Culture

Day of the Dead, El Dia de los Muertos, Celebrations November 1

by Amy Judd | October 31, 2009 at 02:13 pm

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After the holiday of Halloween, in many cultures the Day of the Dead is celebrated on November 1st and sometimes 2nd as well.

Day of the Dead, also known as El Dia de los Muertos, or All Souls' Day, is celebrated in Mexico and Latin America, as well as the United States and Canada. The celebrations occur on November 1st and sometimes November 2nd, and it is a time to remember friends and family who have died during the year.

It occurs in connection with the Catholic holiday of All Saints' Day on November 1st and All Souls' Day that happens on November 2nd. People give and make offerings to those who have died, of their favorite foods or drinks and then visit their graves with these gifts.

The origins for Day of the Dead are thought to have come from the Aztec festsival 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.

Celebrations also occur in the Philippines, and in Asian and African cultures.

Just as the link between the living and dead can be much thinner on All Hallows' Eve (or Halloween), the same is believed of the Day of the Dead. People can go to cemetaries to communicate with the dead and they encourage the souls of the departed to visit them.

It is mostly celebrated in Mexico, but outside Mexico people still celebrate the day with some towns holding parades, but with people still honoring the dead and trying to speak to them.

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TenekTech (not verified)

at 16:03 on October 31st, 2009

You can also celebrate Day of the Dead / Dia de Muertos here in Vancouver:Exhibition of Day of the Dead Altars till tomorrow Nov 1st Organized by Mexico Tourism Board and the Roundhouse Community Arts and Recreation Centre.Tonight Oct 31st :Vancouver’s Helping Mex y Can Society co-hosts an evening of Mexican traditions to honour the dead. Featuring mariachi, ancient dances of the Aztecs, and traditional refreshments such as café de olla and pan de muertos at Mountain View Cemetery 8:00 pm -11:00pm<a href="www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=146233701870&ref=mf/">All Souls Dia De Los Muertos</a>

Roy C

at 21:13 on October 31st, 2009

Tonight and tomorrow and throughout the week, Italians will be eating "il pane della Morte", the "bread of the dead".

Persephone returns now to be Hades/Pluto's wife under the ground as the energy of plants returns to its roots in the Earth's soil and trees drop their leaves and pull their sap deep within to survive winter temperatures and the lack of light. While the gates to the Underworld open, the rest of the spirits of the Dead come above ground and we dress in "Holy Eve" costumes to scare them right back.

All the Church did was to adapt the pagan holiday to Christianity by making it "All Saints Day", with "All Souls Day" on November 2.