The Salgueiro favela community is renowned across Brazil for its highly popular and successful samba school. It is situated on the Morro da Tijuca and has just over 3,000 residents. It was first occupied in the early 20th Century with the arrival of former slaves and immigrants from the Northeast.

It was given its name in the 1920s in honor of the Portuguese merchant, Domingos Alves Salgueiro, who owned a cannery in Tijuca and 30 residences in the community. The favela grew exponentially in the 1940s as a result of immigration from other states.

These disparate social groups and peoples brought with them a varied array of rituals, beliefs and practices which have since become embedded constituents of the cultural fabric of the community. Caxambu, a dance which originates from the interior of Minas Gerais gained great popularity in the community and the spiritual and ritual manifestations of the African-influenced Umbanda and Candomblé have had a major influence on the favela's religious tapestry.