Cueva de Salamanca (Salamanca Cave), Salamanca

The Cueva de Salamanca (Salamanca Cave) is a legendary enclave in the city of Salamanca where, according to popular tradition, the Devil taught classes. Said cave corresponds to what was the crypt of the now non-existent church of San Cebrián .

Cervantes gave a burlesque treatment to the legend in his interlude La cueva de Salamanca. The tradition moved to Latin America, in several of whose countries the dens where witches and demons hold their covens are called salamancas.

Due to semantic proximity and paronomasia, the name of Salamanca, a city considered by obscurantism as the main headquarters of necromantic activities, was associated with the words salamander (amphibian considered a fire elemental) and mantic (divination), giving rise to terms such as salamantiga and salamantic. The name of the reptile popularly called gecko comes from the same family of words.