Essay on the Chaya

With a deeply ethnomusicological perspective, Pancho Cabral set out to investigate the origins of the Chaya in his essay "De la Vidala a la Chaya", a work that uncovers the ancestral roots of this cultural expression.

“It is not common for a poet to also be a musician and, moreover, to set out to investigate the origin of his own craft.”

— Armando Raúl Bazán, member of the National Academy of History

P. Cabral’s work does not merely describe traditions; it sheds light on their meanings by revealing the deep connections they maintain with the present. His research offers a deeper understanding of the symbolic significance of the Chaya, which comes fully to life during the carnival of La Rioja.

Carnaval de La Rioja

The carnival is a living expression of the cultural identity of the people of La Rioja. It is an ancestral celebration rooted in pre-Hispanic Indigenous rituals, when the native peoples of northwestern Argentina — especially the Diaguitas — celebrated the fertility of the land, the end of the harvest, and the beginning of a new agricultural cycle.

With the arrival of Spanish colonizers, these rituals became syncretized with European carnival traditions, giving birth to a unique celebration: the Chaya. The word “chayar”, which means “to sprinkle” or “to wet” in Quechua, captures the spirit of the festivity, which is still expressed today through playful rituals involving water, flour, basil, wine, and joyful gatherings.

Throughout the month of February, the streets, patios, and hills of La Rioja are transformed into spaces of communal celebration and collective expression. The music — featuring the caja chayera, guitars, and coplas — envelops the chayeros, who give themselves over to song, dance, and shared emotion. Faces are covered in white flour, basil perfumes the air, wine flows among friends and neighbors, and water unites everyone in an age-old game.

Within this festive and deeply symbolic context, an emblem was born — one that now accompanies and identifies this celebration in every corner: the Chaya Flag.

Flag of the Chaya

The Chaya Flag was created by Pancho Cabral and his partner Beatrice Dayot (a French dancer). It was born as a symbol to identify their group of friends during the February celebrations, in the patio of their home, and it quickly captured the popular imagination.

It features three horizontal stripes: green represents basil, white symbolizes flour, and ochre yellow evokes the pod of the algarrobo tree. At the center is a caja chayera (traditional drum) with crossed sticks, signifying that the ancestral song continues to resonate in all directions. It is flanked by two open sprigs of basil, inviting new generations to carry on the tradition with their own coplas (folk verses).

The flag was institutionalized through Provincial Law No. 10,742 , passed by the Chamber of Deputies of La Rioja and promulgated by the governor. This law recognizes the flag as a provincial cultural symbol and entrusts its promotion to official activities via the Ministry of Tourism and Culture.

The first official raising of the flag took place during a moving ceremonial event at the Patio de las Artes, in the presence of legislative authorities, and musicians, solidifying its place in the cultural heart of La Rioja.