Although the Parachicos are the best known and recognized of the dancers, there are actually three types. All refer back to a story that takes place in the colonial era. According to legend, Doña María de Angula was a rich Spanish woman who traveled in search of a cure for a mysterious paralytic illness suffered by her son, which no doctor could cure. When she arrived here, she was directed to a curandero, or local healer called a namandiyuguá. After examining the boy, he instructed his mother to bathe him in the waters of a small lake called Cumbujuya, after which he was miraculously cured. To distract and amuse the boy, a local group disguised themselves as Spaniards with masks and began to dance showing “para el chico” which means “for the boy.” According to one version of the story, this is what cured the child. The tradition of these dancers began in 1711, leading the Spanish to call the event “para el chico”, which eventually evolved into Parachicos.