{"id":2688,"date":"2011-09-12T21:00:39","date_gmt":"2011-09-12T21:00:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/portuguese\/?p=2688"},"modified":"2014-07-24T18:54:11","modified_gmt":"2014-07-24T18:54:11","slug":"the-legend-of-the-cuca","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/portuguese\/the-legend-of-the-cuca\/","title":{"rendered":"The Legend of the Cuca"},"content":{"rendered":"

While there are a number of Brazilian legends, one of the best known is that of the cuca<\/em>, a mythical character popularized in Brazilian culture. The cuca, which originally came from the Portuguese coca, a dragon legend, was brought to Brazil in colonial times. The cuca is an ugly old woman who appears in the form of a crocodile and robs disobedient children. The cuca only sleeps once every seven years, and parents sometimes use this element of the legend to scare children who don’t want to go to sleep, telling them that the cuca will get them if they don’t go to bed. Although cuca came from the Portuguese coca, in Tupi (an indigenous language of Brazil), cuca means to swallow something with a single gulp.<\/p>\n

The cuca legend was further popularized by a 1921 book by Monteiro Lobato, O Saci<\/span>, which detailed a number of Brazilian legends, including the cuca. Later, the legend was made into a movie in the 1950s, and was adapted for TV on the Globo show S\u00edtio do Picapau Amarelo<\/em> beginning in the 1970s. The TV cuca had a blonde wig, lived in a cave, and made magical potions.<\/p>\n

The cuca was also popularized in music, including the lullaby “Nana nen\u00e9”:<\/p>\n

http:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=RHe_wnilnXQ<\/a><\/p>\n

The main refrain of the lullaby goes:<\/p>\n

Nana nenem\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Sleep, little one
\nque a cuca vem pegar\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 The cuca’s going to get you
\npapai foi pra ro\u00e7a\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Daddy went to the fields
\nmam\u00e3e foi trabalhar\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 And Mommy went to work
\nDesce gatinho\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Come down, little cat
\nDe cima do telhado\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 From the roof
\nPra ver se a crian\u00e7a\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 To see if the child
\nDorme um sono sossegado\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Is sleeping peacefully.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\"\"

While there are a number of Brazilian legends, one of the best known is that of the cuca, a mythical character popularized in Brazilian culture. The cuca, which originally came from the Portuguese coca, a dragon legend, was brought to Brazil in colonial times. The cuca is an ugly old woman who appears in the…<\/p>\n

Continue Reading<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"author":41,"featured_media":2690,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[105101,5860],"class_list":["post-2688","post","type-post","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-culture","tag-cuca","tag-legend"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t