Author Archives: Tiffany Leon

Brujo

This is a true story about magic:

“Your great uncle was a brujo (Witch). And he had killed someone. It was from my mom’s side of the family, I don’t know. My mom was small and lived with the mother of the uncle. The uncle had a fight with a neighbor, and killed them. The police were looking fro him at this point. He went to go visit my Aunt Rosa. She asked him what he had done. He asked if he could stay there for awhile. The police came looking for him. They asked if a man had entered the house. The police entered the house to search. My aunt responded no. He was in the kitchen and there was a bunch of bananas. He had transformed himself into the bananas. My Aunt asked where he had gone, and she saw him fall to the ground as bananas and transform into a man and leave.”

My informant is a service coordinator. She likes to help people. She also migrated from El Salvador to the United States. Most of her stories are from her mother or personal experiences.

I talked to my informant over coffee in our house.

It is interesting to hear a story explaining how our family comes from a line of witches. Another interesting thing is how the story changed from the last time I heard it. I have always wondered why my great uncle would turn into bananas. It is always interesting to learn about your family history.

 

Salvadoran Joke Proverb

” No te mais, aquien temio”

Literal Translation: Do not be afraid, of he has been afraid

Joke translation: Do not be afraid, of he who has peed on you

The literal translation comes from the proper Spanish from Spain. The way it is used in El Salvador is they make the last word into two words turning it into “pee.” This joke is usually told to  friend or close family member that is having a bad day or is anxious. My father heard this joke from his friends.

I asked my dad for some folklore while walking to the store.

My informant is a building engineer. He migrated to the United States form El Salvador when he was 16 years old. He grew up in a city in El Salvador. Lots of the folklore he has heard has come from his family.

What is interesting about this piece is how a slight shift in space of a word can change the meaning of the whole proverb. Salvadorans are known for being jokers. They like to call it being “trucha.”

Salvadoran Proverb for Women

“Las muchachas anda tan caliente, que cuando se orinen haste el sacate agarra fuego.”

Translation: Young girls are so hot (horny), then when they pee even the grass catches fire

This proverb was told to my informant by his wife. It represents the stigma that comes with women having free sexuality. it is usually told to daughters as a warning.

 

My informant is a building engineer. He migrated to the United States form El Salvador when he was 16 years old. He grew up in a city in El Salvador. Lots of the folklore he has heard has come from his family.

What is interesting is that this proverb really attack female sexuality. There is this idea in Salvadoran and most Hispanic culture that there are only two women; saints (women that are pure and do not have sexual urges) and whores (women that give into their sexual urges).

Salvadoran Poverb

Cuando esta piensa ( points to crotch area)

Esta no piensa (points to head/brain)

 

This basically means that when we let our sexual urges control us, we lose all cognitive reason. Mothers say this to their daughters in order to explain to them the consequences of getting caught up in sexual urges. My informant overheard his wife saying this to his daughters.

 

My informant is a building engineer. He migrated to the United States form El Salvador when he was 16 years old. He grew up in a city in El Salvador. Lots of the folklore he has heard has come from his family.

This proverb is an excellent example of the taboo nature of sexual relations are in the Salvadoran culture. There is this sense of preventing from the relations to happen versus acknowledging and offering support.

Pregnant Women in red

During a full moon or eclipse a pregnant women must wear a piece of clothing that is red. This is to prevent the baby form being born with a cleft lip. The red color is supposed to prevent negative energy from hurting the baby.

 

My informant is a building engineer. He migrated to the United States form El Salvador when he was 16 years old. He grew up in a city in El Salvador. Lots of the folklore he has heard has come from his family.

He heard this from his mother and other female relatives.