Carnaval de Negros y Blancos 2026 | Living History, Identity, and Memory on Parade in Pasto

The Carnival of Blacks and Whites 2026 is not just a celebration—it is living history in motion.
Every January, Pasto becomes an open archive where the past, collective memory, and the identity of a people parade through art, color, and symbolism.

This carnival was born during the colonial era, when Indigenous Andean communities, enslaved Africans, and Spaniards shared a land shaped by inequality. Over time, that history evolved into a collective ritual of equality: the Day of Blacks, the Day of Whites, and a celebration where hierarchies disappear and the people take center stage.

In the 2026 edition, the monumental floats speak once again.
Some portray Andean myths that tell the sacred relationship between humans and nature; others reinterpret stories of resistance, ancestral memory, and social critique. Certain floats recall slavery—not through silent pain, but through reclaimed dignity—while others remind us that identity is not passively inherited, but actively defended and celebrated.

Here, art does not decorate—it communicates.
Every figure, every mask, and every parade tells a story rarely found in textbooks, yet deeply alive in the collective memory of Nariño and Colombia.

That is why the Carnival of Blacks and Whites is not simply watched.
It is understood as a historical act.
It is honored as cultural heritage.
And it is lived as identity.

📍 Pasto, Colombia
🎭 Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity
📆 January 2026