- Ritual
- Rezo del pescado／魚への祈り
- Region and community
- コロンビア／Sikuani
- Age at the cultural rite
- Variable or not confirmed in the source
- Transition conditions
- Community initiation / Menarche or physical maturity / Trial or training / New social responsibilities
- Legal age of majority
- Colombia18 yearsColombia · Calendar unspecified · Law and supporting sources
About the rite
Rezo del pescado, or the prayer over fish, is a Sikuani girls’ initiation in Colombia. At her first menstruation, a girl spends a period in a designated place and receives instruction from older people about weaving, daily life, and future responsibilities in family and community. At the conclusion, she is the first to eat fish over which prayers have been spoken and then shares the food with those present.
In interviews published by Colombia’s family welfare institute in 2021, community leaders and grandmothers spoke about how girls begin to take on new responsibilities through the rite. The prayer over fish also accompanies other milestones, including infant weaning.
Related rites
