Mérida, Yuc. México "At the same time as the start of the exportation of cattle products and subproducts, and the social progress of the Mestizo, a fusion of ethnic elements was generated, resulting in the origin of new Mestizo musical sounds which reached their peak in the middle of the 18th C. This great blend of ethnic elements included the adoption of other musical cultures, resulting in the origin of the vaquerías, a festival at which the cattle branding and the counting of the cattle in the haciendas and ranches were celebrated. The women were called “vaqueras,” and they wore the same hats as the men who were called “vaqueros”; therefore the fiesta was called the “vaquería”. After the branding of the cattle, the women saw to their guests, and then they danced to old Maya songs influenced by the music of Spain. The master of ceremonies formed the group into two lines: one of men and the other of women, and upon the signal of his handkerchief the dance was begun. The inhabitants of the hacienda were in party mode, and all other activities came to a halt during the vaquería! Today, the vaquería consists of three celebrations: it begins with a mass, then a bullfight, and it ends with the dance, during which, with their famous “jaranas”, the Yucatecans display their great ingenuity and joy." yucatantoday.com/yucatecan-traditions-vaquer-and-jarana/?...