Mexico Archives - Vivian Lawry

In this last blog of the giving thanks series, I’ll focus mainly on the Americas and nearby islands, but with a P.S. related to American history.

Indigenous North Americans

Centuries before Europeans landed at Plymouth Rock or Newfoundland, agricultural communities along the Eastern seaboard held annual harvest celebrations every year. Though the details varied among tribes and climates, all involved giving thanks for a successful harvest and making preparations for the coming winter.

People preserved food they’d grown or gathered, such as cattails, corn, pawpaws, pumpkins, and fish. They also repaired and reinforced structures to face the coming winter weather. Festivities included music, dancing, and games.

Puerto Rico

After Puerto Rico became a territory of the United States in the late 19th century, its residents adopted many of the traditions of the American holiday, blending them with Puerto Rican culture. The focus is on a Thanksgiving meal that fuses flavors from both cuisines, with large family gatherings. Puerto Ricans celebrate Thanksgiving on the same day as Americans (the fourth Thursday in November).

But Puerto Ricans have put their own twist on the traditional Thanksgiving Day feast: there’s usually turkey—whether a roasted, seasoned pavochón or a turkey stuffed with mofongo (a mashed plantain dish)—but roast pork is also often on the menu, accompanied with more plantains, rice, and beans. Many Puerto Ricans embrace the same Black Friday shopping frenzy on the following day, and Christmas preparations also start around then.

Canadian Thanksgiving

Like its US counterpart, the first European Canadian Thanksgiving brought Canadian pilgrims together to give thanks for their new lives in the New World. This celebration took place in 1578, when English explorer Martin Frobisher held a feast in what’s now Nunavut to give thanks for the safety of his fleet. This feast actually pre-dated the first American Thanksgiving. (Historians believe that the first American Thanksgiving took place in 1621, over 40 years later.)

*Many Canadian communities hold harvest fairs at Thanksgiving.*

Today, Canadian Thanksgiving takes place on the second Monday of October. (First officially recognized in 1879 (November 6), it was moved to the second Monday in October in 1957.) Much like the U.S., it’s a time for gratitude, reflection, and delicious food shared with loved ones.

While Indigenous peoples had long celebrated harvest festivals, it was Loyalists who moved to Canada from the American colonies during the Revolutionary War who introduced turkey, along with some of the other customs from the American Thanksgiving we’re familiar with today. Pumpkin pie, stuffing, and sweet potatoes would certainly be familiar, though traditional poutine (french fries topped with cheese curds and gravy) sometimes appears as well.

Of course, Canada’s Thanksgiving comes with a Canadian twist—think butter tarts and the Canadian Football League’s Thanksgiving Day Classic.

Mexico: Día de Acción de Gracias

Many communities in Mexico gather to distribute food on *Día de Acción de Gracias*

With a regional twist on traditional American Thanksgiving dishes, such as mole poblano and tamales, apple pie empanadas and turkey enchiladas, many Mexicans embrace the spirit of giving thanks while spending time with family and friends. Because Mexico is so close to the United States climate-wise, Día de Acción de Gracias usually occurs on the same day as American Thanksgiving.

While not widely celebrated throughout Mexico, some cities host small community events and tourists-targeted activities, while others observe religious services and harvest celebrations. Traditions may include Mexican elements such as piñatas or pan de muerto, reflecting a non-traditional but increasingly observed blend of customs. As more families travel to and from Mexico during the holiday season, Thanksgiving observances are spreading to more parts of the country.

Brazil: Dia de Ação de Graças

Brazilian Thanksgiving (Dia de Ação de Graças in Portuguese) follows the American tradition of a harvest feast on the fourth Thursday in November. It became a national Brazilian holiday in 1949 as a way to unify the Brazilian people. The Brazilian ambassador to the U.S. saw Americans enjoying a day of eating delicious food and giving thanks and decided that Brazilians should do the same. It’s been an unofficial holiday ever since.

Brazil is the only country in South America that celebrates Thanksgiving.

Though still not widely celebrated in Brazil, Dia de Ação de Graças is catching on each year. A Thanksgiving feast in Brazil includes many American staples, including turkey (known as peru in Portuguese), mashed potatoes (purê de batatas), and apple pie (torta de maçã). Brazilian specialties, such as the country’s national dish, feijoada, might make an appearance as well. Besides food and family, there are parades and church services to give thanks.

Thanksgiving in Barbados

The people of Barbados celebrate Thanksgiving with a Crop Over festival at the end of the sugarcane harvest. This is typically held at the end of July through early August. This is a 300-year-old tradition that goes back to those who worked on sugarcane plantations and celebrated the harvest season. The celebrations include dancing, eating, and games.

Crop Over festivities begin with a ceremonial delivery of the Last Canes and crowning the Festival King and Queen. During Cohobblopot, Kadooment bands showcase their skills, and calypsonians perform to huge audiences. Local businesses offer their wares at the Bridgertown Market and sponsor calypso tents. Kadooment Day, the final day of the celebration, culminates in a carnival parade, with huge floats, elaborate dance troupes, and competing calypso bands.

Grenada West Indies

Every October 25, people on this West Indian island celebrate their own Thanksgiving Day, which marks the anniversary of a joint Caribbean and U.S. military invasion of Grenada in 1983. The troops’ arrival restored order after an army coup ousted and executed Maurice Bishop, Grenada’s socialist leader, and put the island under martial law.

While stationed on the West Indian island that fall, U.S. soldiers told local citizens about the upcoming American holiday and some of its traditions. To show their own gratitude, many people in towns and villages hosting the soldiers invited them to dine and celebrate with them, even surprising the soldiers with such non-native island foods as turkey, cranberry, and potatoes. Today, the Grenadian Thanksgiving features formal ceremonies of remembrance in the cities, but largely goes unmarked in more rural areas.

Liberian Thanksgiving

In the 1820s, free Blacks from American purchased Cape Mesurado and settled in the new colony of Liberia. In the 1880s, the Liberian government adopted the first Thursday in November as Thanksgiving, to express gratitude for the year’s blessings. (Unlike Thanksgiving events in other parts of the world, Liberian Thanksgiving isn’t a harvest festival; their harvests are often over by November.) Because English is the primary language of Liberia, celebrants greet each other with “Happy Thanksgiving!”

*Students at a religious Thanksgiving service*

Liberian Thanksgiving combines American traditions with religious rituals to thank God for blessings from the year, including food, health, and good weather. Today, it’s a largely Christian holiday. After services, churches auction off baskets filled with local fruits like papayas and mangoes.

The typical meal consists of a bird (sometimes chicken) with plenty of spices as well as mashed cassava and other traditional West African foods like jollof rice (similar to Cajun jambalaya) or fufu (cassava dough served with meat stew).

Celebrations are lively, marked by food but also music, dancing, and a deep sense of community.

Bottom Line: As these examples attest, giving thanks isn’t the province solely of the United States. Try pursue the topic of giving thanks in Israel, Ghana, Rwanda, and any other locations that interest you.

For more than a month, people have been bombarded with ads, displays, and commercials about things to buy for Halloween: costumes, candy, house decorations, yard displays, etc., etc., etc. Indeed, more money is spent on Halloween than any other holiday except Christmas—which I find pretty horrifying in and of itself.

This insanity is what inspired Tim Burton to write Nightmare Before Christmas.

But that’s just the tip of the horror: evil witches, vampire bats, the walking dead, haunted houses, werewolves, and not-nearly-as-friendly-as-Casper ghosts. The scary side of the season is why the previous four blogs on this website have been about evil twins, being buried alive, satanism, and vampires.

Hard on the heels of Halloween comes Dia de Muertos, The Day of the Dead (though it seems to me it ought to be Days, plural). It begins at midnight on October 31 and continues through November 1 and 2.

Writers please note:although November 1 and 2 coincide with the Catholic holidays of All Saint’s Day and All Soul’s Day, respectively, the Day of the Dead is not now tied to any particular religion. It is more of a cultural holiday than a religious one.

Scholars have traced the modern holiday back hundreds of years, particularly to an Aztec festival dedicated to the goddess Mictecacihuatl. People can, and have, personalized it, integrating elements into their own cultural and/or religious practices. It is nearly opposite of all that Halloween stands for.

A representation of Mictlantecuhtli, also known as the Divine Mother or Santa Muerte Narco

In Aztec mythology, Mictlan was the underworld and after-death destination for the majority of people. The ruler of Mictlan was
Mictlantecuhtli, who held the bones used to create all of humanity.
Mictlancíhuatl was his wife, who watches over the souls of the dead.

A popular costume is La Catrina, a character that was created by Mexican lithographer and illustrator Jose Guadalupe Posada (1852–1913). La Catrina is a female skeleton who is dressed in the style of upper-class women of the period.

Dio de Muertos is celebrated throughout Mexico, especially the central and southern regions. It is also celebrated by people of Mexican heritage worldwide. Although the details of the celebration vary by location, the central elements are the same: celebrating the lives of those who have died with feasting, parties, costumes, and activities the dead enjoyed in life.

October 31 is usually devoted to preparing to welcome the souls of loved ones. A home altar is created, decorated with candles and lots of food and drink: fruits, peanuts, turkey mole, tortillas, and Day of the Dead breads (pan de muerto) ; sodas, cocoa, and water. These offerings are called ofrenda, though that can also refer to the altar itself. The breads often have icing that resembles and bones across the top. Buckets of flowers, especially wild marigolds (cempasúchitl), are used as well.

Copal incense was burned in Mesoamerica in ancient times.
The word copal is derived from the Nahuatl word *copalli*, which means “incense.”

Traditional altars include very specific elements, each with a distinct purpose.

A candle for each relative remembers, so that the light will guide them.
Flowers to represent the fleetingness of life.
Salt and water to purify and refresh the souls tired from the journey.
Copal incense to raise prayers to God.
A photo or drawing of each relative, often with a favorite piece of clothing or toy.

The holiday begins when the souls of dead children and miscarried babies are allowed to return to their families for twenty-four hours, on Día de los Inocentes. Toys, candies, and miniature skulls are added to the home altars for these angelitos. On November 2, the spirits of adults arrive. The miniature skulls are replaced by full-sized ones. For adults, the altar includes cigarettes, shots of mezcal, and/or the favorite drink of the dead person(s).

A small
*calavera de azucar* (sugar skull) for a small child’s *ofrenda*

Sugar art was learned from Italian missionaries in the 17th century, who made sugar lambs and angels to adorn altars in Catholic Churches at Easter. Clay molded sugar skulls, angels, and sheep date back to the 18th century. As described on mexicansugarskull.com, “Sugar skulls represented a departed soul, had the name written on the forehead and was placed on the home Ofrenda [altar] or gravestone to honor the return of a particular spirit.” According to the same source, “Sugar skull art reflects the folk art style of big happy smiles, colorful icing and sparkly tin and glittery adornments.”

Now they are represented by jewelry and masks.

Typically, the holiday activities includes a trip to the cemetery/graveyard where loved ones are buried. Besides clean-up and maintenance of the gravesite, these visits include a party, often with local music, games, card playing, feasting, and decorating the graves.

Although a Mexican holiday, the Day of the Dead is celebrated worldwide. In the United States, Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona feature pretty traditional celebrations.

These Catrinas dressed like Adelitas, women who fought in the Mexican Revolution.

California, too, has strong historical ties to Mexico and Dia de Muertos is celebrated widely across the state—though the celebrations sometimes add a political element, such as an altar to honor the victims of the Iraq War.

The parade in Mexico City this year honored migrants who have died.

Virtually every big city has a festival and events. For example, the historic Forest Hills Cemetery in Boston’s Jamaica Plain neighborhood hosts an annual festival celebrating the cycle of life and death. People bring food, flowers, pictures, and mementos to add to a huge decorated altar. It includes traditional music and dance.

Bottom line for writers: consider a scene involving Day of the Dead celebrations. Perhaps it is a tradition for one or more characters, or perhaps the protagonist just happens to be in a city where the celebration is taking place. Think broadly!

Vivian Lawry

Writer

Mexico

GIVING THANKS AROUND THE WORLD (Part 3: The West and Beyond)