THE KILLING OF THE TIGER: A RIODORAN TRADITION THAT CONTRIBUTES TO CULTURAL ENRICHMENT AND IS STRENGTHENED THROUGH EDUCATION

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to make, from a historiographical perspective and popular concepts, a description of the festival “the killing of the tiger”, held in the Municipality of Rio de Oro, Cesar. This article identifies the characteristic elements of the festival and how, over time, they have been consolidated as a true cultural manifestation and identity of a people. Thus, the popular slang transmitted from one generation to another assumes the killing of the tiger as a historical event, which set the tone to become, over the years, an essential and cultural part of the context in question. This tradition dates back to January 6, 1842, when the appearance of the “butterfly tiger,” as the residents called the American jaguar, stalked a washerwoman who was on the bank of the river with her dog. The residents say that the feat of the provincials was to go out in a group to hunt the feline, culminating this event with a celebration that involved the inhabitants of the region. This cultural stir originated through a daily experience became an activity to be imitated in other municipalities of the region in towns such as Teorama (Norte de Santander) and González (Cesar). However, it is necessary to point out that there is no historiographic document that shows an exact date of the tradition and everything has been compiled over time through orality. Today, in the light of new times, historians and writers have given importance to the compilation of this cultural sample, which must continue to be strengthened through education to guarantee its stability and permanence over time.