Quinceañera Research Paper

Marked as a celebration of the transition from childhood to womanhood, quinceaneras have been a long-standing tradition among Latin American families. Though “quinceanera” literally means “fifteen year old girl,” the term has become more closely associated with the celebration itself, oftentimes by non-latinx people. Among Latin American families and culture, the celebration is often referred to as “fiesta de quince años” (fifteen year party) or simply a “quinces.” To avoid any confusion, I use “quinceanera” to refer to the celebration, rather than the individual, for the remainder of this paper. Historically, fifteen was seen as the age when Latina girls were ready for marriage, and the quinceanera celebrated that transition. While modern quinceaneras have drifted away from this initial intent, and now reflect more of a celebratory coming of age narrative, the marriage and wedding-related symbolism is still apparent.

A Quinceañera is a popular rite of passage ceremony in Mexico, celebrated exclusively by girls. The term comes from the Spanish words quince and años, which mean fifteen and years (cf. Barbezat n.p.). As the name says it stands for a girl turning 15, which marks the end of childhood and symbolizes the start of a new life chapter as a grown woman (cf. Avila García). Important features of the celebration are family, womanhood and integrating the girl in the community as a new adult. Furthermore, the Quinceañera is now also ready to take responsibilities, make her own decisions and has more rights than she had before turning 15, for example driving a car. She is gaining liberty with her 15th birthday, and is about to make new experiences, like

As a Latina girl, I grew up thinking I was going to experience the most memorable night of my life once I turned fifteen but that was not the case.

My birthday was celebrated with a wedding style cake and 15 candles marking my age. It was 15 different tiers with 5

All birthdays are special. Birthdays celebrate life and the passing of time. In a young Mexican girl life, there is no birthday more important then her quinceañera. The quinceañera is a celebration of a girl’s journey into womanhood. The story of my fifteenth birthday is contributed for a better understanding of how special it is to celebrate a girl’s transformation into a lady, and how it differs from any other birthday she celebrates.

Their family got together every opportunity they could. They had many traditional things they did as a family such as a gathering of family every year for her grandmother’s death, but as a celebration. Every year on Christmas Eve her family would also draw together to exchange gifts at different relative’s houses. The interviewee stated this became a tradition for her family because the married people in the family had to attend festivities at their spouses’ relatives. English and Spanish are both spoken in the Hispanics households. The majority of the older members of the family only speak Spanish. My interviewee stated that she did not know how to speak Spanish, but her mother did and fluently. She stated that her mother has always told her that she needed to know Spanish because that was her heritage, but she never felt it very necessary. The Hispanic culture celebrates the coming of age which is called a 15 or Quinceaneras. The Quinceanernas is usually a big production for the girls. The girls have escorts and dress in a formal type ballroom dress and have many of her friends and relatives there for the celebration. My interviewee stated that she did not have a Quinceaneras because she did not really get into it. She also stated that she got pregnant and did not want her parents to spend all that money for the celebration. The boys on the other hand do not go all out with this type of celebration, but instead celebrate at their

Throughout history, most young girls have a Quinceanera which is a special occasion and traditional celebration of a young girl turning fifteen on her birthday and making a transition from child to adult. Reached maturity and eligibility for marriage, which has been custom in most countries. A Quinceanera is something that started many years ago when a Spanish conqueror brought the tradition to Mexico and other countries. Throughout most countries, parents don’t celebrate their daughter’s fifteenth birthday by having a Quinceanera; they celebrated daughter’s birthday differently from other countries. While in countries like Mexico, Puerto Rico, Cuba, Central, and South America are the only ones who celebrate their daughter’s

The Hispanic culture values children’s turning of age just like the American culture does. In American culture, teenagers can buy cigarettes and lottery tickets at age eighteen. At age sixteen, most American teens (depending on the state) can get a permit and begin to learn to drive. In Hispanic culture, fifteen is the chosen age; they value the girl’s fifteenth birthday because that is the age that they believe the young girl changes and becomes an adult, a woman. When the girl celebrates her fifteenth birthday, they celebrate by having a big turning-of-age ceremony and reception which they call a Quinceñera. The Quinceñera is a big event, almost like a wedding for the young girl.

The conversion from childhood to womanhood is an extremely significant event in practically any culture. This event is known as a Quinceañera, also called fiesta de quince años, fiesta de quinceañera, quince años, quinceañero or commonly known as quince which is consisted of a celebration of a girl 's fifteenth birthday with cultural roots in Latin America but celebrated all over America. Nonetheless, Hispanics, recognize this occasion by doing the celebration of a Quinceañera. The Quinceañera tradition is believed to have initiated several years ago when the Spanish conquerors initiated the tradition in Mexico while others believe the tradition began with the Aztecs. During that ancestral home of the Aztec Indians, whose empire succeeded

In Spanish-speaking communities in the United States, girls do still have a Quinceanera, but it has to be altered in the way that it is done. There are many people that do not speak Spanish in the U.S., so there’s has to be a way to coordinate these people into the celebration, since mostly even have the English Language in common. Invitations for Quinceanera are made both in Spanish and In English. The invitations that are in English might read “Sweet 15” instead of a Quinceanera. Traditions that are done during the ceremony might not be done, they might be done before the ceremony. A young girl may chose to have a “Sweet 16” instead of the traditional Quinceanera. A “Sweet 16” is the coming of age party in the United

Many people have experienced a Rite of Passage at least once in their lives without recognizing it. Experiencing a Rite of Passage is necessary to becoming an adult. A Rite of Passage can be both formal and informal, they both indicate a shift from one state to another. Formal Rites of Passages are weddings, Quinceañeras, and Bar Mitzvah, whereas informal Rites of Passages are a person’s first kiss, first job, and or the loss of a person 's virginity. Julia Alvarez focuses on the process and idea of Quinceañeras in her article "Selections from Once Upon A Quinceañera." Also included in this article is Jaider Sánchez that witnessed the sexual part of the ritual and Isabella Martinez Wall who talks about the benefits of the ritual on her life.Although many people believe that experiencing a Rites of Passage is not directly related to one 's self identity, these rituals both informal and formal do in fact affect one 's personal identity.

A quilombo is a settlement founded by runaway slaves of African descent, the most famous of these communities was Palmares. This free territory was established in the 1600s and lasted about eighty-nine years, which is longer than any other quilombo in Brazil. In 1984, the director Carlos Diegues brought this overlooked history back into mainstream consciousness with his film Quilombo. The main historical topic covered in this film is the spirit and resistance of African people once they were separated from their homeland and subjected into slavery. History often portrays these kidnapped Africans as helpless and submissive but they did not give up their freedom quickly or silently. Diegues created this film not just to highlight the

nly with the publication of the first volume of Don Quixote, in 1605, did Cervantes achieve financial success and popular renown. Don Quixote became an instant success, and its popularity even spawned an unauthorized sequel by a writer who used the name Avellaneda. This sequel appeared several years after the original volume, and it inspired Cervantes to hurry along his own second volume, which he published in 1615. Cervantes died later that year.

The classic Spanish novel, Don Quixote, is an amusing and adventurous tale written by Miguel de Cervantes. Don Quixote is an aspiring knight errant who dreams of completing deeds similar to the characters in his romance novels. This story is an amusing and adventurous tale with creative plot and characters.

It was a big day for me. I was going to my cousins wedding, for I had failed to back out. I was the best man, but I don't know why. I think it was mostly the fact I was the only relative he had left in Cheyenne after his parents left.