O Folklore Day is celebrated today, August 22, in Brazil and in the world. The commemorative date was created to honor and value the traditions of popular culture in each country.
The origin of Folklore Day refers to an article published on August 22, 1846 by the English archaeologist William John Thoms. The professional, who was a student of folklore, mentioned the expression "Folk-Lore" in the article for the first time in history.
In Brazil, it is common today for important symbols of Brazilian culture to be remembered, such as Carnival and June festivals, and characters such as curupira and saci pererê. Some Brazilian regions even hold festivities to praise folklore.
What is folklore?
According to Thomas Wisiak, coordinator of Philosophy, History and Sociology at the College and the Passo Course, folklore is a word of English origin and is the combination of folk (people) and lore (knowledge), which can be translated as culture or knowledge popular.
The coordinator explains that the systematic study of culture of popular origin by the so-called folklorists was developed in Europe in the 19th century, when sought to identify the cultural origins of nations and humanity, and, from that, the study would have spread to other parts of the world, including the Brazil.
Thomas Wisiak points out that folklore can be divided in two ways, both of which undergo constant change:
Folklore as a field of study, linked today to the idea of cultural heritage
Folklore as popular culture itself, which is quite dynamic, suffering adaptations as it circulates through social media and passes from generation to generation.
Daniel Neves, professor of history at Brasil Escola, points out that it is fundamental for a country to know the roots of its popular traditions and analyze them, as well as those of a scholarly nature.
The professor comments that the great folklorists are in charge of recording tales, legends, anecdotes, songs, dances, clothing, typical foods and everything else that defines popular culture.
Folklore Day in Brazil
Coordinator Thomas recalls that Folklore Day in Brazil, celebrated on August 22, was created by presidential decree in 1965. The commemorative date was created with the objective of guaranteeing the preservation of the collection that forms Brazilian folklore and also to encourage studies in the area.
"Folklore Day is to celebrate the study of folklore and remember its importance in the formation of Brazilian popular culture. This day is important to stimulate public policies and the mobilization of the population to celebrate and disseminate aspects of Brazilian culture"
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Thomas Wisiak
The coordinator points out that Brazilian folklore is an important object of study in the human sciences, and its importance is often reinforced in schools, especially those that work with teaching childish.
"In addition to the material heritage, made up of movable and immovable property, there is the intangible heritage of groups and individuals, comprising knowledge, expressions, practices, representations and techniques, which may be associated with artifacts and places. In this way, it is possible to identify material records of cultural assets, that is, of Brazilian folklore", comments the coordinator.
Brazilian folklore
History professor Daniel Neves states that Brazilian folklore is remarkably rich, and this was the result of the influence of cultures from different indigenous peoples, from different African and European peoples, especially from portuguese.
"This wealth of stories, practices and beliefs of our folklore began to be studied in a organized since the 19th century and today it is an important area linked to the social sciences and anthropology," he says.
Learn more about Brazilian folklore
What are the main symbols of Brazilian folklore?
The symbols of Brazilian folklore are linked to popular culture and can be divided as follows:
Parties
Carnival
June parties
dances
frevo
Maracatu
baião
Lining
catira
Characters
curupira
Saci pererê
yara
pink dolphin
Headless mule
Boitatá
shepherding black
What to study about folklore?
The coordinator of history, philosophy and sociology at Colégio Passo, Thomas Wisiak, explains that, in the national guidelines for education, one of the competences concerns the recognition of culture as an identity-forming element, in addition to the importance of recognizing one's own culture and the culture of others peoples.
The coordinator states that, due to the importance of folklore, in entrance exams, for example, different approaches can be taken, such as:
=>What is popular culture and how it manifests itself in a given historical context;
=>The relationship between popular culture and other forms of culture, such as erudite and mass culture (cultural industry);
=>The cultural manifestation of specific social groups, such as Afro-Brazilians, Asians, European immigrants and indigenous people.
Read too: Brazilian culture - from diversity to equality
By Silvia Tancredi
Journalist
