An inside look at Spain’s strangest tradition, the baby jumping festival of ‘El Colacho’

Every year in June, a bizarre festival takes place in the village of Castrillo de Murcia near Burgos, Castilla y Leon in Spain.
During the festival men dress up like the devil and then jump over babies born in the previous 12 months of the year.
Known as El Colacho, the strange custom is part of the countrywide Corpus Christi (body of Christ) celebrations, yet only happens in this small village.

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Written by

Tara Rippin

Tara Rippin is a reporter for Spain’s largest English-speaking newspaper, Euro Weekly News, and is responsible for the Costa Blanca region.
She has been in journalism for more than 20 years, having worked for local newspapers in the Midlands, UK, before relocating to Spain in 1990.
Since arriving, the mother-of-one has made her home on the Costa Blanca, while spending 18 months at the EWN head office in Fuengirola on the Costa del Sol.
She loves being part of a community that has a wonderful expat and Spanish mix, and strives to bring the latest and most relevant news to EWN’s loyal and valued readers.

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