Vejigante
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A vejigante is clown-like character in Puerto Rican carnival celebrations that is supposed to scare away evil spirits. Traditional colors of the Vejigantes were black, red, white, and yellow. Today,Vejigantes wear brightly colored masks of all sorts of colors and,costumes with bat-like wings and ornate paper mache masks. The term derives from the custom of blowing up and painting a bladder, or vejiga, to scare small children. This tradition still continues today in Loíza, Hatillo, and Ponce.
The vejigante was mentioned in Don Quixote (published in 1605). Vejigantes may also have roots in Afican tribal ceremonies brought by black slaves.
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