Takanakuy
Takanakuy is held on December 25. Chumbivilcas Province, Peru. This event in the third decade of the month December is annual. Help us
The purpose of Takanakuy is to settle grievances built up over the year -- be they civil disputes or personal ones -- in a public forum. The festival seeks to resolve conflict, strengthen community bonds and hopefully, arrive at a greater peace.
Takanakuy (Quechua for "to hit each other") is an annual established practice of fighting fellow community members held on 25 December, by the inhabitants of Chumbivilcas Province, near Cuzco in Peru. The practice started in Santo Tomás, the capital of Chumbivilcas, and subsequently spread to other villages and cities, the prominent ones being Cuzco and Lima. The festival consists of dancing and of individuals fighting each other to settle old conflicts.
Locals claim to obtain several social benefits from the tradition. The public brawling offers an alternative method to resolve conflict and create a peaceful society.
Similar holidays and events, festivals and interesting facts
International Rush Day on December 21 (unofficial celebration of fans of the musical group);
Doce uvas on December 31 (the Spanish New Year's tradition of eating twelve grape varieties, one for each of the twelve clock strokes by midnight, subsequently spread in such Spanish-speaking countries as Mexico, Bolivia, Venezuela, Ecuador, El Salvador, Peru, Colombia, Puerto Rico, Nicaragua, Costa Rica et al);
National Festival of Chacarera in Argentina on January 5 (Held two days at the end of the first week of January. Festival of the santiagueña folkloric music with the participation of renown artists);