Federico Stories

A long time ago, the Spaniards started to conquer the lands of El Salvador. One of the last strongholds of the Lenca tribe was the Morazan, and they had to protect it at any cost. The Spaniards were tired of the Lenca tribe and decided to carry out a massacre. Eventually, all corpses were reclaimed by other Indians except one. Nobody ever claimed nor picked up. No one ever knew who he belonged. For this reason, the new locals called this place the Plain of the Dead Man  (El Llano del Muerto in Spanish) (figure 1). Figure 1. The Plain of the Dead Man.  ¹ Nowadays, the Plain of the Dead is a place with abundant natural wealth, full of forests, rivers, and mountains that offer tourists a good space for camping, hiking, and swimming in pools of crystal-clear water. Credits: ¹  Natalia Galarza

Once upon a time, there was a woman who wanted to have a godmother. However, she did not want every godmother, she wanted Mrs. Death (figure 1). This woman wanted to know her destiny and was sure Mrs. Death could help her. Figure 1. Mrs. Death. One day the woman went to visit Mrs. Death’s cabin. She was not there that day, but the woman still entered her cabin. She would wait inside. Several minutes later, she started roaming around and noticed thousands of black candles. Each of them had an imprinted theme. A tiny one had her name imprinted, María Flores. After she read her name, she had a premonition: "She would die of a rare disease soon." She was shocked because she did not have any notable disease. She was a healthy woman! Suddenly, Mrs. Death appeared silently from behind and gave her an ointment. She also gave her precise orders on how to use it, "Use this ointment on your feet but be careful you should not smear on it your head. This can cure you of that rare di...

Long ago, a dirty and scary woman (figure 1) started to visit Guatajiagua’s rivers every midnight. Every citizen believes she came from the Honduran virgin jungles. Figure 1. The dirty woman. The men described her as an evil spirit. She presents herself mainly when they are drunk, returning to their homes as a beautiful woman washing her clothes on the banks of the closest river. She later calls the men asking them for their support. The men tend to fall in love and approached her. After they speak for a while, she presents her true face! Most men tried running, but only a few have escaped. The lucky ones returned to their homes and for the unlucky ones, no one knows their destiny. Inspired by Valdemar Bolainez’s version collected by Ennis Arely Arevalo Girón, Lissette Amelia Gutierrez Paz, and Karen Liseth Mancia Bonilla in their  thesis  Cultura Popular de Guatajiagua.

Long ago, a shaman cursed a man for no clear reason. The shaman was just in a bad mood and decided to make his eyes extremely strong (figure 1). They even reached a terrible point that if any weak child exchanged glances with him, the child would get sick immediately. The child would suffer for weeks from uncommon diseases that are hard to treat. Some of those unlucky children died if they were not treated fast enough. Figure 1. The strong eye. Unfortunately, almost every surviving child inherited the strong eye cursed also and shared it with the newest generations, creating a vicious cycle forever! That’s why over the years more and more children across El Salvador started to suffer from unexpected illnesses that no doctor could treat and just hope for the best. Be careful if you ever meet one of these cursed men! Inspired by Dinora Flores’ version collected by Ennis Arely Arevalo Girón, Lissette Amelia Gutierrez Paz, and Karen Liseth Mancia Bonilla in their  thesis ...

When passing by the path that goes around the hill in Guatajiagua, a ghost ( El Espanto in Spanish ) appears from nowhere (figure 1). Figure 1. The Guatajiagua ghost. Everyone is afraid to pass near the hill because the ghost loves to scare all men. The ghost searches for new ways to be always in front of all men and throws their hats. Most men try finding another way to avoid the ghost. However, the ghost will keep chasing until around 11 or 12 PM. At this time, the men will be able to reach their homes. Generally, their women will be waiting for them angrily, demanding to know why they are so late at home. Suddenly, the ghost appears in the courtyard, and the women ask, “who is that bundle that is passing by?” Then the men always answer: "He is the one who would not let me pass, I was afraid of that one, and so I came late." Inspired by Hipólito Cruz’s version collected by Ennis Arely Arevalo Girón, Lissette Amelia Gutierrez Paz, and Karen Liseth Mancia Bonilla in their...

At the end of the last century, the corncob of corn (figure 1) was not burned in El Salvador. Salvadorans believed that the corncob of corn was the skeleton of corn and the elders said that the devil stored corn and sorghum so that our Lord’s children would die. Figure 1. The Corncob. Our Lord was disappointed by the devil’s actions and tried to think of a strategy on how to fight him, but he couldn’t find a good one. After a couple of days, he spoke with a yellow ant and a mouse. He asked them if they had any idea how to handle it. They told him this was easy, they would make a tunnel under the earth and in this way, the yellow ant took out the sorghum and the mouse the corn. After this event, sorghum became the favorite grain of yellow for ants and corn for the mice. In this way, the Salvadoran ancestors discovered corn and sorghum. Inspired by Salvador Hernández’s version collected by Ennis Arely Arevalo Girón, Lissette Amelia Gutierrez Paz, and Karen Liseth Manc...

A long time ago, a statue of San Sebastián was brought from Morroñoso Hill in Morazán. It was a nice statue, and the citizens decided to make a tiny chapel for him. The next morning, the citizens visited the tiny chapel, but they were shocked because the statue was not there. The statue had moved by itself to another place where there were some rocks. No one understood how this had happened, but they brought back the statue to the tiny chapel. However, again, the next morning, the statue had moved back to the rocks. And the same phenomenon repeated for several weeks. No one had any idea what was happening or who was moving the statue. Some people believe a joker was playing with the statue. After several weeks, some priests agreed that this was a clear sign that Saint Sebastian wanted to stay in that rocky place. There was no joker behind. Therefore, they decided to build a new temple there. The people were glad, and the statue never moved again. Nowadays, the statue and the church ar...

Many years ago, when La Nahuaterique (a small village in Honduras) was part of El Salvador, there used to live an old and peculiar sorcerer. This village was well known for its Lenca population. The sorcerer was grumpy and unfriendly; barely anyone had ever spoken with him over his long time living there. His face was a complete mystery because he always wore a mask in the shape of an owl (figure 1). He used to live in a tiny cave where barely any light entered. From time to time, the people could see a campfire, but no one was sure if it was real. Figure 1. The Sorcerer.   ¹ Some people believe he was a shapeshifter who transformed himself into other animals, mainly owls. Others had the impression he was one of the few sorcerers who were not fully cursed by the shaman centuries ago. One of those who could revert to his human form at his own will, but to retain his secret identity, he always wore that mask. While a few people believed he had an odd business of selling ointmen...

Her legend started during the time of the civil war of El Salvador in the 1980s. Many guerrilla fighters passed through the banks of the Toad River at night, specifically, in the area where the passage of the river splits La Guacamaya and El Zapotal in Morazán. In this area, they inevitably encountered a mysterious woman (figure 1). Figure 1. The mysterious woman of the Toad River.  ¹ Many people claimed to have perceived this woman. They described her as medium height with enormous breasts, broad hips, long hair, an odd look whose laughs turned out to be deafeningly loud; therefore, they heard her from afar. However, everyone agreed her appearances were quick, lasting only a few minutes or seconds, they could barely perceive her. Those who saw her also said she dressed only in underwear and bathed in the pools of the river at night. Plus, she had the habit of running to hide in the undergrowth. As the days passed, the few fighters who ventured to spend the nigh...

In many villages around El Salvador, the amate tree (figure 1) is highly respected. Its structure is unusual and full of mysteries. Its branches have a wailing appearance and the thickness of its foliage. The tree is a piece of art, but it is also a symbol of fear. Figure 1. The amate tree. Many old people say you can’t sleep at night under the Amates because they throw bones. There is on top of the legend that a  flower  blooms from it that can be seen only by deaf and young children. Inhabitants of Morazán evade the tree at night. They say it is the moment when the trees scare the most. Some people throw bones to frighten it. However, if they don’t do it on time, the devil appears and offers them whatever they desire. It’s advisable not to pass near them when the sun has set in the sky. The amate trees abound in warm places, especially in Central America and Mexico. In El Salvador, the place where these trees are more common is Morazán. At a certain distance, y...

In 1908, a few people found some human bones that belonged to a two meters tall woman. In those days, the location of the bones was called San José, but today is known as the Giant Hill. However, from these bones, nothing is known. People assure some scientists took the bones to be examined in another country, but the results were never known. The mayor in those days, Santiago Mata, commissioned Naftalí to elaborate it and sculpted the face in wood and painted it. Then he formed the body so that a person could get under it and make it turn so that it would seem that it danced. The finding caused a stir among the inhabitants and led to the creation of a popular myth that ended up becoming the legend of “the giantess of Jocoro” (figure 1). Figure 1. The g iantess of Jocoro. A story that over the years has given way to the development of an extraordinary doll that is accompanied by a court of masked men. It goes out to dance through the streets of the municipality every Febru...