Amorfinos as a cultural expression and their contribution to the transmission of identity in the Portoviejo canton

Abstract

This scientific article comprehensively analyzes the validity, social functions, and intergenerational transmission mechanisms of amorfinos as an expression of Intangible Cultural Heritage in the rural communities of the Portoviejo canton, province of Manabí. The amorfino, traditionally conceived as an oral poetic and musical manifestation, constitutes an articulating axis of the Montubio people's identity. However, accelerated urbanization processes, global socioeconomic transformations, and the fragmentation of traditional festive environments have generated a notable deceleration in its transfer to new generations. Under a qualitative, descriptive-ethnographic approach, the research implemented field immersion methods, applying participant observation sheets and a corpus of 25 in-depth interviews directed at historical practitioners (amorfineros), community leaders, and cultural managers from the rural parishes of Crucita, Riochico, and Alajuela. The results reveal that, although the amorfino undergoes hybridization processes and a pragmatic displacement in youth everyday life, it subsists as a powerful semiotic device of identity inscription within ritualized settings. Furthermore, a marked disconnection is found between local public policies and the demands of knowledge bearers, who reject extractivist models of visual consumption and demand a valuation based on pedagogical-community co-management. It is concluded that the amorfino possesses a high endogenous potential to structure socio-educational and sustainable cultural tourism itineraries, provided that a generational replacement sustained by the revaluation of the social memory of Montubio orality is guaranteed.