Day of the Dead (Dia de los Muertos) upcoming
The Day of the Dead, which is a Mexican holiday, but also big in the U.S., especially among Hispanics, will be observed Tuesday and Wednesday (Nov. 1 and 2), as family and friends gather to pray for and remember friends and family members who have died.
The celebration is held in connection with the Catholic holidays of All Saints’ Day (Nov. 1) and All Souls’ Day (Nov. 2).
Traditions connected with the holiday 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.
One Rio Grande Valley event will be held at the University of Texas-Brownsville. It will begin with a Day of the Dead parade at 7 p.m. on Wednesday at the Education and Business Complex Courtyard.
Participants are encouraged to dress in traditional Day of the Dead costumes.
Sociology students will lead the procession dressed in costumes with props that represent actual Day of the Dead traditions from Guatemala, Yucatan Mexico, New Orleans and Los Angeles.
Live music for the parade will be provided by UTB’s Estudiantina Azul y Fuego, who will play ‘Hasta Los Muertos Salen a Bailar/Even the Dead Rise Up to Dance,’ by folksinger Tish Hinojosa.
The parade will end at the Science Engineering and Technology Building Courtyard. Several Day of the Dead traditions from around the world will be presented by sociology students immediatly following the parade.
The presenations wil include Day of the Dead customs from places such as Guatamala, Japan, the U.S., the Phillippines, Ecuador and Mexico.
Scholars trace the origins of the Modern Mexican holiday to indigenous observances dating back hundrees of years and to an Aztec festival dedicated to a goddess called Mictecacihuatl.
In Brazil, Dia de Finados is a public holiday that 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 dead loved ones.
Similar observances occur elsewhere in Europe, and similarly themed celebrations appear in many Asian and African cultures.
