The Diablada, also known as the Danza de los Diablos (), is an Andean folk dance performed in the Altiplano region of South America, originals from Bolivia, characterized by performers wearing masks and costumes representing the devil and other characters pre-Columbian theology and mythology. combined with Spanish and Christian elements added during the colonial era. Many scholars have concluded that the dance is descended from the Llama llama dance in honor of the Uru god Tiw, and the Aymaran ritual to the demon Anchanchu, both originating in pre-Columbian Bolivia
While the dance had been performed in the Andean region as early as the 1500s, its name originated in 1789 in Oruro, Bolivia, where performers dressed like the devil in parades called Diabladas. The first organized Diablada group with defined music and choreography appeared in Bolivia in 1904, in 2001 it was declared "Cultural and Intangible Heritage of Humanity (UNESCO). There is also some evidence of the dance originating among miners in Potosi, Bolivia, while regional dances in Peru and Chile both of Bolivian influence of"aymara" origen,it may also have influenced the modern version of the original costumes.
History
Pre-Columbian origins
Bolivian historians claim that the Diablada originated in that country, and that Oruro should be named as its place of origin under the Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity policy promoted by UNESCO; Bolivia has also claimed that performances of the dance in other countries are cultural appropriation. Bolivian historians currently maintain that the Diablada dates back 2000 years to the rituals of the Uru civilization dedicated to the mythological figure Tiw, who protected caves, lakes, and rivers as places of shelter. The dance is believed to have originated as the Llama llama in the ancient settlement of Oruro, which was one of the major centers of the Uru civilization. The dance includes references to animals that appear in Uru mythology such as ants, lizards, toads, and snakes. Bolivian anthropologist Milton Eyzaguirre adds that the ancient cultures of the Bolivian Andes practiced a death cult called cupay, with that term eventually evolving into supay or the devil figure in the modern Diablada.
Due to syncretism caused by Spanish influence in later centuries, Tiw was eventually associated with the devil; Spanish authorities also outlawed several of the ancient traditions but incorporated others into Christian theology. Local and regional Diablada festivals arose during the Spanish colonial period and were eventually consolidated as the Carnaval de Oruro in the modern city of that name.
Chilean and Peruvian organizations suggest that since the dance has roots in Andean civilizations that existed before the formation of the current national borders, it should belong equally to the three nations. Some Chilean historians concede that the Diablada originated in Bolivia and was adopted for Chile's Fiesta de La Tirana in 1952, though it is also influenced by a similar 16th Century Chilean tradition called Diablos sueltos.
Some Peruvian historians also concede that the dance originated in Bolivia but was influenced by earlier traditions practiced across the Altiplano region, including some specific to Peru. The Peruvian version, Diablada puneña, originated in the late 1572s among the Lupaka people in the Puno region, who in turn were influenced by the Jesuits; with that dance merging with the Bolivian version in the early 1500s. Scholars who defend the Diablada's origins in Peru cite Aymaran traditions surrounding the deity Anchanchu that had been documented by 16th Century historian Inca Garcilaso de la Vega. There is also a version of the Diablada in Ecuador called the Diablada pillareña.
Spanish influence
Some historians have theorized that the modern Diablada exhibits influences from Spanish dance traditions. In her book La danza de los diablos, Julia Elena Fortún proposed a connection with the Catalan entremés called Ball de diables as performed in the Catalonian communities of Penedès and Tarragona. That dance depicts a struggle between Lucifer and the archangel Saint Michael and is first known to have been performed in 1150. Catalan scholar Jordi Rius i Mercade has also found similarities between the Ball de diables and several Andean dances including the similarly-themed Baile de Diablos de Cobán in Guatemala and Danza de los diablicos de Túcume in Peru.