Preview

El Dia De Los Muertos: The Day of the Dead Celebrations

Better Essays
Open Document
Open Document
873 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
El Dia De Los Muertos: The Day of the Dead Celebrations
El Día de los Muertos or more commonly known as the Day of the Dead is a holiday celebrated throughout Mexico and many other Spanish speaking countries. The multi-day holiday focuses on the ones who have passed away and to remember family members, friends and relatives. The Holiday starts on October 31st but the Day of the Dead starts on November 1st. There are still some questions left to really analyze this holiday. How did the Holiday become the way it is? Why is the holiday popularized in Mexico rather than countries? What is Día de los muertos? Where do people go to celebrate this day and what other holidays and what do they do?
The Origins of this day (Day of the Dead) aren’t exact, but are approximated from pre-Columbian times. The tradition of celebrating the dead had been observed for over 3000 years. The ritual of death was celebrated through skulls, and in pre-Columbian time’s enemy tribes skulls were used to act as a symbol for death and second life, a lot like reincarnation. The date became recorded when the Day of the dead was celebrated in the Aztec calendar, and lasted for a month. The old form of the Day of the dead revolved around Mictecaíhuatl, Goddess of Dead and the Underworld or Mictlán in the Aztec world. The Goddess was not evil or demon like, instead she was in charge of taking care of the souls and providing them with comfort. Because of the thought of comfort after death people became to accept it and that’s why it became known.
The Day of the dead festival is a very colorful and traditional festival. Every Spanish speaking country has different ways of organizing their festivals. Mexico’s festival has the most sophisticated and spectacular festivals from all the other Spanish speaking countries. Mexico’s Festival of the dead is very spectacular, and oddly very traditional. The festival includes massive stands that include artwork and a quantity of decorative and extremely colorful skulls. Throughout the whole festival, the theme of

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    In this week’s reading, “Day of the Dead Ritual Serenity” by Margarita Orellana illustrates the many cultural elements and traditions different indigenous regions of Mexico celebrate the Day of the Dead. The reading gives insight in the variety of forms the ritual is practiced and how many indigenous populations utilize various forms of Aztec mythology to commemorate the dead. The reading illustrates the various feasts and dances that are practice to honor the dead. Moreover, it explains how many of the indigenous rituals were practiced often throughout the Aztec’s daily life before the Spanish invasion. Due to colonialism, the Spanish invasion caused a change in some of the indigenous customs of honoring the dead throughout life to celebrating…

    • 347 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    This year’s event we did the theme of Remembering Our Students/ Recordando Nuestros Estudiantes. In relation to the current movements regarding Black Lives Matter, police brutality, Ayotzinapa 43, school shootings, and indigenous women missing. I think this event is important to our campus, because SCSU is a diverse campus with very close minded individuals. So this brings the aspect of culture and tradition with the Dia de Los Muertos celebration and MEChA’s activist focus of political issues. These two combined can provide knowledge and awareness to those students who are unaware or misinformed. As well as taking on the problem of cultural appropriation with the recent American popularization of sugar skulls and Dia de…

    • 178 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Dua De Los Muertos Speech

    • 295 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Día De Los Muertos, also known as Day of the Dead, is a holiday that is now celebrated in Mexico and in parts of America, but Day of the Dead originates from over 3000 years ago. When the Spanish conquistadors had arrived to central Mexico they saw the Aztec’s had a celebration that they believed had mocked death, but in reality it celebrated death. The Aztec’s had believed that life was a dream and when death comes your life is continued. The Spanish had originally tried to put an end to it but it was unsuccessful and lead to them adopting the holiday. As the Spanish had participated in the ritual of embracing the dead they moved the holiday to the saint's day and all souls day which is on November 1 and 2 which is when it is currently celebrated…

    • 295 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    As every kid is exited to go Teak or treating for Halloween, I am excited for El Dia de los muertos (The day of the dead). This holiday is celebrated on November 1. Dia de los muertos is originally from Mexico. In the article Dia de los muertos by National geographic says “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. (Dia de los Muertos is celebrated on All Saints Day and All Souls Day, minor holidays in the Catholic calendar. Assured that the dead would be insulted by mourning or sadness)” we celebrate dia de los mueros by bringing food and drinks parties and cool activities…

    • 287 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Mexican holiday, Dia de los Muertos or Day of the Dead in english is celebrated twice a year.. This holiday last`s two days November 1st- November 2nd. This holiday isn't about being frightened, it's about remembering people who have died. Families that celebrate the holiday make small home altars called ofrendas. The altar includes photos of people you loved that have passed away, a combination of your favorite sweets and drinks. The altars are supposed to attract the souls of the dead. All the food is supposed to be uneaten. Some families visit cemeteries to spend time with people they loved, at that time it is ok to eat and drink a little bit. Dia de los Muertos depend on who you are.…

    • 123 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Los Dia de los Muertos, or the Day of the Dead, is a Mexican holiday spanning two days and three nights. During this holiday, families gather to welcome the souls of the people that have died. They see these days as crossroads between the living and the dead. The Day of the Dead originates from ancient Aztec culture and although Christianity has influenced this celebration over the years, the Mexican people, like the Aztecs, still exhibit no fear of death and it is talked about openly and in everyday life. Ofrendas are a traditional element in celebrating the Day of the Dead; even their symbol of death, the calavera, helps to show that there is no denial of death in this culture. This is witnessed especially throughout the festivities.…

    • 1070 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Halloween is major holiday celebrated on the 31st of October every year in the United Sates of America. Here it is one of the biggest holidays of all, with many citizens participating in different festivities throughout the day. The Day of the Dead, El Dia de los Muertos in Spanish, is a major celebration in Mexico and Latin America that is celebrated every year on the first and/or second of November. For Catholics we know November 1st as All Saints Day and November 2nd as All Souls Day in the United Sates. These two days are Catholic Church holidays, whereas Halloween and The Day of the Dead are not Church holidays; although some parts of El Dia de los Muertos are approved of and even presided over by the Catholic Church. Halloween was brought to the United Sates by…

    • 554 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Halloween is celebrated on the October 31.We celebrated because back in the 1800’s there were immigrants themselves wore starting to can to the United States.Since they are from Ireland and the people started their tradition in the USA.we celebrated by eating great meals and dressing in costumes.…

    • 80 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    day of the dead

    • 960 Words
    • 4 Pages

    “Dias de los Muertos” the day the deceased have divine permission to visit friend and relatives on earth and to share the pleasure of the living (Sayer, Chloë 8). The day of the dead is celebrated on November 1& 2 of every year known to be as All Souls Day. Introduced in the Mexican population by their Aztec indigenous ancestry known not to be afraid of death but to embrace it. Meso-American Indians have strong belief of the afterlife and the underworld that came after death. The day of the dead is celebrated by giving “ofrendas” offerings to the dead on “altares” or alter. This dates back to when Mesoamerican’s would bury their death with pottery, weapons and food for their journey to the underworld. This tradition passed on from generations to generations still being celebrated in all Hispanic Communities.…

    • 960 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Day Of The Dead

    • 500 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Today Day of the Dead is celebrated in Mexico, the U.S., Central America, and other Latin…

    • 500 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    [Oral Test] FESTIVALS

    • 457 Words
    • 2 Pages

    a sacred and scary festival in Mexico known as Day of the Dead whose purpose is…

    • 457 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Hungry Ghost Month

    • 406 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Nearly every culture across the globe celebrates a holiday that honors the deceased. The Mexican Dia de los Muertos, the Japanese Obon, and the Catholic All Saint’s Day are some of the better-known celebrations. One holiday that consistently passes under the radar is the Hungry Ghost Festival, a traditional festival commemorated by ethnically Chinese communities around the world such as China, Singapore, Malaysia, and Taiwan. According to Chinese tradition, the seventh month of the lunar calendar is recognized as the Ghost Month. The Hungry Ghost Festival falls on the fifteenth day of the Ghost Month and is known as Ghost Day, a day in which the gates of Hell are opened. Ghosts and spirits, including deceased ancestors, begin to emerge out of the lower realm and roam into the realm of the living. These spirits are continually in a state of unrest from their sufferings in the underworld. In order to alleviate their torments, both Buddhists and Taoists perform rituals to exonerate the suffering of the deceased through the Hungry Ghost Festival. Activities during the festival may include food offerings, incense burning, joss paper (or ghost money) burning, releasing of paper lanterns into the sky or water, and praying for the spirits and ancestors.…

    • 406 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Oh Yeah

    • 383 Words
    • 2 Pages

    The tradition of the fiestas/festivals is a tradition handed down from the many Spanish religious practices. Most fiestas are celebrated among patron saints and or the major events in the life of Jesus Christ and His Mother.…

    • 383 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Mother, S Day

    • 1218 Words
    • 5 Pages

    In some countries the date was changed to a date that was significant to the majority religion, such as Virgin Mary Day in Catholic countries. Other countries selected a date with historical significance. For example, Bolivia's Mother's Day is the date of a battle in which women participated.[13] See the "International history and tradition"…

    • 1218 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Dancing isa passion

    • 1405 Words
    • 6 Pages

    In many countries, All Saints Day is a solemn holiday set aside to remember the dead, in the Philippines the holiday is a day of festivities. November 1 marks the beginning of the Filipino "Araw ng mga Patay," the celebration of the Day of the Dead. The celebration continues through the next day, All Souls Day. The two days are traditional Catholic holidays set aside to commemorate all the saints and the souls of the dead. While the holiday remains an important religious day for the Catholic Church, some of the more secular aspects are celebrated by the non-Catholic community. Though the people in the Philippines celebrate and honor the dead joyously, All Saints Day is still a respectful day for commemorating ancestors.…

    • 1405 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays

Related Topics