Fiesta de la Mama Negra 2026

The Fiesta de la Mama Negra (Festival of the Black Mother) is one of Ecuador's most unique and colourful festivals. Held in Latacunga each November, it celebrates a complex fusion of indigenous, colonial Spanish, and African traditions. The central figure — a man dressed as a black woman — represents the emancipation of slaves and indigenous people, and rides through the city on horseback alongside a pageant of characters including the Captain, the Angel, the Champion, and the Moorish King. The festival is a living synthesis of Ecuador's multicultural history.