LIST OF 17 YUCATECAN PUMPS - CULTURE VOCABULARY - 2025

The Yucatecan pumps correspond to a mischievous, joking and festive rhyme that is usually accompanied by music and dance. It comes from the Yucatan region, in Mexico. In general, the bomba is a compliment made to a woman while dancing.

The dance where the bomba is recited is called jarana, which is traditionally done with couples and whose origins date back to colonial times. During the dance the music is interrupted with the exclamation "Bomb!", To give way to the manifestation of the rhyme.

The audience and the rest of the dancers respond with a "Bravo" or with laughter, and then continue. It is estimated that the Yucatecan bomba is a variation of the Spanish song, which is characterized by being spontaneous and lively.

List of Yucatecan pumps

- "I would like to be a little shoe of your tiny foot, to see from time to time what the little shoe sees."

- "From the sky fell a handkerchief embroidered with a thousand colors and on the tip it said: mestizo of my loves."

- "There are their kinds of bombs: the Russian and the American, but my mother-in-law's is stronger at five in the morning."

- "Yesterday when I left mass I saw you very smiling, but between the smile there was a bean on your tooth."

- "Mestiza beautiful and gallant from Yucatan, pretty flower, your Merida beauty makes me continue to dream of your love every morning."

- "I would like to be a mosquito to enter your pavilion and tell you slowly: sweetheart."

- "At the door of the cenote they killed an owl, your pichi brother-in-law was left without a mustache."

- (Of a political nature) "With their Colgate smiles and their bait phrases, they refused the debate and gave us a batucada."

- "The old vices returned, if they have ever left, buying and selling at the service of a mafia made party."

- «I would love to be the shoe for your pretty foot, to always see what he sees».

- "I would like the mothers-in-law to become chickens so they can go to the corral and I go with their daughters."

- «How beautiful you are when I look at you from the side but you will be more beautiful with the low-cut dress».

- "The woman from the tortería is looking for a new partner because her husband no longer pays attention to his business."

- «When I left my house yesterday I saw you smiling, but between your smile there were pieces of studs on your teeth».

- «In the corner of your house today Tuesday I saw you again, I will be a beautiful beautiful fool if I do not invite you to eat».

- «When I was passing by your house yesterday you threw me a lemon, don't throw me another one that made me a bump».

- «If you visit Yucatan and drink well water from here you will fall in love and here you will live happily».

Origin

It is estimated that the Yucatecan bomb spread through the Gulf of Mexico during colonial times. The terminology "bomba" comes from the Spanish interpretation that is applied to top hats.

As noted above, the Yucatecan bomba is a variation of the Spanish copla, which also had a popular and celebratory character. This expression, as well as many others, served as a form of communication between peoples before the appearance of the printing press.

Therefore, the expressions transmitted orally by troubadours and copleros compiled popular sayings, cultural manifestations and stories, in order to transmit them from generation to generation. This same allowed to establish a structure of the songs and verses that, thanks to the Conquest, penetrated the New Continent.

At the same time, when the Mayan and Spanish culture came together, the birth of a celebration called kub-pol is estimated, which contains the elements previously mentioned.

In this party the presentation of offerings, prayers, the presence of characters who made jokes and women dressed as cowgirls who danced the jarana took place.

How was the event organized?

-The offering was made (which could be a boar's head).

-Later the prayers and the preparation of the meals were carried out.

-A group of women dressed as cowgirls proceeded to dance the jarana. While the dance was taking place, someone interrupted him to shout “Bomb!” In order to woo through a rhyme.

-The chic and his wife appeared between each musical piece, to proceed to tell jokes or anecdotes that happened in the town.

-Although there is no exact date that indicates the birth of the Yucatan bomb and the jarana, it is believed that the first records of both cultural manifestations date from 1841.

characteristics

-In some verses the Mayan language and Spanish are mixed, indicating the conjugation of both cultures.

-In the past, the term “bomb” alluded to the celebration itself. Later, rhymes or verses were called in this way.

-It is believed that the pumps also had an influence on the dairy farms, in order to motivate the workers during the work.

-Some scholars place the celebrations and bomb recitals during the 19th century, although it is believed that they could have been carried out several years earlier.

-The bombs are manifested through the revelry; therefore, they cannot be treated as separate items.

-The couplet or quatrain was not considered a bomb in itself, unless it was included during the jarana.

-The expression "Bomb!" It serves to make space during the celebration for the announcement of the rhyme in an improvised way.

-The Yucatecan bomb has also influenced other Afro-Caribbean demonstrations, which are also called bombs.

Types

As they manifest, there are different types of Yucatecan pumps:

Tourist pumps

Currently, local and foreign tourists can enjoy the Yucatecan bombs when strolling through different tourist spots in the city. In fact, some guides recite bombs to travelers as they are transferred to another point.

Pumps in family rooms

Similar to those that are exclaimed for tourists, these bombs are held in bars or family lounges, which become pleasant places with tropical music in order to encourage customers and other diners.

Pamphlet bombs

The bombs are not only for entertainment purposes, but are also suitable for political expression.

Unofficial bombs

They are those that do not have a specific author and whose publications are made freely and in practically any format.

Diffusion

Despite being a highly respected and beloved tradition both in the region and in the country, the Yucatecan bomba currently does not have the same diffusion that it had in other times.

In the middle of the s. XX the radio was one of the favorite spaces for the dissemination of the bombs. Later the same thing happened with the arrival of television and with the appearance of renowned comedians. Some of these streams can be found on YouTube.

References

1. Yucatecan bomb. (sf). On Wikipedia. Retrieved: April 23, 2018. In Wikipedia at es.wikipedia.org.
2. Yucatecan pumps. (sf). On Toluna. Retrieved: April 23, 2018. In Toluna from mx.toluna.com.
3. Yucatecan Jarana. (sf). On Wikipedia. Retrieved: April 23, 2018. In Wikipedia at es.wikipedia.org.
4. Las Bombas Yucatecas, is the soul of the Jarana. (2017). In Myths and Legends. Recovered: 23 of 2018. In Myths and Legends in mitoleyenda.com.
5. Leyva Loria, Damiana; Solís Pacheco, Camilo. The Yucatecan bomb. Origin and validity. (2013). In Issuu. Retrieved: April 23, 2018. In Issuu de issuu.com.