La Llorona – The Weeping Woman This week, we explore the Weeping Woman – La Llorona, who wanders along rivers and lakes throughout Mexico, the American Southwest, and Latin America, forever crying out for her lost children with her signature wail of “Ay, mis hijos!” We trace the possible origins of this vengeful ghost back to the 1500s in Mexico City, examining connections to Aztec mythology including the Hungry Woman and the goddess Cihuacoatl, before diving into the most common version of the tale about a beautiful peasant woman named Maria who married a wealthy nobleman, had two children, but was ultimately abandoned for a younger woman—leading her to drown her children in a jealous rage and then take her own life in the same river. We discuss how La Llorona serves multiple purposes across different age groups: teaching young children not to misbehave or cry excessively, warning teenagers about staying out past curfew and the dangers of wandering at night, and representing deeper ...