One Hundred Years of Solitude characters

Appears from the start

The founding patriarch of the town of Macondo, a bold, imaginative, and restless man who led a small band of settlers into the wilderness to build a new community. Endlessly fascinated by the inventions and marvels the traveling gypsies bring, he throws himself into wild schemes, experiments, and studies, given to obsession and grand curiosity about the workings of the world.

Appears from the start

The wife of Jose Arcadio Buendia and the tireless, practical matriarch of the Buendia family. Hardworking, shrewd, and long-lived, she holds the household and its fortunes together through her energy and common sense, anchoring the family while her husband chases his obsessions. She fears an old family curse tied to intermarriage among relatives.

Also known as Colonel Aureliano Buendia

Appears from the start

A son of Jose Arcadio Buendia and Ursula, born in Macondo and quiet, solitary, and intensely observant from childhood, with a hint of the uncanny about him. The novel's famous opening looks ahead to him facing a firing squad and remembering his father showing him ice, framing him as a figure whose later life will be marked by war and legend. In his early years he trains as a silversmith, crafting tiny gold fish.

Appears from the start

The elder son of Jose Arcadio Buendia and Ursula, physically enormous, impulsive, and ruled by appetite. Bold and sensual, he is drawn to adventure and to the world beyond Macondo, and his headstrong nature sets him apart from his more inward brother.

Appears from the start

A wise, world-weary gypsy who periodically visits Macondo, bringing wondrous inventions and knowledge from distant lands, from magnets and magnifying glasses to alchemy. A friend and mentor to Jose Arcadio Buendia, he seems touched by mystery and to hold secrets far beyond the ordinary, and he leaves behind cryptic written parchments.

Appears from the start

A daughter of Jose Arcadio Buendia and Ursula, raised in the growing Buendia household. Proud and reserved, she develops an intense, thwarted inner life around love and rivalry, and grows into a solitary, embittered figure within the family.

Appears from the start

An orphan girl who arrives unexpectedly at the Buendia house carrying a sack said to hold her parents' bones, and is taken in and raised as one of the family. Strange and withdrawn at first, given to eating earth and whitewash when distressed, she gradually becomes part of Macondo's life.

Appears from the start

A warm, sensual local woman who reads the future in cards and moves through the early life of Macondo. Generous with her affections and knowing in the ways of desire, she becomes entangled with the young Buendia men and a lasting presence in the family's story.