Legend of Gara and Jonay
Legends are a very important part of Canarian culture. They certainly feed the beliefs and greatly guide some traditions on the islands.
The legend of Gara and jonay is one of the famous stories on the islands, which mixes romance and death and as if that were not enough, gives its name to one of the main parks on the island of La Gomera.
Below you will learn about the legend of Gara and Jonay and everything that surrounds this story of romance and drama.
Origin of the legend
Before we delve into this mysterious and profound love story, we want to mention the controversial origin of the story. And although it is part of the culture of the island, the reality is that it is not known very exactly where it comes from.
The legend of Gara and Jonay is a story that marks the culture of the island of La Gomera, one of the most important in the archipelago in the cultural and folkloric sense.
It is a story where Guanches beliefs are the protagonists and that is undoubtedly influenced by the Western currents of the eighteenth and nineteenth century where impossible loves were very common in the legends of the time.
It is said that there are several versions of this story, in fact two of them are the most famous and although they coincide with each other in their dramatic outcome, the origin is different between them.
The most famous version is that of the prince of the island of Tenerife who falls madly in love with the princess of La Gomera called Gara, and who when rejected lashes out at her. However, she looks for him and when she escapes, after being persecuted they decide to commit suicide. We will study it in detail later.
A rather curious point in this legend, in addition to its uncertain and controversial origin is that none of the known versions have a historical and ethnographic basis strong enough to know which is the original.
Many of the sources found are literary versions of the story that is popularly told by the Gomeros since the time of the Guanches. It is usually attributed a pre-Hispanic origin, but the curious thing about this is that the first writings found, all date back to hispanic times.
Another important and controversial point of this legend is its meaning. The name of the mountain of Garajonay is attributed to this legend, since the lovers, according to history, climbed this mountain when they fled and there they committed suicide at the top. However, when studying the meaning of the name "Garajonay" in the aboriginal language, its translation is "roque alto", having nothing to do with the story.
In this sense, the oldest version and therefore one of the most taken into account is the one written by Francisco Pedro Motes de Ocoa y García, a chronicler of Puerto de La Cruz, which was published in 1924 in the newspaper Gaceta de Tenerife under the pseudonym of Barón de Imobach.
Today, the most recent versions add the contribution of Gomeran informants who by tradition have known the history for a long time and as an oral tradition of their ancestors. Among these versions are those of José Manuel García y García de la Torre, Manuel Mora Morales and Sabas Martín, who made their writings available to the general public.
Currently it is an important story for both Gomeros and tenerife, since the story of the two lovers includes both islands, their natural elements and their traditions.
The legend of gara and jonay
As we mentioned before, the legend of Gara and Jonay has different versions, but the most famous is the one that includes the Guanche of the island of Tenerife and the Princess of La Gomera. We want to tell you about it with luxuries of details and with its beautiful cultural context included.
The story takes place in the aboriginal context of the island of La Gomera, where for the maidens, being married by a brave and important prince of their tribe was the most cherished dream.
Princess Gara, like a normal young woman, looked forward to knowing who would be that love with whom she would form a family. Therefore, he took advantage of the ceremony of the Beñesmén in which the maidens came to see their reflection in the waters of the jets of Epina and these devalued their loving future.
When Gara approached, the waters became murky, which saddened the princess as this meant heartbreak and misfortune. This was confirmed by the wise Geiran who told him: "Those who are to happen, will happen. Gara flees from the fire or it will consume you."
Saddened, Gara returned home. That same night a young Guanche (from Tenerife) who was accompanied by several menceyes or Guanches princes. Upon arrival, he crossed paths with Princess Gara and they were both deeply in love.
The young Guanche pretended to the princess, but she could not access his courtship, because it was a dishonor to cross with a Guanche. Jonay's father decided to take him away so that this would not happen, but the young man escaped again from Tenerife this time alone.
He decided to tie animal guts to stay afloat and swim to his beloved. When Princess Gara arrived, she rejected him again and he was enraged and beat her.
A servant witnessed this scene and accused the young man, who was persecuted and imprisoned. Feeling guilty of having imprisoned her beloved and following his loving impulse, the princess went to find Jonay in jail to flee together.
Both decided to go to the top of cedar, the highest mountain in La Gomera. However, when they arrived they realized that they had been discovered and a crowd came after them to separate them forever.
In desperation, they decided that neither wanted to live if it was not close to the other, so they took a sharp wooden stake on both sides and placed it between their breasts. They hugged tightly and this last hug ended their lives forever.
Since then this mountain is known as Garajonay, in honor of both lovers.
Another of the most famous versions says that the young Jonay was not Guanche, but was the son of Ahogal, brother-in-law of Princess Gara, who courted the princess in secret and she fell in love with him, but could not be with him because he would dishonor the family.
Young Jonay disguised himself as a warrior to ask the court for the princess's hand but the princess rejected him without knowing that it was him. Enraged he beat her and was imprisoned. But when he discovered his identity, the princess looked for him to flee.
The outcome of this story is similar, since when they were cornered in the bush, they decided to commit suicide with a sharp cedar rod.
La Gomera National Park named after him
Today the Garajonay National Park bears this name in allusion to this story of aboriginal origin. This is one of the most important National Parks in La Gomera and the entire archipelago.
It is a protected natural area and World Heritage Site and one of the most visited tourist sites on the island, since it occupies 10% of its surface. If you want to remember the context of this story, you can visit this park where you will find a sculpture made of cedar wood in honor of lovers Gara and Jonay.