previous twelve months who…
Colacho in Costa RicaAs an unrelated Christmas tradition, El Colacho (short for Nicolacho or Saint Nicholas) is Costa Rican's version of Santa Claus.
Common Questions Answered on Record
What is Baby jumping in plain words?
Baby jumping (Spanish: El Colacho) is a traditional Spanish festival dating back to 1620. In local script on record, it is written El Colacho.
Where is Baby jumping practised or documented?
Sources on this page place Baby jumping in Spain.
What is the current condition of Baby jumping today?
□□□□ (Not yet assessed): Documented in open cultural records, but no cited field assessment of its current vitality has been added here yet.
How do I cite or share this Baby jumping entry?
Cite as: "Baby jumping." folkroom, https://folkroom.org/art-forms/baby-jumping, text CC BY-SA, with attribution.
Baby jumping (Spanish: El Colacho) is a traditional Spanish festival dating back to 1620. It takes place annually to celebrate the Catholic feast of Corpus Christi in Castrillo de Murcia, a village in the municipality of Sasamón in the province of Burgos. 1
Description
During the act, known as El Salto del Colacho (the devil jump) or simply El Colacho, men dressed as the Devil (known as the Colacho) in red and yellow suits jump over babies born during the previous twelve months who lie on mattresses in the street. The "devils" hold whips and oversized castanets as they jump over the infant children. Before the jump begins, the devils taunt onlookers until "atabalero" drummers arrive. These pious men signal the beginning of the jump, which represents the devils being driven out and on their way. They jump over the babies, absorbing their sins, taking such sins with them.
The Brotherhood of the Blessed Sacrament of Minerva organizes the week-long festivities, which culminate on Sunday when the Colacho jumps over the babies on the mattresses placed on the procession route traversing the town.
The tradition's origins are unknown, but it is said to eliminate the babies original sin, ensuring them safe passage through life and guarding against illness and evil spirits. Pope Benedict XVI asked Spanish priests to distance themselves from El Colacho, as the Church teaches that the original sin is cleansed by baptism. 1
Colacho in Costa Rica
As an unrelated Christmas tradition, El Colacho (short for Nicolacho or Saint Nicholas) is Costa Rican's version of Santa Claus. 1
The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Baby jumping”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence. 1
Baby jumping is Spanish festival, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition. 2
The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation. 2
