Cuba will be the guest country at the 2015 the International Festival of Maya Culture, officials announced this weekend.
This fourth edition of the wide-ranging cultural festival also has Yucatán’s neighboring Quintana Roo as guest state.
FICMaya 2015 will be held in various locations Oct. 16-25.
The governor of the host state of Yucatán, Rolando Zapata, said the FICMaya is already an important global meeting for visitors from around the world learn more about the original culture of the Mayab.
The Mayab was the territory chosen for the development of the Maya civilization, including part of Guatemala, western Honduras and Belize, and Mexico’s states of Yucatán, Quintana Roo, Campeche and Chiapas and Tabasco, in Mexico.
The festival is a combined effort by the state of Yucatán and the National Council for Culture and the Arts (Conaculta) to promote Maya culture in Mexico and around the world. The festival was first held in 2012 to coincide with the new era in the Maya calendar.
With 400 events on the calendar, the gathering will highlight theater and arts while facilitating dialogue, debate, exchange ideas and reflections relating to the culture. There will be round tables and academic panels where various issues will be discussed among delegates from 35 countries that include the United States, Slovenia, Argentina, Australia, Russia and Holland.
Singer Armando Manzanero, who is of Maya descent, will be given a gold medal for his cultural contributions.
This year, FICMaya will explore the theme “Science in time, the landscape and architecture of the Mayab.”
Cuba’s Deputy Culture Minister, Fernando Rojas, said the participation of the island is a sign of brotherhood between the Mexican and Cuban peoples, especially those of Yucatán.
