The Running of the Bulls in Pamplona is one of the first events to take place during the week long festivities of the Festival of Saint Fermin in Spain.
The event essentially covers a distance of approximately 800 meters through the narrow cobblestone backstreet and alleys and finishes at the stadium referred to as the Plaza del Toros (which translates as the 'Spanish bullring'). The origin of the event is quite simple in that when the bulls where raised by the various breeders in and around the country-side of Pamplona, they breeders would use the streets of Pamplona to transport their bulls from their various farms to the stadium, or more specifically, the field located near the bullring.
Common folklore suggests that the original participants who ran with the bulls were peasants who during the festival were so in awe of the bulls that they ran into the streets and joined the herd being transported as though they were in a state of trance. It goes without saying that many have been fatally gored and trampled during the festivities but the original reason as to why these individual first began the practice of joining the herd is quite unclear. Some suggest the thrill of the chase whilst others suggest that the practice of joining the herd was a method to test an individual’s bravery.
