(; ) is a

vengeful ghost In mythology and folklore, a vengeful ghost or vengeful spirit is said to be the spirit of a dead person who returns from the afterlife to seek revenge for a cruel, unnatural or unjust death. In certain cultures where funeral and burial or crem ...

in Hispanic American folklore who is said to roam near

bodies of water A body of water or waterbody is any significant accumulation of water on the surface of Earth or another planet. The term most often refers to oceans, seas, and lakes, but it includes smaller pools of water such as ponds, wetlands, or more ra ...

mourning her children whom she drowned in a jealous rage after discovering her husband was unfaithful to her. Whoever hears her crying either suffers misfortune or death and their life becomes unsuccessful in every field.

Origins

Known for being Malintzin in her original nomenclature, today, the lore of La Llorona is well known in Mexico and the southwestern United States. The earliest documentation of La Llorona is traced back to 1550 in

Mexico City Mexico City is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Mexico, largest city of Mexico, as well as the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North America. It is one of the most important cultural and finan ...

. But there are theories about her story being connected to specific Aztec mythological creation stories. "The Hungry Woman" includes a wailing woman constantly crying for food, which has been compared to La Llorona's signature nocturnal wailing for her children. The motherly nature of La Llorona's tragedy has been compared to Cihuacoatl, an Aztec goddess deity of motherhood. Her seeking of children to keep for herself is significantly compared to Coatlicue, known as "Our Lady Mother" or Tonantzin (who's also comparable to the Virgen de Guadalupe, another significant mother figure in Mexican culture), also a monster that devours filth or sin. She was in rage so much that she drowned her children and then was so sad that she drowned herself and now is called the weeping woman. The legend of La Llorona is traditionally told throughout

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

Central America Central America is a subregion of North America. Its political boundaries are defined as bordering Mexico to the north, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest. Central America is usually ...

and northern

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a considerably smaller portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It can also be described as the southern Subregion#Americas, subregion o ...

. is sometimes conflated with , the

Nahua The Nahuas ( ) are a Uto-Nahuan ethnicity and one of the Indigenous people of Mexico, with Nahua minorities also in El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica. They comprise the largest Indigenous group in Mexico, as well as ...

woman who served as 's interpreter and also bore his son. is considered both the mother of the modern Mexican people and a symbol of national treachery for her role in aiding the Spanish. Stories of weeping female phantoms are common in the folklore of both

Iberian Iberian refers to Iberia. Most commonly Iberian refers to: *Someone or something originating in the Iberian Peninsula, namely from Spain, Portugal, Gibraltar and Andorra. The term ''Iberian'' is also used to refer to anything pertaining to the fo ...

and

Amerindian In the Americas, Indigenous peoples comprise the two continents' pre-Columbian inhabitants, as well as the ethnic groups that identify with them in the 15th century, as well as the ethnic groups that identify with the pre-Columbian population of ...

cultures. Scholars have pointed out similarities between and the of

Aztec mythology Aztec mythology is the body or collection of myths of the Aztec civilization of Central Mexico. The Aztecs were a culture living in central Mexico and much of their mythology is similar to that of other Mesoamerican cultures. According to legend ...

, as well as

Eve Eve is a figure in the Book of Genesis in the Hebrew Bible. According to the origin story, "Creation myths are symbolic stories describing how the universe and its inhabitants came to be. Creation myths develop through oral traditions and there ...

and

Lilith Lilith (; ), also spelled Lilit, Lilitu, or Lilis, is a feminine figure in Mesopotamian and Jewish mythology, theorized to be the first wife of Adam and a primordial she-demon. Lilith is cited as having been "banished" from the Garden of Eden ...

of Hebrew mythology. Author

Ben Radford Ben is frequently used as a shortened version of the given names Benjamin, Benedict, Bennett, Benson or Ebenezer, and is also a given name in its own right. Ben meaning "son of" is also found in Arabic as ''Ben'' (dialectal Arabic) or ''bin ...

's investigation into the legend of , published in ''

Mysterious New Mexico ''Mysterious New Mexico: Miracles, Magic, and Monsters in the Land of Enchantment'' is a 2014 collection of thirteen investigations conducted by author Ben Radford into cases involving claims of the paranormal occurring in or with significant co ...

'', found common elements of the story in the German folktale "Die Weiße Frau" dating from 1486. also bears a resemblance to the ancient

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

tale of the

demigod A demigod is a part-human and part-divine offspring of a deity and a human, or a human or non-human creature that is accorded divine status after death, or someone who has attained the "divine spark" (divine illumination). An immortality, immor ...

dess

Lamia Lamia (; ), in ancient Greek mythology, was a child-eating monster and, in later tradition, was regarded as a type of night-haunting spirit or "daimon". In the earliest myths, Lamia was a beautiful queen of ancient Libya who had an affair with ...

, in which

Hera In ancient Greek religion, Hera (; ; in Ionic Greek, Ionic and Homeric Greek) is the goddess of marriage, women, and family, and the protector of women during childbirth. In Greek mythology, she is queen of the twelve Olympians and Mount Oly ...

Zeus Zeus (, ) is the chief deity of the List of Greek deities, Greek pantheon. He is a sky father, sky and thunder god in ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology, who rules as king of the gods on Mount Olympus. Zeus is the child ...

's wife, learned of his affair with Lamia and killed all the children Lamia had with Zeus. Out of jealousy over the loss of her own children, Lamia kills other women's children. The Florentine Codex is an important text about the Spanish invasion of Mexico in 1519, a quote from which is, "The sixth omen was that many times a woman would be heard going along weeping and shouting. She cried out loudly at night, saying, 'Oh my children, we are about to go forever.' Sometimes she said, 'Oh my children, where am I to take you?'" While the roots of the legend appear to be pre-Hispanic, the earliest published reference to the legend is a 19th-century sonnet by Mexican poet Manuel Carpio. The poem makes no reference to infanticide, rather is identified as the ghost of a woman named Rosalia who was murdered by her husband.

Regional versions

The legend has a wide variety of details and versions. In a typical version of the legend, a beautiful woman named María marries a rich ''

ranch A ranch (from /Mexican Spanish) is an area of landscape, land, including various structures, given primarily to ranching, the practice of raising grazing livestock such as cattle and sheep. It is a subtype of farm. These terms are most often ap ...

ero /

conquistador Conquistadors (, ) or conquistadores (; ; ) were Spanish Empire, Spanish and Portuguese Empire, Portuguese colonizers who explored, traded with and colonized parts of the Americas, Africa, Oceania and Asia during the Age of Discovery. Sailing ...

'' to whom she bears two children. One day, María sees her husband with another woman and in a fit of blind rage, she drowns their children in a river, which she immediately regrets. Unable to save them and consumed by guilt, she drowns herself as well but is unable to enter the

afterlife The afterlife or life after death is a purported existence in which the essential part of an individual's Stream of consciousness (psychology), stream of consciousness or Personal identity, identity continues to exist after the death of their ...

, forced to be in

purgatory In Christianity, Purgatory (, borrowed into English language, English via Anglo-Norman language, Anglo-Norman and Old French) is a passing Intermediate state (Christianity), intermediate state after physical death for purifying or purging a soul ...

and roam this earth until she finds her children. In another version of the story, her children are

illegitimate Legitimacy, in traditional Western common law, is the status of a child born to parents who are legally married to each other, and of a child conceived before the parents obtain a legal divorce. Conversely, ''illegitimacy'', also known as ''b ...

, and she drowns them so that their father cannot take them away to be raised by his new wife. Recurring themes in variations on the myth include a white, wet dress, nocturnal wailing, and an association with water.

Mexico

The legend of is deeply rooted in Mexican popular culture. Her story is told to children to encourage them not to wander off in the dark and near bodies of

water Water is an inorganic compound with the chemical formula . It is a transparent, tasteless, odorless, and Color of water, nearly colorless chemical substance. It is the main constituent of Earth's hydrosphere and the fluids of all known liv ...

such as rivers and lakes alone. Her spirit is often evoked in artwork, such as that of Alejandro Colunga. is a yearly waterfront theatrical performance of the legend of set in the

canal Canals or artificial waterways are waterways or engineered channels built for drainage management (e.g. flood control and irrigation) or for conveyancing water transport vehicles (e.g. water taxi). They carry free, calm surface ...

s of the

Xochimilco Xochimilco (; ) is a borough () of Mexico City. The borough is centered on the formerly independent city of Xochimilco, which was established on what was the southern shore of Lake Xochimilco in the precolonial period. Today, the borough cons ...

borough of Mexico City, which was established in 1993 to coincide with the

Day of the Dead The Day of the Dead () is a holiday traditionally celebrated on November 1 and 2, though other days, such as October 31 or November 6, may be included depending on the locality. The multi-day holiday involves family and friends gathering to pa ...

. In 1930s the reference and representation of ''La Llorona'' is seen in the production of films. ''La Llorona'' is portrayed as a vengeful and evil monster in many films. The classic film ''La Venganza de la Llorona'' (1974) produced by Miguel M. Delgado is one of the many popular renditions of ''La Llorona.'' In

Chicano Chicano (masculine form) or Chicana (feminine form) is an ethnic identity for Mexican Americans that emerged from the Chicano Movement. In the 1960s, ''Chicano'' was widely reclaimed among Hispanics in the building of a movement toward politic ...

culture, the tale of ''La Llorona'' acts as a warning particularly for women on what is considered acceptable behavior within the culture. In Mexican culture ''La Llorona'' represents a vengeful lover who goes from a resentful wife to a monstrous mother who drowns her children after discovering her husband's infidelity. Chicana writers and artists redefined ''La Llorona'' based on embodied experience and the social and political pressures they faced. The rise of

Chicana feminism Chicana feminism is a sociopolitical movement, theory, and praxis that scrutinizes the historical, cultural, spiritual, educational, and economic intersections impacting Chicanas and the Chicana/o community in the United States. Chicana feminism ...

and the

Chicano movement The Chicano Movement, also referred to as El Movimiento (Spanish for "the Movement"), was a civil rights movements, social and political movement in the United States that worked to embrace a Chicano, Chicano identity and worldview that combated ...

encouraged Chicana writers and artists to reinvent their historical and cultural Mexican presence in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. ''La Llorona'' was rewritten as a strong woman who had been forced to accommodate to the colonizers ruling and had been punished for challenging traditional female roles. Chicanas related to the agony that ''La Llorona'' faced while being stripped of her identity by Spanish colonizers. ''La Llorona'' symbolizes the pain and grief and became a metaphorical representation of the challenges and struggles faced by marginalized groups.

Guatemala

According to the local legend, in

Guatemala City Guatemala City (, also known colloquially by the nickname Guate), is the Capital city, national capital and largest city of the Guatemala, Republic of Guatemala. It is also the Municipalities of Guatemala, municipal capital of the Guatemala Depa ...

lived a woman who had an affair with a lover. She became pregnant and gave birth to a child named Juan de la Cruz who she drowned so her husband would not know. The woman was condemned in the afterlife to search for her murdered son in every place where there is a pool of water. She does that by crying out for himhence her

moniker A nickname, in some circumstances also known as a sobriquet, or informally a "moniker", is an informal substitute for the proper name of a person, place, or thing, used to express affection, playfulness, contempt, or a particular character trait ...

of the Wailing Woman (). It is a popular scary legend that in one iteration or another has been told to generations of children. The terrifying cry of "Oh, my children!!" (¡Ay mis hijos!) is well known due to the story. Additionally, one peculiar detail is that when a person hears the cry from afar means that the ghost is nearby, but if the cry is heard nearby, it means the ghost is afar. Someone unlucky enough to face the specter is "won over" to the afterlife, never to be seen again. The legend is deeply rooted in Antigua Guatemala, the former capital of the Kingdom of Guatemala (current Central America and southern state of Chiapas, Mexico)

Ecuador

Throughout

Latin America Latin America is the cultural region of the Americas where Romance languages are predominantly spoken, primarily Spanish language, Spanish and Portuguese language, Portuguese. Latin America is defined according to cultural identity, not geogr ...

, there are various versions of the folktale of ''La Llorona''. The Ecuadorian version often features a woman known as either ''La Llorona de Los Ríos'' (The Crying Woman of the Rivers) or ''La Llorona de Los

Andes The Andes ( ), Andes Mountains or Andean Mountain Range (; ) are the List of longest mountain chains on Earth, longest continental mountain range in the world, forming a continuous highland along the western edge of South America. The range ...

'' (The Crying Woman of the Andes) depending on the region. In this story, she lost her lover and, in desperation, drowned her children in a river. She now cries uncontrollably and searches the riverbanks for her missing children. Many similarities exist between the traditional Mexican version of ''La Llorona'', in which many people are familiar with. Nonetheless, one of its main focuses is the environment of Ecuadorian rivers and mountains. The Ecuadorian ''La Llorona'' is known for her connection to rivers, like the

Guayas River The Guayas River (Rio Guayas) is a major river in western Ecuador. It gives its name to the Guayas Province of Ecuador. Its total length, including the Daule River, is 389 km (241 mi). The Guayas River's drainage basin is 34,500 km2 (1 ...

, where locals say they can hear her somber cries at night. The tale of ''La Llorona'' warns kids about disobedience and the importance of avoiding bodies of water and locations at night, similar in other versions around the world.

United States

In the

Southwestern United States The Southwestern United States, also known as the American Southwest or simply the Southwest, is a geographic and cultural list of regions of the United States, region of the United States that includes Arizona and New Mexico, along with adjacen ...

, the story of is told to scare children into good behavior, sometimes specifically to deter children from playing near dangerous water. Also told to them is that her cries are heard as she walks around the street or near bodies of water to scare children from wandering around, resembling the stories of ''El Cucuy''. In Chumash mythology indigenous to Southern California, is linked to the , a mythological creature with a cry similar to that of a newborn baby. It is a very popular story.

Venezuela

The tale of ''La Llorona'' is set in the

Venezuelan Llanos The Venezuelan Llanos ( Spanish: ''Llanos Venezolanos'') also simply known as Los Llanos ( English: ''the Plains'') in Venezuela, is a natural region that consists of a very large, flat central depression of approximately 243,774 km2 of exte ...

during the colonial period. ''La Llorona'' is said to be the spirit of a woman that died of sorrow after her children were killed, either by herself or by her family. Families traditionally place wooden crosses above their doors to ward off such spirits.

Spain

The tales of ''La Llorona'' are seen differently in

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

, as detailed in ''Elvira, La Llorona'' published by José Maria León y Domínguez, a Jesuit academic from Cadiz. The tale begins with a woman named Elvira who experiences a devastating life which slowly led to her transformation into the spectral figure ''La Llorona.''

Other mythologies

Eastern Europe Eastern Europe is a subregion of the Europe, European continent. As a largely ambiguous term, it has a wide range of geopolitical, geographical, ethnic, cultural and socio-economic connotations. Its eastern boundary is marked by the Ural Mountain ...

, the modern

Rusalka In Slavic folklore, the rusalka (plural: rusalki; , plural: русалки; , plural: ''rusałki'') is a female entity, often malicious toward mankind and frequently associated with water. It has counterparts in other parts of Europe, such as th ...

is a type of

water spirit A water spirit is a kind of supernatural being found in the folklore of many cultures: African Some water spirits in traditional African religion include: * Mami Wata is a transcultural pantheon of water spirits and deities of the African ...

Slavic mythology Slavic paganism, Slavic mythology, or Slavic religion refer to the Religion, religious beliefs, myths, and ritual practices of the Slavs before Christianisation of the Slavs, Christianisation, which occurred at various stages between the 8th and ...

. They come to be after a woman drowns due to suicide or murder, especially if they had an unwanted pregnancy. Then they must stay in this world for a period of time. The Greek legend of

Jason Jason ( ; ) was an ancient Greek mythological hero and leader of the Argonauts, whose quest for the Golden Fleece is featured in Greek literature. He was the son of Aeson, the rightful king of Iolcos. He was married to the sorceress Med ...

and

Medea In Greek mythology, Medea (; ; ) is the daughter of Aeëtes, King Aeëtes of Colchis. Medea is known in most stories as a sorceress, an accomplished "wiktionary:φαρμακεία, pharmakeía" (medicinal magic), and is often depicted as a high- ...

also features the motif of a woman who murders her children as an act of revenge against her husband, who has left her.

In popular culture

Film

The story of first appeared on film in 1933's ''

La Llorona (; ) is a vengeful ghost in Hispanic American folklore who is said to roam near bodies of water mourning her children whom she drowned in a jealous rage after discovering her husband was unfaithful to her. Whoever hears her crying either suffer ...

'', filmed in Mexico.

René Cardona René Cardona (October 8, 1905 – April 25, 1988) was a Mexican director, actor, producer, screenwriter, and film editor, who was prominent during part of the Golden Age of Mexican cinema. Biography René Cardona was born in Havana, Cuba, on ...

's 1960 film ''

'' was also shot in Mexico, as was the 1963 horror film ''

The Curse of the Crying Woman ''The Curse of the Crying Woman'' (Spanish: '' La maldición de la llorona'') is a 1961 Mexican horror film (released in 1963), directed by Rafael Baledón. In the film, married couple Amelia and Jaime travel to an old country house owned by Ameli ...

,'' directed by

Rafael Baledón Rafael Baledón Cárdenas (25 November 1919 – 6 May 1994) was a Mexican actor, director, screenwriter, and producer of the Golden Age of Mexican cinema. He worked in both film and television. Life Rafael Baledón was on 25 November 1919 in ...

. In a pivotal scene in the 2001 film ''

Mulholland Drive Mulholland Drive is a street and road in the eastern Santa Monica Mountains of Southern California. It is named after pioneering Los Angeles civil engineer William Mulholland. The western rural portion in Los Angeles and Ventura counties is n ...

Rebekah Del Rio Rebekah Del Rio (born 10 July 1967) is an American singer/songwriter and actress from Chula Vista, California. The San Diego Union-Tribune voted Del Rio one of the "Top 10 Singers in San Diego", after which she moved to Los Angeles in 1989 to f ...

'' plays ''La Llorona de Los Angeles,'' a mysterious singer who performs ''Llorando,'' a Spanish language version of

Crying Crying is the dropping of tears (or welling of tears in the eyes) in response to an emotional state or physical pain. Emotions that can lead to crying include sadness, anger, joy, and fear. Crying can also be caused by relief from a period ...

Roy Orbison Roy Kelton Orbison (April 23, 1936 – December 6, 1988) was an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist known for his distinctive and powerful voice, complex song structures, and dark, emotional ballads. Orbison's most successful periods were ...

. In keeping with the legend, the characters who witness this performance suffer severe consequences. The 2008 Mexican horror film '' Kilometer 31'' is inspired by the legend of . Additionally the early 2000s saw a spate of low-budget movies based on , including: * ''The River: The Legend of La Llorona'' * ''Revenge of La Llorona'' * ''The Wailer: La Llorona'' * ''The Curse of La Llorona'' is the primary antagonist in the 2007 movie ''

J-ok'el ''J-ok'el'' is a 2007 Mexico, Mexican supernatural horror film directed by Benjamin Williams. This film was Williams' debut. Plot An American man travels to a small town in Chiapas, Mexico called San Cristobal de las Casas, to help his mother wh ...

''. In the 2011 Mexican animated film '' La Leyenda de la Llorona'', she is portrayed as a more sympathetic character, whose children die in an accident rather than at their mother's hands. In the 2017

Pixar Pixar (), doing business as Pixar Animation Studios, is an American animation studio based in Emeryville, California, known for its critically and commercially successful computer-animated feature films. Pixar is a subsidiary of Walt Disney ...

film ''

Coco Coco or variants may refer to: Arts and entertainment Film * ''Coco'' (2009 film), a French comedy film * ''Coco'' (2017 film), an American animated fantasy film * '' Pokémon the Movie: Secrets of the Jungle'' (), a 2020 Japanese anime film ...

'', "

", the Mexican folk song popularized by Andres Henestrosa in 1941 is sung by

Alanna Ubach Alanna Ubach (born October 3, 1975) is an American actress. She is known for her roles as Serena McGuire in ''Legally Blonde'' (2001) and ''Legally Blonde 2'' (2003), Isabel Villalobos in ''Meet the Fockers'' (2004), Maria in '' Sister Act 2: Ba ...

in her role as Mamá Imelda, joined by Antonio Sol as the singing voice of Ernesto de la Cruz. In July 2019,

James Wan James Wan (born 26 February 1977) is an Australian filmmaker. He has primarily worked in the horror fiction, horror genre as the co-creator of the ''Saw (franchise), Saw'' and Insidious (film series), ''Insidious'' franchises and the creator of ...

Gary Dauberman Gary Dauberman is an American screenwriter and director. He is best known for writing The Conjuring Universe horror films ''Annabelle (film), Annabelle'' (2014), ''Annabelle: Creation'' (2017), ''The Nun (2018 film), The Nun'' (2018), and ''Annab ...

and Emilie Gladstone produced a film titled ''

The Curse of La Llorona ''The Curse of La Llorona'' (also known as ''The Curse of the Weeping Woman'' in some markets) is a 2019 American supernatural horror film directed by Michael Chaves, in his feature directorial debut, and written by Mikki Daughtry and Tobias ...

'' for

Warner Bros. Pictures Warner Bros. Pictures is an American film studio and distribution arm of the Warner Bros. Motion Picture Group division of Warner Bros., both of which are owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. It is headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex ...

. The film was directed by

Michael Chaves Michael Chaves (born November 3, 1978) is an American filmmaker and visual effects artist. He is best known for directing the horror films '' The Curse of La Llorona'' (2019), '' The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It'' (2021), and '' The Nun ...

and stars

Linda Cardellini Linda Edna Cardellini (born June 25, 1975) is an American actress. In television, she is known for her starring roles in the teen drama ''Freaks and Geeks'' (1999–2000), the medical drama ''ER (TV series), ER'' (2003–2009), and the thriller ...

Raymond Cruz Raymond Cruz (born September 10, 1964) is an American actor, best known for his starring role as Detective Julio Sanchez in the series ''The Closer'' and its spinoff '' Major Crimes'', as well as his recurring role as drug lord Tuco Salamanca i ...

, Patricia Velasquez and Marisol Ramirez as La Llorona. Also in 2019,

Jayro Bustamante Jayro Bustamante (; born 7 May 1977) is a Guatemalan film director and screenwriter. He directed the 2015 film '' Ixcanul'', which was selected as the Guatemalan entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 88th Academy Awards. He was named ...

directed the Guatemalan film ''

'', starring

María Mercedes Coroy María Mercedes Coroy (born September 3, 1994) is a Guatemalan actress of Kaqchikel Maya descent. She is known for her roles in ''Ixcanul'', ''La Llorona'', ''Bel Canto'', '' Malinche'', and '' Black Panther: Wakanda Forever''. Early life Cor ...

, which screened in the Contemporary World Cinema section at the

2019 Toronto International Film Festival The 44th annual Toronto International Film Festival was held from 5 to 15 September 2019. The opening gala was the documentary film '' Once Were Brothers: Robbie Robertson and The Band'', directed by Daniel Roher, and the festival closed with a ...

. '' The Legend of La Llorona'' was a film released in January 2022 and stars

Danny Trejo Danny Trejo (, ; born May 16, 1944) is an American actor. Known for his Danny Trejo filmography, large body of work as a character actor, films in which he has appeared in have grossed over $3.7 billion worldwide. A native of Los Angeles, Tr ...

Autumn Reeser Autumn Reeser (born September 21, 1980) is an American actress. She is known for her roles as Taylor Townsend on the Fox series '' The O.C.'', Lizzie Grant on HBO's '' Entourage'', Katie Andrews on ABC's '' No Ordinary Family'', and Leslie Be ...

, and

Antonio Cupo Antonio Cupo is a Canadian film and television actor. Early life Born into a family of Italian immigrants who arrived in Canada in 1968, Cupo is the youngest of three children. His father Manlio is from Palomonte, a small town in the province o ...

Theater

Mexican playwright

Josefina López Josefina López (born 1969, San Luis Potosí, Mexico) is a Chicana playwright, perhaps best known as the author of the play (and co-author of the screenplay) ''Real Women Have Curves''. López is also the Founding Artistic Director of the CASA ...

wrote ''Unconquered Spirits'', which uses the myth of as a plot device. The play premiered at

California State University, Northridge California State University, Northridge (CSUN or Cal State Northridge), is a public university in the Northridge neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, United States. With a total enrollment of 36,848 students (as of Fall 2024), it has the ...

's Little Theatre in 1995.

Literature

Nancy Farmer Nancy Farmer (born 1941) is an American writer of children's literature, children's and young adult books and science fiction. She has written three Newbery Medal, Newbery Honor books and won the U.S. National Book Award for Young People's Liter ...

's 2002

science fiction Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...

novel, '' The House of the Scorpion'' includes references to . The legend of is discussed in Jaquira Díaz's 2019 memoir, ''Ordinary Girls'': The novel ''Paola Santiago and the River of Tears'', the first part of a young adult trilogy by Tehlor Kay Mejia, is based on the legend of La Llorona. Rodolfo Anaya's novel ''

Bless Me, Ultima ''Bless Me, Ultima'' is a coming-of-age novel by Rudolfo Anaya centering on Antonio Márez y Luna and his mentorship under his '' curandera'' and protector, Ultima. It has become the most widely read and critically acclaimed novel in the New Mexi ...

'' references La Llorona, describing her as a spirit of the river without mentioning her origins. "Advice from La Llorona" by Deborah A. Miranda is a poem exploring grief and loss. ''In Summer of the Mariposas'', by Guadalupe Garcia McCall, she serves as a mentor to the Garza Sisters. ''The Weeping Woman: Encounters with La Llorona'' by Edward Garcia Kraul and Judith Beatty, is a valuable resource that brings together of encounters and retellings of ''La Llorona'' with diverse perspectives and different region

Bess Lomax Hawes, an American folklorist, published his article in 1968, ''La Llorona in Juvenile Hall'' containing details of the hauntings in California's juvenile detention facility with sightings of a “weeping woman.�

Gloria Anzaldua's book Borderlands/La Frontera: The New Mestiza, ''Borderlands/La Frontera'' references La Llorona as one of the three mothers of Chicanas. ''The Figure of the Monster in Global Theatre: Further Readings on the Aesthetics of Disqualification'', is a valuable resource that gives insight on international perspectives on "monster" figures in writing. Makes many references to ''La Llorona'' and explores ''La Llorona'' within

culture.

Music

" is a Mexican folk song popularized by Andres Henestrosa in 1941. It has since been covered by various musicians, including

Chavela Vargas Chavela Vargas (; born María Isabel Anita Carmen de Jesús Vargas Lizano; 17 April 1919 – 5 August 2012) was a Costa Rican-born Mexican singer. She gained widespread recognition for her distinctive interpretations of Mexican rancheras. Howev ...

Joan Baez Joan Chandos Baez (, ; born January 9, 1941) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and activist. Her contemporary folk music often includes songs of protest and social justice. Baez has performed publicly for over 60 years, releasing mo ...

Lila Downs Ana Lila Downs Sánchez (born 9 September 1968 * *) is a Mexican singer-songwriter. She performs her own compositions and the works of others in multiple genres, as well as tapping into Mexican traditional and popular music. She also incorporat ...

, and

Rosalía Rosalia Vila Tobella (born 25 September 1992), known mononymously as Rosalía (, ), is a Spanish Pop music, pop and flamenco singer. She has been described as an "atypical pop star" due to her genre-bending musical styles. After being enthral ...

. North American singer-songwriter

Lhasa de Sela Lhasa de Sela (September 27, 1972 – January 1, 2010), also known by the mononym Lhasa, was an American-Canadian singer-songwriter who was raised in Mexico and the United States and divided her adult life between Canada and France. Her first a ...

's debut album ''

'' (1997) explored the dark mysteries of Latin folklore. She combined a variety of musical genres including

klezmer Klezmer ( or ) is an instrumental musical tradition of the Ashkenazi Jews of Central and Eastern Europe. The essential elements of the tradition include dance tunes, ritual melodies, and virtuosic improvisations played for listening; these wou ...

gypsy jazz Gypsy jazz (also known as sinti jazz, gypsy swing, jazz manouche or hot club-style jazz) is a musical idiom inspired by the Romani people, Romani jazz guitarist Django Reinhardt, Jean "Django" Reinhardt (1910–1953), in conjunction with the Fr ...

and Mexican folk music, all in the Spanish language. The album was certified Platinum in Canada, and it earned her a Canadian

Juno Award The Juno Awards (stylized as JUNOS), or simply known as the Junos, are awards presented by Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, the Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences to recognize outstanding achievements in Canada's mu ...

for Best Global Artist in 1998. Manic Hispanic, a rock band from Los Angeles, California, have a song titled "She Turned Into Llorona" on their 2003 album ''Mijo Goes To Jr. College''. is the name of a fictional punk band in the alternative comic book '' Love and Rockets''. They are known for their song "Two Faces Have I", the title of which is generally misheard as "Do Vases Have Eyes(?)".

Television

is an antagonist in the TV series ''

Supernatural Supernatural phenomena or entities are those beyond the Scientific law, laws of nature. The term is derived from Medieval Latin , from Latin 'above, beyond, outside of' + 'nature'. Although the corollary term "nature" has had multiple meanin ...

'', portrayed by Sarah Shahi in the

pilot episode A television pilot (also known as a pilot or a pilot episode and sometimes marketed as a tele-movie) in United Kingdom and United States television, is a standalone episode of a television series that is used to sell a show to a television netwo ...

and by Shanae Tomasevich in "Moriah" and

season 15 A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's axial tilt, tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperat ...

. is an antagonist in a 2012 second-season episode of the TV series ''

Grimm Grimm may refer to: People * Grimm (surname) * Brothers Grimm, German linguists ** Jacob Grimm (1785–1863), German philologist, jurist and mythologist ** Wilhelm Grimm (1786–1859), German author, the younger of the Brothers Grimm * Christia ...

''. appears in the ''

Victor and Valentino ''Victor and Valentino'' is an American animated television series created by Diego Molano for Cartoon Network. It was produced by Cartoon Network Studios. The series follows the titular duo, two half-brothers staying with their grandmother i ...

'' episode "The Lonely Haunts 3: La Llorona" voiced by

Vanessa Marshall Vanessa Marshall is an American voice actress who is most active in films, cartoons and video games. Career Prior to her career as a voice actor, Marshall attended Princeton University, majoring in English. She then attended graduate school at ...

. Contrary to the usual depictions, this version of La Llorona is good and simply lonely and claims to have had twenty kids who had all grown up and left her; implying that she suffers from

Empty nest syndrome Empty nest syndrome is a feeling of grief and loneliness parents may feel when their children move out of the family home, such as to live on their own or to pursue a higher education. It is not a clinical condition. Since the departure of their ...

. appears in the ''

Craig of the Creek ''Craig of the Creek'' is an American animated television series created by Matt Burnett and Ben Levin for Cartoon Network. The show's pilot episode debuted directly on the TV on December 1, 2017. The series premiered online on February 19, 201 ...

'' episode "The Legend of the Library" voiced by Carla Tassara. Craig and the Stump Kids visit their friend Stacks at the local library to get out of the rain. When the power goes out and their fellow Creek Kids begin disappearing, Stacks believes that La Llorona is to blame. In the end, it is revealed that the "ghost" was actually Lorraine, the substitute librarian who is very serious about her job. She makes the kids promise to take good care of the library along with a warning, showing a ghostly face at the same time. Whether or not Lorraine was in fact La Llorona or the face was imagined is left ambiguous. appears in the '' Riverdale'' episode "Chapter 97: Ghost Stories". The characters tell ghost stories about people related to them or the town that had died. La Llorona is one. She haunts Sweetwater River and she also manages to possess Toni and take Betty's unborn child away. is portrayed by drag queen,

Mirage A mirage is a naturally-occurring optical phenomenon in which light rays bend via refraction to produce a displaced image of distant objects or the sky. The word comes to English via the French ''(se) mirer'', from the Latin ''mirari'', mean ...

, during the 3rd episode of

Season 16 A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperate and polar ...

of ''

Rupaul's Drag Race ''RuPaul's Drag Race'' is an American reality competition television series, the first in the Drag Race (franchise), ''Drag Race'' franchise, produced by World of Wonder (company), World of Wonder for Logo TV (season 1–8), WOW Presents Plus, ...

''. During this episode the queens had to show three different looks in the runway and she portrayed La Llorana in the second theme named "Significant Mother" where they needed to show an outfit based on an iconic mother.

Video games

appears as a collectible demon in

Atlus is a Japanese video game developer, video game publisher, publisher, Arcade game, arcade manufacturer and distribution company based in Tokyo. A subsidiary of Sega, the company is known for the ''Megami Tensei'', ''Persona (series), Persona'' ...

's ''

Shin Megami Tensei ''Megami Tensei'', marketed internationally as ''Shin Megami Tensei'' (formerly ''Revelations''), is a Japanese media franchise created by Aya Nishitani, Kouji Okada, Kouji "Cozy" Okada, Ginichiro Suzuki, and Kazunari Suzuki. Primarily developed ...

'' series of role-playing games, making her first appearance in the 1997 installment, '' Devil Summoner: Soul Hackers'' for the

Sega Saturn The is a home video game console developed by Sega and released on November 22, 1994, in Japan, May 11, 1995, in North America, and July 8, 1995, in Europe. Part of the fifth generation of video game consoles, it is the successor to the succes ...

References

Bibliography

* Perez, Domino Renee. (2008). ''There Was a Woman: La Llorona from Folklore to Popular Culture.'' Austin: U of Texas Press. . * Mathews, Holly F. 1992. The directive force of morality tales in a Mexican community. In ''Human motives and cultural models'', edited by R.G.D'Andrade and C. Strauss, 127–162. New York: Cambridge University Press. * * Ray John de Aragon, ''The Legend of La Llorona'', Sunstone Press, 2006. . * Belinda Vasquez Garcia, ''The Witch Narratives Reincarnation'', Magic Prose Publishing, 2012. * {{DEFAULTSORT:Llorona, La Female demons Female ghosts Fictional female murderers of children Filicide in mythology Legendary Mexican people Mexican female murderers Mexican ghosts Mexican murderers of children North American demons Supernatural legends