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Getting to know Día de los Muertos: 5 Traditions Explained

By Helen Partlow, Mt Sinai Macaroni Kid and Port Jefferson Macaroni Kid Publisher October 22, 2020


Día de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead, is a holiday celebrated in Mexico and by those of Mexican heritage throughout the world.  While this holiday is typically held around the same time as Halloween, it is its own separate holiday with its own traditions and intentions.  While Halloween is a spooky type of holiday, Día de los Muertos is a celebration of life.  

I am exploring 5 traditions of Día de los Muertos below.


1. Día de los Muertos is celebrated Nov 1-2

Día de los Muertos originates back to pre-Hispanic times with the indigenous peoples the Aztec, Maya, Toltec and other Nahua people.  These pre-Hispanic cultures considered mourning the dead to be disrespectful.  They saw the dead as still being members of the family, who came alive through memory and spirit.  

Once the Spanish arrived, this holiday got intertwined with All Saint’s Day (November 1) and All Souls Day (November 2).  Modernly, Día de los Muertos is typically celebrated November 1, to remember children who had passed, and November 2, to remember adults who have passed.





2. Celebrates life, not death

Día de los Muertos can often be misconstrued because it happens around the same time as Halloween and uses symbols such as skulls.  However, Día de los Muertos is a celebration of life – of the memories and bonds that ties us together that most certainly survive one’s death into the beyond.  It is believed that for a brief 24 hours, passed loved ones can be reunited with the living for a big celebration of life.  This is an energetic, colorful event to demonstrate their love and respect for passed family members, who get to join in on the celebration with them on this special day.  Costumes, parades and dancing are often a large part of the celebration.





3. The Ofrenda, or altar

People make an ofrenda, or altar, at cemeteries and their private homes as an homage to the dead.  The ofrenda is not the same as other altars, which are for praying.  Rather, the ofrenda is meant to welcome the dead back to the land of the living.  These altars may include the deceased’s photos as well as incense, candles, favorite foods and items from when they were alive.  Together this will help attract the souls to visit the living in celebration.  The ofrendas are decorated with marigolds, or flor de muerto (flower of dead).  Marigolds are often scattered from the ofrenda to the gravesite as a way to guide the dead back to their place of rest.





4. Emergence of Calavera Catrina

In the 19th Century, artist José Guadalupe Posada, re-imagined what Mictecacíhuatl, the Aztec goddess of the underworld, looked like as a female skeleton now known as the Calavera Catrina.  He originally made this cartoon as a social commentary on people’s emulation of European elegance.  “Todos somos calaveras,” meaning “we are all skeletons” is a quote often attributed to Posada.  We are all the same on the inside.

Modernly, people wear masks and face makeup in a colorful fashion to mimic the Calavera Catrina.  





5. Sugar Skulls and other traditional foods

Those returning from the land of the dead are believed to work up quite an appetite along their journey.  Families often leave out the dead’s favorite foods as well as some other more common traditional dishes.

Pan de muerto, bread of the dead, is a sweet bread with a little bit of anise.There are many different variations across Mexico, including one in Oaxaca City where they add a face, or caritas, in the center.

Sugar candy is molded into the shape of skulls in celebration of Día de los Muertos.These started in the 17th century with Italian missionaries.  This sugar art are often colorful and can vary in size as well as complexity.





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