The "Festival del Bambuco en San Juan y San Pedro", formerly called "Festival Folclórico y Reinado Nacional del Bambuco" or Bambuco Pageant and Folkloric Festival in English, is the largest and most important celebration in

Huila Department Huila () is one of the departments of Colombia. It is located in the southwest of the country, and its capital is Neiva. Demography and Ethnography Huila department had a population of 1,122,622 inhabitants in 2020, of which 679,667 (60.54%) ...

and one of the most important celebrations in southern

Colombia Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country primarily located in South America with Insular region of Colombia, insular regions in North America. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the north, Venezuel ...

. It is celebrated annually in the city of Neiva during the

Feast of Saints Peter and Paul The Feast of Saints Peter and Paul or Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul is a liturgical feast in honor of the martyrdom in Rome of the apostles Saint Peter and Saint Paul, which is observed on 29 June. The celebration is of ancient Chri ...

and attracts a considerable number of Colombian and foreign tourists. The festival was declared National Cultural heritage by the

Congress of Colombia The Congress of the Republic of Colombia () is the name given to Colombia's bicameral national legislature. The Congress of Colombia consists of the 108-seat Senate, and the 188-seat Chamber of Representatives, Members of both houses are e ...

in 2006. The Festivity is formed by three events, the Folkloric Festival, the Bambuco Pageant and the International Folklore Exposition. The Festival celebrates

Bambuco Bambuco is a traditional music genre from Colombia. Its metric structure is similar to the European waltz or polska (not to be confused with the polka). Typically a bambuco piece is accompanied by a stylized group dance in either a or meter. ...

music.

History

Since the 18th century, locals celebrated obedience to the Spanish monarch in the months of June and July,Festival Folclórico y Reinado Nacional del Bambuco: el regreso a las raíces andinas
Colombian Tourism Portal. as well as the Feast of Saint Peter and Saint John. At the time, Saint John's Feast was a rural festivity while Saint Peter's was celebrated in the cities. In 1960, the festivities were officialized and the ''Festival Folclórico y Reinado Nacional del Bambuco'' were established.

Reinado Nacional del Bambuco

The ''Reinado Nacional del Bambuco'' is a contest similar to

beauty pageants A beauty pageant is a competition in which the contestants are judged and ranked based on various physical and mental attributes. Per its name, beauty pageants traditionally focus on judging the contestants' physical attractiveness, sometimes sol ...

in which contestants, each representing a Colombian Department, are judged on six parameters: Performance of

Sanjuanero El Sanjuanero, often called simply Sanjuanero, (translation "St. John's Festivities Song") is a traditional Colombian bambuco song. Its music was written in 1936 by Anselmo Duran Plazas and its lyrics were written by Sofía Gaitán Yanguas.Histor ...

dance, beauty,

general knowledge General knowledge is information that has been accumulated over time through various media and sources. It excludes specialized learning that can only be obtained with extensive training and information confined to a single medium. General know ...

, popularity, punctuality and performance of regional dance.REGLAMENTO GENERAL REINADO NACIONAL DEL BAMBUCO
The Reinado's Official Rule Book. Of these, the performance of the Sanjuanero dance grants the most points, followed by beauty. The contests' winner is declared as the ''National Bambuco Queen'' (''Spanish: Reina Nacional del Bambuco''). It has been made in 57 uninterrupted editions from 1961 to 2017, the first winning department was Huila while the most recent and current winner of the title is Huila as well. In the 57 editions a total of 21 territorial entities (20 departments and

Bogotá Bogotá (, also , , ), officially Bogotá, Distrito Capital, abbreviated Bogotá, D.C., and formerly known as Santa Fe de Bogotá (; ) during the Spanish Imperial period and between 1991 and 2000, is the capital city, capital and largest city ...

) have obtained at least one crown, the department that has won the most is the host department, Huila, with a total of 7 crowns, followed by Atlántico with 6, Meta and Caquetá both with 5 and Valle del Cauca with 4, the information of all the winning departments with their respective years is shown below:

By Department

Festival activities

*"Anselmo Durán Plazas" National Music Performing Contest. *" Jorge Villamil Cordovez" National Music Composition Contest. *"

Inés García de Durán Inés García de Durán (1928–2011) was a Colombian folklorist linked specially to the traditions of her native land, the Huila Department Huila () is one of the departments of Colombia. It is located in the southwest of the country, and it ...

" National and International Dance Encounter.

References

External links

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Ferias & Fiestas que no te puedes Perder, Colombia.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Festival Folclorico y Reinado Nacional del Bambuco Cultural festivals in Colombia Tourist attractions in Huila Department Dance in Colombia Bambuco 1960 establishments in Colombia Folk festivals in Colombia Music festivals established in 1960 Music festivals in Colombia Dance festivals in Colombia