Dances, songs, games, parties, revelries, demonstrations, gastronomy, belief... All this, present in each region, is part of what we call “folklore”. In addition to the celebrations, folklore brings the identity of a people, from its origins and keeps alive the essence of the place. In Florianópolis, there are legacies left by European, indigenous and African peoples, however, those of our Azorean colonizers predominate.
Florianópolis, affectionately known as Magic Island, lives on its beautiful full moon nights with werewolves, witches, and other fantastic beings. That's it, the term magic has nothing to do with the natural beauty of the city, as many people think. Although this piece of land is magically enchanting for its beaches, waves and beautiful women, the bad tongues of the manezinhos (popular name of the natives) who have lived here for a long time say that at twilight the animals are different. Witches came from the Azores at the time of colonization and inhabit the island to this day. If you ask the fishermen and lacemakers of the Lagoon, they know lots and lots of stories about these characters. That, in addition to witchcraft recipes to ward off bad things. We're full of old healers, actually.
But if you don't have time for anthropological and field research, a tip is to read, in addition to our website,
Franklin Cascaes. He was an artist, researcher, and more than that, a great communicator of the legends and people of Florianópolis. Thus he became one of the pioneer folklorists; he documented popular knowledge and beliefs, expressed in legends, tales, songs, customs. The magical universe of Cascaes is intertwined with the folkloric history of the Florianopolitan people, still present in the imagination of the natives. Other folkloric manifestations are also present on Santa Catarina Island. They are the
Dance of the Stick of Ribbons, of Iberian tradition, with its circle dances around a colored pole; The
Singing of the Divine; to
Dance of the cacumbi. Festivals such as the Cult of the Holy Spirit and the Boi-de-mamão are very strong on the island. There are also traditions such as the making of bobbin lace, mullet fishing, cuisine based on seafood, such as oyster farming. In addition to these, we have other parties such as: the Festa da Laranja and da Santíssima Trindade, Procession Dos Passos, Terno de Reis, Festas Juninas, among others. Another determining factor of folklore on the Island is the cuisine, which is based on the sea. Shrimp and fish are the favorite foods of the inhabitants. The mullet fishery has a special emphasis, it occurs between the months of May and June, due to the demand for shoals that flee the cold waters of Lagoa dos Patos, in Rio Grande do Sul, to the coast of Santa Catarina. We also have the famous bobbin lace, of Azorean origin, fishermen's women used to make their lace after doing household chores. While their husbands made the fishing nets, they made their lace. These manifestations, parties, dances, revelries, pilgrimages, beliefs, gradually became tradition. See below, in detail, each folkloric manifestation.
