The Sabanero’s Shout Was
Heard Again
(Infocom) — Just like
every Nov. 10 in
Guanacaste, the
traditional figure of
the sabanero (Costa
Rican cowboy) was paid
homage through a series
of celebrations
throughout the province.
National Sabanero Day
was instituted in 2003
as a way of recognizing
the hard-working,
range-riding folks who
gave shape to the
Guanacaste way of being.
Since then, two culture
commissions from
Guanacaste
municipalities
coordinate celebrations
surrounding this special
day in their respective
canton.
Additionally, the
Ministry of Education is
given the chance to
include the celebration
in its school calendar
and K-6 curriculum, so
that all schools
throughout the country —
not just those in
Guanacaste — can learn
about this historical
character.
The main reason that
gave birth to this
celebration is the fact
that the Guanacaste
cattle haciendas became
a source of culture and
customs that constituted
the backbone of
Guanacaste’s
idiosyncrasy.
“In addition to economic
goods and resources, the
hacienda provides
traditions, legends,
dances, songs and
characters,” reads the
text of the law that
creaed the National
Sabanero Day. “ It’s
there where the man
typical of the pampas
(flatlands), the
sabanero, emerges, in
addition to other
figures such as the
sobrestante, the
cocinera, the pipero,
the montador, the
vaquetero and the
cuajadero; plus oral
poetry such as bombas,
tallas and retahilas;
the regional lanaguage,
with all of its
guanacastequisms;
activities such as the
vaquiada and the fierra;
and the recognizable
shout of the sabanero
challenging the bulls.
It’s a lifestyle that
impreganates the entire
province, from the
corral to the city.”
Adds the document: “This
is the sabanero, a
cattle workers,
courageous to the
extreme, who had to
carry out multiple tasks
concerning cattle and
the horse, the latter
his faithful companion.
It’s a legendary
character of the
Guanacaste pampa.
Together with the female
cook and the peon, he
completes the basic
trilogy o the hacienda.
His presence has given
birth to the ‘sabanero
culture,’ a key element
of the guanastequidad,
or unique way of being
in Guanacaste. He is,
consequently, a symbol
of the eternal
Guanacaste. Liberia is
the cradle of the
sabanero. A man of the
Guanacaste plains.
Legend of the pampa. A
mix of man, plain and
centaur.”
The executive decree
that created the
National Sabanero Day is
also a larger
recognition of the
historical and cultural
legacy of the cattle
ranching activity in
Costa Rica, and which
has become the
foundation of the
Liberian identity — the
hard work that went on
in the cattle ranches of
the Dry Pacific region
of the country.
Throughout the years,
the figure of the
sabanero has been
described by poets and
folkloric writers, and
even by foreign
chroniclers who have
traveled through
Guanacaste.
The sabanero has
inspired poets such as
Rodolfo Salazar, as well
as musicians such as
Jesus Bonilla and
Medardo Guido Acevedo.
The latter, in its song
“Amor Sabanero” (Sabanero
Love), captures the
Guanacaste spirit when
saying:
“…Emotion is a burning
flame in the soul of the
sabanero, who along with
his horse, travels the
dusty and swampy roads,
golden from sunshine or
silver from moonlight;
sun of burning gold and
humid, or clear and
peaceful moon… Ranger,
who runs after the
cimarrons in the forest
or through the plain,
and that next to his
courage and bravery,
loves the country and
nature all.
“He is happy and
emotional and sings his
songs and shouts free
and impassioned as if he
were the king of the
revered pampa. He is a
straight talker and
dreams of the beautiful
dark-skinned girl with
long, braided hair,
black and gracious eyes,
who gives flirting looks
that gnaw at the soul.
And then, a manly smile
escapes the lips of this
good ranger, as
inspiration felt in the
middle of his noble
uneasiness…” |
