Our Lady of the Incarnation

Patrona de Gáldar (Gran Canaria)

In Gáldar, an old court of the Guanche kings of Gran Canaria, we venerate Our Lady of the Incarnation, patron of the city, in one of the oldest parishes on the island.

Origin and history

Gáldar was one of the main aboriginal nuclei of Gran Canaria - the court of the Guanartemes - and, after the Spanish conquest of 1483, it was set up as an important ecclesiastical center with the foundation of the parish of Santiago, one of the oldest on the island. In his parent church, Our Lady of the Incarnation is venerated, deep rooted in the Galdense religiosity; the image that presides over his devotion is linked to the great Canarian sculptor José Luján Pérez (about 1799), probable attribution.

She is venerated as patron of Gáldar, next to James the Apostle. His devotion is especially expressed in the patron parties and in the "Bajada," a processional act with intense popular participation, shaping himself as one of the city's identity references, in continuity with his ancient religious centrality.

Own liturgical date and canonical coronation: they are not safely recorded in the sources.