Santa Anica Festival

Tradition has it that, in the past, many of the people who lived on the farmsteads in Linares de Mora were unable to attend the patron saint festivities in July, since those dates coincided with harvest time. Work in the fields was then a vital and demanding task that kept families busy for much of the summer and made it very difficult to travel to town to participate in the festivities.

For this reason, a later celebration was established—once the most important agricultural tasks had been completed—so that the farmhands and their families could gather and enjoy the festivities as well. Thus was born the tradition of Santa Anica, a celebration that allowed those who had remained at the farmhouses during the harvest to reunite.

Over time, Santa Anica became a festival in its own right and has evolved alongside the life of the municipality. Today, it is primarily a festival for summer visitors, many of whom are descendants of families from Linares de Mora who return to the village during the summer. It is a special occasion to reunite with family and friends, spend a few days together, and bid farewell to summer before returning to their usual places of residence.

During the last weekend of August, Linares de Mora is once again filled with a festive atmosphere. Street festivals, bull runs, music, and various traditional activities fill the town’s streets and squares, creating an atmosphere of celebration and togetherness. These are particularly lively days, enjoyed by both permanent residents and those who return to the village to celebrate Santa Anica.

Thus, although the festival has evolved over the generations, it keeps alive the connection to its origins in the farmsteads and to that ancient need to celebrate once the harvest was complete. What began as a celebration for farmhands has evolved into a gathering for the entire community—and especially for summer visitors who maintain roots and memories tied tLinares de Mora

Beyond its festive nature, Santa Anica preserves the memory of a way of life in which the calendar was marked by the work of the fields. Today, amid bullfights, street festivals, music, family gatherings, and get-togethers with friends, the festival remains an important part of “Linares de Mora’s” identity and an opportunity to keep alive the memory of those who made this tradition possible.