''Correfocs'' (); literally in English "fire-runs") are among the most striking features present in Valencian and

Catalan Catalan may refer to: Catalonia From, or related to Catalonia: * Catalan language, a Romance language * Catalans, an ethnic group formed by the people from, or with origins in, Northern or southern Catalonia Places * 13178 Catalan, asteroid ...

festivals. In the ''correfoc'', a group of individuals will dress as devils and light up fireworks – fixed on devil's pitchforks or strung above the route. Dancing to the sound of a rhythmic drum group, they set off their fireworks among crowds of spectators. The spectators that participate dress to protect themselves against small burns and attempt to get as close as possible to the devils, running with the fire. Other spectators will watch from "safe" distances, rapidly retreating as necessary. The ''correfoc'' can come in many forms. Some are simple parades using fireworks and effigies of the devil. In Sitges, it is common for a crowd to line a street, while participants run through a tunnel of fireworks. ''Correfocs'' are run during the Festival of ''La Mercè'' in Barcelona, the Festival of ''Santa Tecla'' in Tarragona and the Festival of ''Saint Narcissus'' in Girona. Another typical Catalan folkloric expression of this sort takes place in L'Arboç. The highlight of the village's feast is the ''Carretillada''. In the evening of the feast day, the town square is made to look like

Hell In religion and folklore, hell is a location in the afterlife in which evil souls are subjected to punitive suffering, most often through torture, as eternal punishment after death. Religions with a linear divine history often depict hell ...

. For nearly half an hour, "devils" burn their ''carretilles'' (carts), jumping around ceaselessly, while a large "sceptre of Lucifer" and the "pitchfork of the ''Diablessa'' (she-devil)" shoot fire-jets and other

pyrotechnics Pyrotechnics is the science and craft of creating such things as fireworks, safety matches, oxygen candles, explosive bolts and other fasteners, parts of automotive airbags, as well as gas-pressure blasting in mining, quarrying, and demolition. ...

. Every year, the ''carretillada'' is a bit different, because the 'colla' does not give up novelties that are added each year to add to the spectacle. Anarco-rrefoc

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Correfoc images

Els Ducs del Foc

Colla del Basilisc

Grup del Correfoc del Follet i la Fantasma de Sant Feliu de Codines

Xaldiga de Manresa

Ball de diables de L'Arboç

Fills de Satanàs de l'Spelunca Diabòlica

Aquelarre de Cervera

Dimonis de l'Avern

Federació de Dimonis i Diables del País Valencià

Great Devils in Panamá

Senyors del foc, Castelló d'Empúries, Catalunya

La Merce Part 3

Pàgina oficial de la Federació de Diables i Dimonis de Catalunya

Dimonis de Campanar

Diables de Terrassa

Image Gallery, Correfoc at L'Eliana, Valencia, Spain
{{Culture of Valencian Community Catalan folklore Catalan symbols Catalan words and phrases Valencian culture

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