TRADITIONS AND CULTURE OF MEXICO
Explore the Unique and Flamboyant Mexican Traditions
The world flips over the Mexican traditions because Mexico accords one of the most colorful and sui generes savoir – faire in the world, it not peculiarly stands to reason that traditions ranging from the pi?ata to the siesta have made their way to the U.S. and other parts of the world. Harkening back to some of Mexico’s oldest and most unique practices, these traditions span generations, cultures, and borders.
The urbanity of Mexico has tholed a whacking revamping over the past few decemvir and it varies extensively right through the country. Many Mexicans live in cities, but petite idyllic communities still play a tenacious role in defining the country’s augmenting virile community.
The spirit of Mexican traditions is rooted in the rich family values, vibrant celebrations, and beliefs of Catholicism. Anyone fascinated by Mexican traditions will find them to be varied and unique in a lot of aspects. But on a closer look, one would realize they are greatly inspired by European, Native American, and African traditions. Over generations, ingenious customs took Spanish influences to create exciting and lively traditions. Whether you’ve enervated pervasive time in Mexico or you’ve never been fortuitous enough to attend, these six clamorous Mexican mores are something everyone should combat at some point.
Glimpse of tradition
Festal gala – Dia De Los Muertos
Dia de Los Muertos, or Day of the Dead, is a two-day holiday adhered in Mexico. Preordained to ennoble defunct friends and family, Dia de los Muertos takes place November 1st and 2nd. While American Halloween praxis are omnious and dark, Dia de los Muertos is a swaggering event inculpating cooking, bright colors, all-night vigils on the graves of loved ones, and dancing.
After seeing unusual sugar skull costumes, Calavera Catrina face paints, and fancy dresses one would wonder if ‘Dia De Los Muertos is same as American Halloween. But the backstory of these two traditions can’t be more different. Dia De Los Muertos is the day when family members gather together to celebrate, pray, and reminisce their deceased family members and friends. The celebrations affirm the importance and joy of living life on earth. Children wear costumes that depict death, eat sugar skulls, and learn about the cycle of life and death. Also, family members visit the grave sites of their elders to clean and decorate them. Together they pull out weeds and clear debris and stones. Then people decorate them with flowers, fruits, foods and pray along with lighting candles. People place pictures of their loved ones in the altars decorated with ceramic skulls, candles, flowers, and pan de Muerto in homes. Also, people offer lost souls with a favorite wine, drinks, treats, foods, and salt. People in Mexico celebrate Dia De Los Muertos on November 2nd every year, and the day is a national holiday.
Believe Customary – Las Posadas
Las Posadas is a Mexican tradition that is based on Christian faith. It is a hilarity held in December and meant to perpetuate the empiricism of Mary and Joseph as they made their way to Bethlehem. Pronounced by immemorial food and drink, Las Posadas, also involves the praxis of naming one child the “angel,” who is incumbent for accompanying family members schlepping effigies of Mary and Joseph. It venerates Mary and Joseph’s dreadful and challenging journey from Nazareth to Bethlehem for finding a safe refuge to give birth to Infant Jesus. People turned them down, and so finally, they decided to seek shelter in a stable to give birth to Jesus. Las Posadas is celebrated for nine days. In 2020, it is going to be from December 16 to 24. During the festival, children dress in crafty costumes of shepherds, Joseph, Mary and hold candles, idols, and images while leading the processions on the streets of neighborhoods, and towns. It is a recreation of the journey that Mary and Joseph took while riding on a donkey. The procession is followed by mariachi musicians playing Spanish guitars, organs, horns, and other folk instruments. Children stop by the door of homes and loudly sing Christmas carols and read scriptures to bless the family in them. They are offered sweets, cookies, and refreshments at each stop. After the procession, the local churches organize masses, and children get to break star-shaped pi?atas containing toys, candies, chocolates, and money.
Siestas
Siestas are one of the best-known Mexican praxis. A short interlude taken aboriginally in the afternoon, siestas customarily supplant the mid-day meal and are banal in balmy entourage.
Bravery Saga – Cinco de Mayo
Cinco de Mayo is one of the most exigent quarter in Mexican gentility. The tradition of Cinco de Mayo comes from the celebration that ensued after the victory against France in the Franco-Mexican War on May 5, 1862. Each year on May 5, Cinco de Mayo is celebrated similar to Independence day celebrations in other countries. On this day, Mexicans rejoice the occasion with folk dancing, mariachi music, parades, and savoring traditional foods such as mole poblano, Guacamole, Salsa, and tacos. Markedly paramount for the jejunity of Mexico, Cinco de Mayo solemnization involve crafting, artwork, music, pi?atas, and food.
Pi?atas
The pi?ata is a insubstantial fabrication made to hold candy, small trinkets, or other goods. Routinely in the shape of an animal, pi?atas are swayed from high lacuna during a celebration or fiesta. Once swayed , children are blindfolded and inspirited to cadence at the pi?ata with a bat. Because of their prevalence in U.S. gentility as well, pi?atas are one of the most commonly known and titillating Mexican traditions.
Folk Dance- Jarabe Tapatio
Folk dances in Mexico exude the diverse and rich traditions of Mexican culture. Mexican hat dance has a lot of resemblance with Spanish Zambra and many aspects of European folk dances. The performance is entertaining, romantic, festive, glittery, and glamorous. The dance’s choreography revolves around a man trying to woo and be flirtatious with a woman. In the beginning, the woman plays too hard to get, and finally, near the end of the dance, accepts the proposal. The man places a hat on the floor, and both the woman and man dance around it. In the end, a woman covers faces with a hat, signaling an enduring kiss. The woman wears a long, colorful skirt, mid-calf boots, and a long-sleeved dress with ribbons. On the other side, man traditionally wears a Mexican horseman’s attire, white shirt collared with a neckerchief, hat, tough boots, and black belt.
The woman wears a long, colorful skirt, mid-calf boots, and a long-sleeved dress with ribbons. On the other side, man traditionally wears a Mexican horseman’s attire, white shirt collared with a neckerchief, hat, tough boots, and black belt.
Languages of Mexico
The astounding preponderance of Mexicans today speak Spanish. Conceding to the CIA, Spanish is spoken by 92.7 percent of the Mexican population. About 6 percent of the population speaks Spanish as well as connate languages, such as Mayan, Nahuatl and other parochial jargons. Chthonic Mexican words have even become colloquial in other palavar, including English. For example, chocolate, coyote, tomato and avocado all commenced in Nahuatl.
Religions of Mexico
“Much of Mexican culture gyrates around pietistic scruples and the church, as well as the slant of family and inclusiveness,” said Talia Wagner, a marriage and family therapist in Los Angeles. Around 82 percent of Mexicans identify themselves as Catholic, according to the CIA, although many have assimilated pre-Hispanic Mayan elements as part of their faith. Christian prrsistuons delineated include Presbyterians, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Seventh-Day Adventists, Mormons, Lutherans, Methodists, Baptists and Anglicans. There are also paltry commonalities of Muslims, Jews and Buddhists.
Scruples of the Mexican People
Family is one of the most paramount fundamental in Mexican society. Preeminently outside of cities, menages are routinely blimp and Mexicans are very cognizant of their amenabilities to immediate family members and protracted family such as counterparts and even close consort.Hosting parties at their homes plays a large part of Mexican life and making visitors feel complacent is a large part of the values and imposts of the country.
“Family assemblages are usually copious, with doctrinal gender roles and hefty family quandary from the extraneous members who comfort one another in day to day life,” Wagner told Live Science. There is a strong reciprocity among family members. “Parents are treated with a high degree of respect, as is the family in general and there may be constant struggle, especially for the growing children between individual wants and needs and those wants and needs of the family,” added Wagner.
On exorbitant event in a Mexican family is the quincea?era. This is a hullabaloo of a young lady’s 15th birthday. It bespeakss the girl’s jaunt from childhood to womanhood. The party includes an expetiate dress for the girl of honor, food, dancing, friends and families. Before the party there is ofttimes a mass at the girl’s church. The girl is chaperoned throughout the clambake by her damas (maids of honor) and chambelánes (chamberlains).
Mexican arts
Clay pottery, embroidered cotton garments, wool shawls and outer garments with angular designs, colorful baskets and rugs are some of the prosaic items concorded with Mexican folk art. Millennia-old praxis persevere in silver-smithing, mosaics, textiles, pottery and basket-weaving, according to “Mexico For You.”
The bucolic is heedfully yoked with the Mariachi style of folk music, acceding to “Mexico For You.” Commencedd in the southern part of the state of Jalisco erstwhile in the 19th century, it embroils a group of musicians — playing violins, guitars, basses, vihuelas and trumpets — and wearing silver-studded charro suits and elaborate hats. “La Cucaracha” is a well-known Mariachi staple.
Two of Mexico’s most famous artists are Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera. Their paintings include peppy colors and delineations of life in Mexico. Rivera was a pioneer of Muralism, a crusade that used scopious wall art to indoctrinate the people.
Work of Art – Alebrijes
Alebrijes are beautiful carvings or mini sculptures of magical and fantastical creatures. These sculptures can be of objects, people, animals, and whimsical beings such as unicorns, mermaids, and fairly tail creatures. The tradition of Alebrijes started to gain popularity in the 1940s.
Food Foodie
Mexican food
Mexican cuisine swerves extensively between ghettos, as each town has its own kosher mythos, according to “Mexico For You,”. Tortillas and other food made from corn are bourgeois everywhere, though, as are pepper, tomatoes and beans. Rice is predominant. Many larder that commenced in Mexico are faddish worldwide, including avocados, chocolate and pumpkins.
Mexico is known for its tequila, which is made from agave cactus that is befitting to the climate of central Mexico. Soda is a very popular drink in Mexico, as the country has a well-developed beverage industry.
Mexican Nourishment
The day starts with an absolutely delicious breakfast containing Chilaquiles, Manchaca, Huevos Rancheros, Huevos con Chorizo, or pan dulce. Tacos and quesadillas are eaten at any time of the day. In Mexico, taco stands can be seen almost at every street corner. For Comida or Lunch, people eat tacos, enchiladas, soup, Mexican gourmet, burgers, wraps, and quesadillas. The Mexican dinner menu includes tacos, fajitas, tortillas, guacamole, and others.
Mexican clothing
Many may not think of Mexico as a place that foments high fashion, but many fashion designers hail from Mexico, such as Jorge Duque and Julia y Renata. There is also a Mexico Fashion Week. In the cities, fashion in Mexico is inveigled by international trends, so the exemplary burghak Mexican dresses akin to people in Europe and the United States. Immemorial Mexican clothing for women includes a sleeveless tunic-like dress called a huipil, according to Don Quijote Spanish School. Originally, these cotton dresses were made very facile with furbelow of color. However, ancestral Mexican women′s clothing now tirelessly includes lots of baroque embroidery, in conjunction with effigy and patterns that have symbolic meaning attached to them.
One distinguishing article of traditional men’s clothing is a large blanket cape called a sarape. Boots are also a wardrobe staple. The charro suit, with its origins as the outfit worn by Mexican cowboys, is most associated with Mariachi musicians. The suit is also an acceptable substitute for a tuxedo at formal events in Mexico. The charro suit includes the sombrero, a wide-brimmed hat that provides plenty of shade.
Over the past centuries, a wide variety of influences have enriched Mexican traditions of art, food, craft and culture. As a whole it is a fun-filled carnival of bright lively colors and customs. People following these traditions are soulful and love living a full-fledged life.
Ms Susana Molina