Hispania

by Johny Abreu

​ Día de los Muertos- some important facts:

​It is a tradition meso-americana, mainly celebrated in Guatemala, Bolivia, Perú, Ecuador, and México.

• In Ecuador, it is a solemn remembrance to those who have passed away. People gather at graveyards bringing food, fruits, and flowers; its very traditional food is Las Guaguas de pan or bread babies, sweet treats with coloring frosting y colada morada (a purple boiling drink) made of papaya, pineapples, cornflower and herbs.

• ​​Bolivian people go to cemeteries to paint graves and decorate them; they also prepare bread, but it is called tanta-wawas, which in Quéchua language means babies made out bread.

Multiple Choice

El día de los Muertos se celebra en

• Bolivia, Perú,

  Guatemala, México y

  Venezuela.

• Bolivia, Perú,

  Ecuador, Guatemala y

  México.

Poll

Tantawawas is babies made out of bread in____.

• Spanish language.

• Quéchua language.

• an indigenous language.

• ​In Perú, a lechón (a pork) is part of the offering and the horse of bread to help the dead go up to the sky.

• But people from Guatemala honor their dead flying a big and colorful kites named barriletes.

In México, its pre-hispanic origin is based on the belief that the Death is the beginning of a trip to meet with gods Mictlantecuhtli and Mictecacihuatl of Mictlán.

​

​Besides setting up the altar,

Mexicans prepare the Bread

of the Dead and sugar skulls;

use vibrant flowers,

confetti or paper picado,

portraits and candles.

Multiple Select

Which ones of these things are not

in the Mexican celebration of the Day of the Dead?

• Barrilletes

• Tantawawas

• lechón

• altar

• bread of the dead

​The last 2 elements to consider in this traditional celebration are the famous female skull- La Catrina, a 100-year-old character created by the cartoonist José Guadalupe Posada as a social criticism to those who became rich and denied and despised their indigenous roots.

​The other one is el alebrije, a fantasy creature born of fevered dreams and created by the indigenous Mexican artist Pedro Linares (1906-1992); some assume it is a spiritual creature as a guardian and others just a colorful sculpture, powerful which resembles gryphons, dragons or a kind of mythological beings connected to nature.

Multiple Select

Pick the right options:

• La Catrina was created by Luis Linares.

• La Catrina was created by

  José Guadalupe Posada.

• El Alebrije was created by Luis Linares.

• El Alebrije was created by

  José Guadalupe Posada.

Since 2003, the celebration of Day of the Dead was declared as World inmaterial Heritage by UNESCO for being one of the oldest and strongest cultural-indigenous expressions celebrated so far.

​Thanks for sharing and celebrating with us.

​

​Johny Abreu