Ethnographic atlas of Cuba

Palmiche brooms: Brooms made with clusters of palm tree twigs once the fruit is removed.

Peasant lute: Composite string instrument. The string bearer is a handle added as a neck to a sound box with a round or rosetta hole or two openings in the shape of Fs. The sound box may be pear shaped (with a curved contour) or pointed (with an angle to each side of the arm). It generally has twelve strings tuned in pairs, but some with eighteen strings have been found, tuned in six orders. It is played with a plectrum.

Paila: Instrument formed by two cylindrical drums, each with a drumhead, with different tones, surrounded by a ring. They have a stretching system with keys and are struck with two drumsticks. Both drums are generally joined in a common structure.

Palangre: Art of depth fishing wich consist of a long and thick string named madre (mother) from which; by intervals, hang other branches with hooks in their sides. They have some weight to cast anchor in it, in places of great depth where nets can not be used for fishing.

Palero: Officiant in Palo Monte.

Palma barrigona (Pot bellied palm tree): Palm (Colpothrinax wrightii, Becc) from 8 to 15 m high. The center of its trunk is significantly widened, while its upper and lower ends are thin. It frequently occurs in sandy savannas in the westernmost part of Cuba, where it sometimes forms colonies. Its leaves are used for thatching. The upper part of the trunk is used for columns and pounding mortar handles; from the wide part in the center coffee and rice pounding mortars, water deposits, flower pots and other things are made. The leaves are used for brooms.

Palma cana: Palm (Seval Florida, Becc.) reaching 7 m. high. It occurs in low sandy savannas. Its fruit is used to feed swine, its leaves for thatching and the trunk for posts and columns.

Palmiche: Fruit of the royal palm tree (Roystonea regia). It is a round grain the size of a pea, green first and red when ripe. The bunch skeleton is used as a broom when the grains fall.

Palo: Main dance in palero worshipping. Forceful undulating movements of the chest, forwards and backwards, followed by sudden arm movements, characterize it.

Palo Monte: Cuban religion, also named regla de palo or regla conga, that integrates practices from the Bantu area (with Bacongo prevalence) in its magical ideas. It worships the forces of Nature (whether animals, plants or minerals) symbolically concentrated in a vessel (nganga). As main elements it includes human bones whose vital energy or spirit becomes the protector of the prenda and "works" for its owner. A complex system of graphic signs with a magic purpose is included in its rites. In its temples, palo monte also uses santería elements, Catholic images and spiritualist components, according to the individual characteristics of each practitioner. It has an initiation process, consultations with various divining methods and a rich repertoire of religious songs, dances and forms of playing. Together with a ritual language with words from several Bantu languages (Lari, Monokotuba, Lingala, Kiswahili), it uses archaic Spanish forms from the colonial period. Its practitioners are considered Cuban.

Palo mumbona: Idiophone made of wood that was used by Africans from the Congo Mumbona nation, members of the Havana cabildo called "Nuestra Señora de Regla". This single xylo clefted drum was also called "Muñequito Mumbona" because it had an idol or figure on its upper part personifying the spirit of the drum. It was formed by a straight and hollowed cedar stick, some 10 cm in diameter and five feet high, and played with two drumsticks. The trunk was also struck. It was played together with two other single membrane nailed hide drums.

Paloma (La) (The Dove): Lay dance considered a variation of the son montuno because of some nuances in its music and movements.

Pandonga: Bag hoisted with a chord, used to catch crustaceans. It has two big rings, one in the bottom and another one in the mouth. The first rises together with the lateral walls when hoisted.

Paño (Cloth): Net with large mesh used to capture Chelonia.

Papa Legba: 1. Ritual name given by voodoo practitioners in Cuba to Legba, the messenger of the gods among the Benin Fon. It represents hazard, good or bad luck, hope. In Benin, Haiti, the Dominican Republic and Cuba, it is one of the most worshipped gods and has several anthropomorphic representations, music forms and dances. // 2. Dance to this loa in the radá cult. It opens the path to the rest of the deities in voodoo ceremonies. It is performed by a soloist and has marked movements of shoulders and trunk, as well as contractions and expansions of the chest. All these movements are intended to achieve religious ecstasy.

Papalote (Kite): Variation of the son, very popular during the second half of the 19th century. A couple mimics the flying of a kite, embodied by the woman, while the man is the one who holds the chords. At times women wear kites tied to their shoulders in the front and the back of their dresses. The dance becomes a game of coordinated movements.

Papelón: Variation of the son montuno in Holguín and Las Tunas. A man dances with a paper hanging from his trouser. Several women run after him trying to burn the paper with a candle or an oil lamp while making different choreographies.

Paracaidas (Parachute): Variation of the son montuno found in the region of Manzanillo, Granma province.

Paragüita: Woody climbing tree (Homskioldia sanguinea, Retz) reaching 10 to 20 feet.

Parranda: A festivity with many elements similar to those of the Carnival, mostly held in the central part of the island. They were first held in Remedios and it is in that town that they still have the greatest force. Their original purpose was to motivate the parishioners to attend Midnight Mass on December 25th. It became a sort of competition in which the population divided into two groups and contested in the ornamentation of the square, the changüí parade, the floats, the pyrotechnics, the music and other things. This competition is the characteristic element of the parrandas and one of the elements distinguishing it from the Carnivals. The parranda campesina is a rural celebration whose only element in common with the parranda is the existence of two opposite groups or bands competing in various games.

Parranda (punto de): Another variation of the punto fijo. It is syncopated and violins are used more for rhythm than for melody. The singers' voice is nasal and high. It is performed with instruments. There is a chorus with extemporizers. This brings to mind the 19th century description of the groups in whose center zapateo was danced. This style is still found in Sancti Spiritus and Ciego de Avila. In Majagua, Ciego de Avila, zapateo is still danced accompanied by punto.

Pasacalles: Song accompanied by an instrumental group with a rhythm similar to that of the conga. It is heard in Carnivals and other popular celebrations.

Paterica: Small wooden ladle used to form the edges of cassava bread, turn it and remove it from the fire when ready.

Penca: Leaves of various types of palms used in rural constructions, especially for roofing and thatching. They are also used in basket weaving.

Penol: Deep sea fishing gear formed by a steel or iron wire tied horizontally in the center.

Perico ripiado (El): Variation of the son danced in peasant celebrations of the Red and Blue Bands in Majagua, Ciego de Avila province.

Pericón: Variation of the son montuno found in peasant celebrations in Majagua. Partners dance individually, women flirting with the pericón or fan.

Persian Embroidery: Machine embroidery widely used in children garments. It is difficult to make, since the sewing machine must have seven different colors of thread that make gauzes filling the drawing.

Pesquero: Construction in the sea bottom for fish hatching.

Piclot: Aerophone. Small wooden instrument used in musical groups of immigrants from the English-speaking West Indies.

Pincharra: Fishing instrument made up of a wooden handle, with two wooden teeth that enter into sponges.

Pincho (with three teeth): Piece of plumb tied to a rope on one of its ends.

Piola (house line): Cord with wire netting tied to a stone, as a lead weight with two hooks.

Piquete de conga política (Political conga orchestra): After 1908, in the former provinces of Las Villas and Oriente, Cuban politicians had two congas played in their demonstrations and rallies. The Liberals began the tradition with a group in Las Villas called "La Chambelona" (The Lollypop), while the Conservatives called theirs "La Conga". These street orchestras, also called piquetes, included a cornet, some drums, other very diverse percussion instruments and some instruments that were custom made. The Liberals' Chambelona revived an old chant, while the Santiago comparsa adapted a conga.

Pisón: Instrument to press cassava (Manihot esculenta) flour to make cassava bread more compact.

Plan Turquino: Special program implemented in the mountain areas that included economic and social development and an improvement in the peasant's living standards.

Poblado rural (Rural town): Category used in the census documents in force to define concentrated rural settlements from 200 to 1999 inhabitants. These towns are not only used for living purposes, but they perform various economic, commercial, social, cultural and service functions. The occupational structure of its inhabitants is often heterogeneous. The location of buildings in them is more regular and dense than in other rural settlements.

Polka: One of the hall dances that entered in Cuba in the 19th century, a period when although minuets, lancers, rigadoons and other dances were performed, Cuban dances largely prevailed. Polkas, waltzes and mazurkas began to leave behind their complicated figures and introduced the dance of independent partners with forceful jumps and turns, an expression of the dancers' gaiety. Polkas became very popular in Cuba, especially in rural areas, where they were still danced in the first decades of the 20th century. Today they are still artistically performed by some groups of Haitian, Cayman and Canarian descent in various regions in the country.

Pollito: A chord with two hooks joined by their canes, artificial feather bait, dragged by a boat to capture shark (Squealiformes).

Premiere: Name of the first drum in the tumba francesa.

Pueblo (Town): Category used to define concentrated settlements in the colonial period. They were the most important and larger ones after cities and villas. They were rather heterogeneous. Small towns had only some dozens inhabitants while larger ones became the heads of their jurisdictions. Of the towns appearing in the 1862 census, 66.7 per cent had between 200 and 999 inhabitants. The largest ones had various economic, commercial and service facilities. Today the term is used to identify urban localities.

Puerco: Name commonly given in Cuba to swine. Macho and cochino are terms also used.

Punto cubano or punto guajiro: Musical genre composed by the tonada (the melodic line) and the décima (the lyrics). It often has musical accompaniment, although it may be only sung.

Precept solemn dates: Catholic festivities not devoted to the patron saints. They are subdivided into festivities to the Lord, the Virgin and the Saints. Festivities as widely extended as Christmas Eve, Christmas and New Year's Eve, Epiphany, Holy Week, Cross-Altar, Promise Altar, and those to various virgins and saints are among them. They are the most numerous of the Catholic festivities. Their religious program is wider than that of the patron's saints.