Cultural Manifestation in Kalunga territory: The Feast of Nossa Senhora de Aparecida as Element of Identity (Re)affirmation and ethnic Reapprochement

The Kalunga are quilombolas communities situated in the north of state of Goiás, in Brazil, formed by remaining slaves, freed blacks and fugitives, whose territory was recognized as Historical Site and Cultural Patrimony. The article intends to present the feast of Nossa Senhora de Aparecida of quilombolas Kalunga communities Diadema and Ribeirão, located in the brazilian city of Teresina de Goiás, making an approach about its ethnic sense and its role in the territorial identity construction of the group and in the collective memory constitution. Moreover, the article discusses the territoriality, the ways of life, the traditional knowledge of these communities and the practices of celebration in honor to the patroness. The research allowed us to understand how the Kalunga maintained and still maintain their cultural practices in shaping of their territory, building their cultural identity under several influences, since they adopted the Catholic religion as the core of their cultural manifestations,resorting at the same time to the knowledge that they brought from their homelands