Saci Day is celebrated in Brazil on October 31, the same date on which the Halloween (Halloween Day), and this is far from a coincidence. This is because the celebration of the Brazilian folklore icon was purposely placed on the last day of October.
The aim is to rescue and value the Brazilian folklore and the national culture, together with its myths, traditions and stories. The idea is that the date serves as a opposition to the overvaluation of cultural elements from other countries to the detriment of our own.
Read too: August 22 — Folklore Day
Origin of Saci Day
Saci Day was created in 2003, through the Bill No. 2762/2003 of the then congressman Aldo Rebelo. However, the project ended up being shelved.
However, ten years after the first attempt, in 2013, the Education and Culture Commission prepared the Bill No. 2,479/2013, which officially consolidated October 31 as Saci Day.
Below is an excerpt from the justification for bill 2479/2013 |1|:
The suggestion for the creation of “Dia do Saci” comes from a group of popular culture enthusiasts, concerned with rescuing Brazilian mythology and popular culture. The objective is to draw attention to the rescue of legends from our folklore so that it becomes a national celebration of Brazilian traditions. [...] The choice of October 31, when Halloween is celebrated in the United States, a party that attracts more Brazilian children every year, is deliberate. [...] The intention of this project is to teach children that the country also has its myths, spreading oral tradition, popular and children's culture, myths and Brazilian legends.
Before that, at the state of São Paulo, Saci Day had already been made official in 2004, by state law nº 11.669.
What is the importance of Saci Day?
The whole idea behind Saci Day is related to appreciation of the culture and folkloric elements of Brazil. With the advancement of globalization and influence of countries such as U.S in Brazil, it is common for the cultural elements of these nations to begin to become popular in our country, causing a distancing of Brazilians in relation to their own culture.
In this sense, Saci Day is an attempt to rescue our national cultural elements, since the saci-pererê is one of the most famous symbols of folklore Brazilian. The date was created because although Brazilian culture is rich in elements, stories and traditions, these may end up being forgotten or even unknown by the population.
The choice of the date on the same day as the celebration of Halloween is a direct opposition to the appreciation of foreign culture., because Halloween is a symbol of Anglo-Saxon culture, which many times overlaps with Brazilian culture.
See too: April 19 — Indian Day
How is Saci Day celebrated?
The date is usually celebrated in kindergarten schools, where events and activities related to saci are held. Among them, the most common are the reading of Brazilian folklore legends (especially that of Saci), plays, songs and games.
legend of saci
In legend, the saci is a mythical being that inhabits the forests and who is represented as a black boy who has only one leg, with which he moves quickly. An important feature is the fact that it He is mischievous and likes to play tricks on people..
He is known for wearing a red beanie and for having a habit of smoking a pipe., in addition to having no hair or body hair. Some versions of the legend feature him with red eyes, while others do not.
It is important to mention that within the legend there is not only one saci, there may be several performing their pranks at the same time.
Grades
|1| Bill 2479/2003. Available here.
By Miguel Souza
Journalist
Source: Brazil School - https://brasilescola.uol.com.br/datas-comemorativas/31-de-outubro-dia-do-saci.htm
