From religious marginalization to cultural appreciation: a historical analysis of the secularization of bumba-meu-boi in Maranhão

Abstract

The research titled "From religious marginalization to cultural valorization: A historical analysis of the secularization of bumba-meu-boi in Maranhão" aimed to verify the effects of the tourism industry on the displacement of this cultural manifestation from marginal to official, i.e., the possible alterations in its aesthetics and religiosity. The temporal period of the study, referring to the transition from the 19th to the 20th century, marked the period in which the resistance of the participants, as well as their traditions and religiosity, were identified clearly in the documentary sources. The results of this study made it possible to demonstrate the maintenance of the participants' resistance, as well as their original religiosity. This is because the real metamorphosis is not present in the secularization of bumba's religiosity but rather in its transformation into a consumer market.