Day of the Dead
Halloween may have been and gone in the UK and USA, but now it is time for those in Central and South America to celebrate the Day of the Dead...
By Sarah Baxter
The Day of the Dead. It sounds like a low-rent slasher movie. And with its emphasis on hanging around cemeteries after dark daubed in ghoulish face paint, it looks a bit like one too.
But the Día de los Muertos is no Hammer horror. Primarily a Mexican celebration, its roots can be traced back thousands of years to the rituals of the Tarasco people and other ancient Central American cultures.
The colonising Spanish added their two-penneth – moving the date of traditional indigenous ‘ death’ festivities to tie in with their Catholic All Saints’ and All Souls’ Days on 1 and 2 November. And a few Halloween practises have latterly been incorporated – you might see dressed-up kids knocking on doors for treats in Mexico City. But, ultimately, this remains a very Latin affair.
Indeed, while Brits tend to adopt black and solemnity for their mourning, Mexicans take a
different approach. The Day of the Dead – when it’s believed to be easier for the spirits of the
deceased to visit those of the living – is often more raucous and rainbow-hued.
To call out to those spirits, relatives construct lavish altars strewn with ofrendas (offerings –s s s s s including the departeds’ favourite foods), pile up pungent flowers, decorate graves and sing songs. Some families make all-night vigils in candle-flickered cemeteries, telling anecdotes about their lost loved ones; nips of tequila and mescal are generally on offer should the spirits get thirsty.
In Mexico the Day of the Dead is about embracing the traditions of the nation’s best-loved
folk festival, but it’s also in parts irreverent, macabre, sombre, political and peculiar. The only
way to really figure it out is to experience it yourself…
→ Next Page: Find out how the Day of the Dead is celebrated in Central and South America...
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