Most Latin American countries have different celebrations that have meanings that tie back to the older days when their ancestors roamed. Modern day Latin America celebrates Dia de los Muertos, which is known as Day of the Dead. Day of the Dead is a common celebration that is mostly found in Central America, Mexico, and now is adopted into the Mexican American culture. The purpose of Day of the Dead is not to grieve over the loss of a loved one, but to commemorate the lives of the loved one, and to appreciate the return of the loved one’s spirit. According to National Geographic,” Dia de los Muertos honors the dead with festivals and lively celebrations, a typically Latin American custom that combines indigenous Aztec ritual with Catholicism, brought to the region by Spanish conquistadores.” The pre-Hispanic customs are in ingrained in Dia de los Muertos. These customs made common traditional elements of the Mexican Day of the Dead. Throughout the years, some customs change as the modern world changes, but some …show more content…
Death and life weren’t two separates elements of life but they were viewed as one. When a person dies their life doesn’t completely end but they instead create more life. Dr. Aguilar-Moreno points out that, “Aztec dreams, myths and the illusions of life and death were depicted in and thus represented by sculptures.” Aztecs used their art to represent the journeys throughout life and death. It was a form to memorialize death. That’s why in modern day Day of the Dead most memorials are filled with art and paintings. They are also filled with lots of food, flowers, and the area is always filled with music. All the offerings made are in honor of the deceased. Honoring the dead through the Day of the Dead isn’t the only tradition or belief the Latin Americans used to honor the deceased. Each culture honored the dead differently. But the ultimate goal is to celebrate the life they
In Mexico, Dia de los Muertos is a celebration to honor the dead. This holiday was made for people struggle with losing loved ones, and celebrating it was found to be a good way to help them cope. Families can be seen in the cemetery bringing festive gifts to memorialize lost members.
Mexican culture celebrates their independence with a holiday and fireworks on Cinco de Mayo. The American ritual for independence is celebrated on July 4th also with a holiday and fireworks. Another ritual that is participated in annually by both Mexican and American cultures is the celebration of Christmas. Gift giving is a common ritual during the Christmas season. There are also some very unique rituals specific to each culture. For starters, one the most distinctive rituals in all of the World takes place in the Mexican culture, Dia de Los Muertos. Dia de Los Muertos is a celebration with masks like skulls and dancing honoring late ancestors. Another ritual specific to the Mexican culture is the holiday recognizing the Lady of the Guadalupe. The ritual feast remembers the sightings of her near present day Mexico City. American culture also contains some unique rituals. A very patriotic ritual takes place in the grade school class everyday; it is called the Pledge of Allegiance. This ritual instills patriotic values as well as teaching loyalty to thy nation. Thanksgiving is another example of a ritual not in Mexican culture that is in American culture.
I. Attention getting device: When most people think of how to honor the dead, right away they think of mourning but the indigenous people of Mexico had a different idea. Instead of mourning, they think of honoring the dead as a celebration with dancing, food, and reminiscing. The name of this celebration is called Dia de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead in English.
Anywhere form the young girl waltzing with her father, surrounded by family and friends, because she officially a miss. To the nervous gentleman knocking on his girlfriend’s parent’s home determined to ask for her hand in marriage. Even the small altar set up yearly on Nov 1st to remember the loved ones that are no longer here. These are all customs, beliefs, that Mexicans as a culture have embraced for generations. A quinceanera, a proposal, and the day of the dead are celebrated a certain way. It’s a
Death, and the skeleton represented as Death, is seen in a much different way by the Mexicans than by most other cultures. It is seen in a mocking, cheerful light. A symbol that can be as playful as it is serious, it appears everywhere during dia de muertos as wood, paper mache, sugar, and plastic.
These holidays are recognized by having special celebrations with lots of food, guests, and music. Another observance, Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) is celebrated throughout Hispanic cultures as a way of remembering loved ones who have passed away. During everyday life, Hispanic-Americans tend to dress the same as everyone else-jeans, shirts, work or casual clothes, etc. However, for special days, specially decorated sombreros and boots are worn with dressy clothing as homage to their homelands (EHC,
They also get many people to write speeches about the person’s life and death. Four days after the announcement of a death, images of the dead person are carefully made and they praise their loved one with a devoted song. The funeral practices were much like the burial rituals, but there were ceremonies to honor the dead as well. The Aztecs were remembered by artwork. Aztec dreams, people, myths and the illusions of life and death were depicted in and represented by sculptures, and that is how they were respected when they died and how they practiced a person’s death ceremony.
In Mexican culture, death is not considered to be forever. The souls of family members and ancestors who have passed away are seen as invisible companions. The passing of family is very important in Mexican culture and is celebrated every year on “El Día de Los Muertos”, the Day of the Dead. The Day of the Dead is a traditional celebration that has been celebrated for over 2,500 years in Mexico. The Day of the Dead is celebrated over three days beginning on October 31st and ending on November 2nd.
3) Impact: Dia de los Muertos is an important part of culture the Mexican and latin
In the Latino death rituals are influenced by their catholic beliefs. They have a continuing relationship with the dead through prayer and visits to the grave. Grief can be expressed by crying. Women are allowed to wail while men are not to a lot of emotion. Death for Mexicans in Mexico has more understanding of death because the country is religious, real, poor, and young. Death is shown by statues, art, literature, and history portray death. Mexican children start at an early age to accept death. Mexicans and Latinos celebrate “Dia de los Muertos (day of the dead) to remember and honor the dead Lobar, Youngblut, & Brooten, 2006, p. xx-a)
Day of the Dead (or Dia de los Muertos) is a Mexican holiday that`s celebrated in parts of Latin America and the U.S. and it is to remember and pray for family and friends who have died. This holiday is celebrated on November 1st. The Day of the Dead celebrates and remembers friends and relatives who have died. In most parts of Mexico, the Day of the Dead is meant to honor children and infants that unfortunately died. Adults that have passed are honored on November 2nd. The atmosphere of Day of the Dead is
As a little girl, I learned a lot about my Mexican heritage. I even joined my parents in their dance group and still involved in it today. Over the years it’s been so fun, and it helped me learn a lot about different Mexican counties. Who would've thought that I would learn so much just by dancing. I know it sounds crazy, but it’s the truth. Also being a little girl I learned about “Day Of The Dead” which in Spanish is called “dia de los muertos” which is a two day celebration. The day’s in which this takes place is September 1 and 2nd. September 1st we honor the children and September 2nd we honor the adults. When I was little I never fully understood why we celebrated people deaths. I always thought when someone dies we show our respects and grief about it, but throwing a whole
In Mexico, fiestas occur frequently throughout the year as a custom. Mexicans gather on these holidays to eat dance,take part in parades, and remember historic or religious events. Mexican Independence Day celebrates the separation of the country from Spain on September 16, 1810. Another famous celebration is Day of the Dead which is celebrated on the first of November. Although it may sound scary, this celebration is a cheerful time of remembering friends and family members who have died.
Day of the Dead is some thing I have been learning about in Spanish class. Now I am going to tell you some facts about Day of the Dead. The Day of the Dead is celebrated by Mexicans and some Hispanic cultures around the world. It’s a celebration remembering their dead loved ones. This year the Day of the Dead will be November 1 and 2.
As I now celebrate Halloween in America, going out and dressing up, I don’t forget about “el Dia de los Muertos”, although I am not in Mexico I have brought the celebration back home, I pray for my great grandparents and other late family members and friends. I try to incorporate both cultures in my life and I have realized that I am creating my own traditions with combining