Every year, from 3 of September to 5 of October, the inhabitants of the neighbourhoods of the city of Quibdó, in the department of Chocó, Colombia, organise a series of events that come together in the "Feast of San Pacho", a nickname given to people with the name of Francisco.
Santiago R. Hernández Celada, OFM, of the Province of St. Paul the Apostle in Colombia, describes the details of this feast.
"Thanks to the evangelisation of Friar Matías Abad, a Spanish Friar Minor, in the 17th century, the Department of Chocó met Christ and our Seraphic Father, St. Francis of Assisi. In Colombia we affectionately call those who bear the name of Francis 'Pacho'; the feast of Saint Pacho begins each year on 3 September with the celebration of Peace and ends on 5 October. On 19 September, the Quincenario begins with the procession of the boys and girls of the city, called El Sanpachito.
In 2012, the San Pacho Festival was declared a Cultural and Intangible Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO, which describes it as "the most important symbolic event in the life of the city of Quibdó. It strengthens the identity of the Chocó department and fosters social cohesion in the community, while promoting creativity and innovation through the revival and recovery of traditional knowledge and respect for nature.
