From Cangaço to “New Cangaço”: A Comparative Analysis between Historical Social Banditry and Its Contemporary Manifestations in Northeastern Brazil

Abstract

This article analyzes the banditry phenomenon in Northeastern Brazil across two distinct historical periods: the traditional cangaço (late 19 th century until the first decades of the 20 th century) and the so-called “new cangaço” (late 20 th century). The central research problem questions whether the “new cangaço” represents a modern evolution of social banditry, maintaining a direct connection with traditional cangaço, or if it constitutes a fundamentally distinct phenomenon that merely shares similar nomenclature. Using the deductive method, the investigation starts from a broad understanding of banditry to examine its specific manifestations in the Northeastern context. The methodology combines bibliographic-documentary research, historical-contextual analysis, and comparative analysis between the two phenomena. The study considers geographical, climatic, and socioeconomic aspects of the Northeast region, emphasizing the drought polygon, an area historically associated with cangaço. The investigation examines economic, political, and social factors that influenced the emergence and development of both phenomena, seeking to identify patterns, similarities, and differences that might indicate a possible historical continuity or rupture between them.