LA

POLLERA

The name was used for the typical dress in

Panama as earlyas 1846.

“La Pollera"

• Many diverse and complex factors combine to create the identity of a nation. Among these factors traditional culture is frequently mentioned as one of the most important.

• Traditional culture belongs to the common people, that large sector of society that is neither primitive nor wholly integrated into the modern life of the country.

• Each region has its own particular characteristics or exclusive traits which differentiate it from others. It is the sum total of these characteristics that go to make up the culture we call folklore and which is frequently mentioned as a basic element in the quality of nationhood.

Along with the other traditional Latin American dresses, the pollera descended from the Spanish dress of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.

Contemporary with the beautiful court dresses there was the daily house dress, which in this epoch was generally white with a full skirt of two or three ruffles embroidered or appliqued in floral designs. This description is, simply, the pollera.

The important fact is the originality and direction the dress developed in Panama, which made it distinct from typical dresses in other Latin countries with similar roots in Spain.

Provinces of Los Santos and Herrerajealously guard the pollera tradition, so much so that models from these provinces have been adopted by all regions of the

Republic.

The pollera was the dress of the common people, and here lies its strength, its continuity, and its permanence. As a creation of the common people, it reflected the vitality and spirit of that class, and extended into every city, town, and farm. From its humble beginning the pollera gradually was adopted by the women in the upper classes. Today the daughters of the aristocracy are just as proud to wear their polleras during days of fiestas as the women in rural areas

Pollera montuna

As for the Pollera montuna or the dress for daily use, a cotton skirt printed in floral design is commonly used in tropical climates and during summer seasons in colder regions.

Pollera Montuna

Veraguas

Herrera- Chitre

OcuLos Santos

• The gown or blouse consists of two ruffles, appliquéd or embroidered in favored color and design edged with valencienne lace and gracefully draped from handmade thread lace insertion at the neckline (this blouse is worn off the shoulder.)

• The basic pieces of the pollera are the gown or upper part, the skirt or lower part and the petticoat or underskirt.

• Wool is woven in and out of the insertions and two big pom-poms are centered at the chest and back.

• The wool must be the same color as the shoes, which are heel-less and made from velvet or satin.

Every year the Festival of the “Pollera” (national dress) is celebrated, as a part of the celebration for the Patron Saint of Las Tablas, in Azuero, Santa Librada.

The most beautiful “polleras” of the region take part in this festival.

The “Pollera”, made completely by hand, is one of the most spectacular folkloric dresses in the world. It can take from six to twelve months to make and it can cost several thousand dollars, in addition to the value of jewelry that complements the dress.

• Trembleques: Hair ornaments made of wires and beads, resembling artificial flowers.

• The ornaments, "tembleques", for the hair are exquisite.

• A large tortoise shell comb embellished with pearls and gold is worn on top of the head and resembles a crown.

• This is the key piece and the gold hairpins and tembleques, which are quivering pins and worn in pairs, are placed on the head to give the appearance of a radiant halo. Two small discs tied to the hair at the temples with black silk thread and large gold filigree earrings with pearls or corals complete the head dress.

Four days before Ash Wednesday are "carnival" days and La Pollera comes into its own. The streets are filled with merry makers and each Pollera one sees seems to be more beautiful that the last. La Pollera has to be seen to appreciate the work and imagination that produces this loveliest of dresses.

Congo Dancers - Honoring the

Province of Colón

The words to a popular tune speak to the pride of owning a classical pollera.  It goes like this:

• Yo quiero bailar tambor con mi clásica Pollera. Me gusta bailar tambor con una "jilachanueva" Mi Pollera, Mi Pollera, Mi Pollera es colorada

• I want to dance the tambor In my typical pollera I like dancing the tambor with my "new threads" My pollera, my pollera, My pollera which is red.

"The 100 Polleras Parade"

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