America is a melting pot of cultures and races. I can proudly say that I am Hispanic. When I think of culture, I think of similar foods, hobbies, and traditions in a society. Our country adopts celebrations from all around the world. A specific example of a celebration that America has adopted is Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead). Día de los Muertos is the remembrance of the loved ones who have died. American culture usually associates death with sadness and mourning, but Día de los Muertos is the opposite. The whole celebration lasts 3 days; October 31 is when it is said that the souls of all the children return to their loved ones, November 1 is when the children leave and the souls of the adults arrive, and they leave on November 2. There are festivals celebrated on November 2 all over Latin America. Although most of the United States does not celebrate Día de los Muertos, the hispanic communities are celebrating it and it is expanding.
Day of the Dead was going to be my topic for my cultural experience from the beginning. It just so happens that my Spanish 4 teacher, Señora Potter, was planning a field trip to go to the Grand Rapids Public Library where they had ofrendas (altars) and a phenomenal video lecture about Day of the Dead. Immediately, I signed up to go to the field trip on October 30. As we stepped into the library, we saw decorations like tiny skulls and banners for Day of the Dead plastered everywhere. Our tour guide greeted us in spanish and told us
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.
Foreigners have more trouble understanding Dia de Los Muertos than any of Mexico's other celebrations. At first glance, they see Day of the Dead decorations which are colored paper garlands, little skeletons performing daily tasks and sugar skulls inscribed with names, which remind them of Halloween. Other tourists discover that much like Memorial or Remembrance Day in the US, families here visit, clean and decorate graves of loved ones for the
Mexico and Latin America celebrate “El Día de la Raza.” They celebrate this day in remembrance of Christopher Columbus’ arrival in the Americas. This day and month celebrates many nationalities of people having a common beginning, tradition, or language in the history of Mexico, Central America, and South America. Besides this throughout the month hispanics and latinos celebrate Hispanic Heritage through festivities, music, dancing, and food their Independence of their countries. Unlike us, we Americans celebrate our Independence day a little differently, like having cook outs, fire works, socializing, meeting up with friends and family, listening to music,and having fun. But overall it's the same idea like music, socializing, and eating
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.
Halloween is praised on October 31 in a few nations. It has its roots in agnostic festivals for the end of the harvest season, different celebrations of the dead. Day of the Dead (or Dia de los Muertos) is a Mexican occasion, additionally celebrated in parts of Latin America and the U.S., to recall and appeal to God for family and companions who have kicked the bucket. It is on November 1.The Latin American festival Día de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead, is praised amid the same time period as Halloween. Both occasions are focused on conventions established in recognizing the perished. Albeit for the most part diverse, a couple of attributes of both occasions make them comparable - clarifying why disarray between the two exist. Halloween and Day of the Dead are both celebrated between people who are in the Christianity culture.
Halloween and Dia de los Muertos have different ways to celebrate their holidays. First of all Halloween is only one day while the Day of the Dead is actually three days. Halloween takes place on October 31st which at night is when people trick or treat. The reason by trick or treating is from an old story that was told that you should go to house to house asking for goods to scare away the bad souls which started reflecting on all the scary decorations during the holiday. While the Day of the Dead is October 31st-November 2nd which all the days reflect on the people who passed on and to celebrate life. People respect and have a meal at their incense grave sites with the souls that are good and that are now passed on to a better place.
The catholic, mexican holiday, Day of the Dead and the very westernized holiday Halloween may seem very alike with their traditions and themes, but in retrospect, they are very different and have very different origins. Halloween and Day of the Dead happen at the same time, end of October and beginning of November. The background of these two holidays are very spiritual and they have an interesting story of how the Halloween and day of the dead was created. In this essay, I will be talking about the how Halloween and Day of the Dead are celebrated , the origins of Day of the Dead and Halloween, and decorations and celebrations of Day of the Dead and Halloween. Both Day of the Dead and Halloween deal with spooky traditions but they are very different than the stereotypical thought that they are just weird, scary holidays but after reading some background to these two holidays, many people realize there is a lot more to Halloween and Day of the Dead.
The country I would like to visit is Venezuela. And a holiday that is celebrated in Venezuela in October is Dia De Los Muertos or The Day of the Dead. The Day of the Dead is celebrated on October 31 to November 2. Although many people think the Day of the Dead is Halloween, it is different than Halloween. The Day of the Dead celebrates the dead but not their death and the sadness of them but the full period of life’s they had and how the holiday actual worships death. People celebrate by going to the cemetery’s and decorating the persons grave and they also celebrate at home by making an altar and giving offerings on the altar such as food, clothes and other things. People also celebrate with special foods and symbolic goods like candy skulls,
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.
Día de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead, is a holiday that commemorates the family and its importance to human beings, both personally and culturally. Through various rituals, people honor their ancestors and those that have already passed on before them. The rituals that go on during this time are culturally rich practices that have been passed on for hundreds of years. Family members will go to graveyards to decorate relative’s graves with altars and tell fond stories of the deceased. Others will perform traditional dances or make quilts as tribute to their ancestors. Overall, Day of the Dead emphasizes the remembrance of loved ones and their significance to us through deeply embedded customs.
Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) is a Mexican holiday celebrated throughout Mexico. The holiday focuses on gatherings of family and friends to pray for and remember members who have died.
During Dia De Los Muertos, skeletons are used to honor ancestors and to remind themselves that death is a part of life. Hanging up skeletons remind people that one day they will be skeletons when they die. During Dia De Los Muertos, skeletons are also known as “Funny Bones” because many people dress up their skeletons in a fun and exciting way. Skeletons are often used during the Halloween season as a popular decoration because it is scary and even reminds people of death. So, when people decorate their houses during the Halloween season, they use skeletons as a fear of death (to scare little kids).
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.
Kids do NOT go out and collect candy. Instead, kids and adults use this day to celebrate their lost loved ones. They build an altar decorated by the personality of that person(s). They could put something special about that person like if they were musicians, they could put a guitar or some kind of instrument they liked. People also like to visit their graveyards to spend time with their family.
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