Here in Texas, Mexican culture is a large part of our culture. So I just wanted to do a little post on the Day of the Dead if you are not familiar with it. From what I know Dia de los Muertos is the day where the Mexican people honor family and friends that have passed and they create altars in honor of those people to pray at.
I don't really participate in the Day of the Dead, besides having respect for the culture, and lighting my Jack O'Lantern for one more night. Read more below...
"The
Day of the Dead (
El DÃa de los Muertos or All Souls' Day) is a
holiday celebrated in
Mexico and by
Latin Americans living in the
United States and
Canada. The holiday focuses on gatherings of family and friends to pray for and remember friends and family members who have died. The celebration occurs on November 1st and 2nd in connection with the
Catholic holiday of
All Saints' Day which occurs on November 1st and
All Souls' Day which occurs on November 2nd. Traditions include building private altars honoring the deceased, using sugar skulls, marigolds, and the favorite foods and beverages of the departed, and visiting graves with these as gifts.
Scholars trace the origins of the modern holiday to indigenous observances dating back thousands of years, and to an
Aztec festival dedicated to a
goddess called
Mictecacihuatl.
Similar holidays are celebrated in many parts of the world; for example, it's a public holiday (
Dia de Finados) in
Brazil, where many Brazilians celebrate by visiting cemeteries and churches. In
Spain, there are festivals and parades, and at the end of the day, people gather at cemeteries and pray for their loved ones who have died. Similar observances occur elsewhere in Europe and in the
Philippines, and
similarly-themed celebrations appear in many
Asian and
African cultures."
Read more from this wikipedia article:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dia_de_los_muertos
