The document provides information about Día de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead, a traditional Mexican holiday honoring deceased loved ones. It is celebrated from October 31st to November 2nd to coincide with Halloween and All Saints' Day. Families build ofrendas or altars in homes with photos, favorite foods, flowers, and candles to welcome back spirits of the dead. Skulls, skeleton figurines, papel picado decorations, pan de muertos bread, and marigold flowers are common symbols of the holiday traditionally celebrated in Mexico and areas with Latino heritage.

1. Día de los Muertos

2. Preguntas Que es Los Dias de los Muertos, the Day of the Dead, is a traditional Mexico holiday honoring the dead. Los Dias de los Muertos is not a sad time, but instead a time of remembering and rejoicing. Cuando es It is celebrated every year at the same time as Halloween and the Christian holy days of All Saints Day and All Souls Day (November 1st and 2nd). Donde lo celebran It is celebrated in Mexico, Ecuador, Guatemala, and other areas in Central and South America populated with the Latino ethnic background. The Day of the Dead is also celebrated in areas of the United States, such as California, Texas, and many others, in which the Mexican/American heritage exists.

3. Tradiciones In the homes families arrange ofrenda's or "altars" with flowers, bread, fruit and candy. Pictures of the deceased family members are added. In the late afternoon special all night burning candles are lit - it is time to remember the departed - the old ones, their parents and grandparents. Altars should include: A picture of the one being remembered Items they were fond of Something to snack on Candles Flowers Gifts

4. Traditions: Food Pan de los Muertos Special loaves of bread are baked, called pan de muertos , and decorated with "bones.

5. Traditions: Flowers During los Dias de los Muertos the yellow marigold symbolizes the short duration of life. Other flowers commonly seen during this celebration include the white amaryllis, wild orchids, baby's breath and ruby coxcombs are offered as adornment and enticement for the returning spirits. Wreaths made of flowers, both real and plastic, are often placed on the grave sites.

6. Traditions: Papel Picado Papel Picado is a traditional art used to decorate homes, businesses, markets and altars in preparation for the Day of the Dead. The thin tissue paper images are usually cut in large quantities and hung in repetitious patterns.

7. Traditions: Skeletons Skeletons and skulls are found everywhere. Chocolate skulls, marzipan coffins, and white chocolate skeletons. Handmade skeleton figurines, called c alacas , are especially popular. Calacas usually show an active and joyful afterlife. Figures of musicians, generals on horseback, even skeletal brides, in their white bridal gowns marching down the aisles with their boney grooms.

8. Skulls Skulls symbolize death and rebirth. The Aztecs and Mesoamerican civilizations kept skulls as trophies and displayed them during rituals. The skulls were also used to honor the dead The skulls are typically grinning because they are laughing at death. They can be made from paper, wood, paper mache, tin, or sugar.

9. Calacas These are toy figurines for children. • They are used to introduce the concept of death to children so that they are not afraid of it.

10. Pan de Muertos This bread represents the soul of the departed. Sometimes it is in the shape of a skull and can be decorated with frosting or seeds. In Oaxaca the seeds represent happiness.

11. Flowers/marigold The flowers must be specific colors, orange and yellow, and are considered the flowers of the dead. The sweet smell and petals, which are used to mark a clear path, lure the souls back to homes and altars. The orange marigold was the flower that the Aztecs used to remember their dead. Its color represents the tones of the earth.

12. Las Velas / Candles Common colors for candles are purple (representing pain), white (for hope), and pink (meaning celebration). They are usually placed in the four cardinal points, making a cross. The light of the candle is used to illuminate the way for the dead as they return. Each candle represents a departed soul.

13. Copal Originating in pre-Hispanic times, the incense is used to attract souls. Copal is a special and expensive incense that can be found in Puebla. The whiter the incense, the better it is considered because it lasts longer. Incense is put on the altar last.

14. Food/Fruit and candy The altar may be decorated with special foods, candy, or beverages that the people enjoyed while they were alive. Chocolate may be added, especially in Oaxaca, famous for the mole sauce made with chocolate. You know that the dead have come back to visit an altar because sodas go flat, bread comes hard, and fruits get soft.

15. Masks By putting on a mask, a person can become another being, either alive or dead. Many indigenous people still depend on masks believing they are needed to make the rituals or dance performances effective. Masks can be made from wood, tin, cloth, leather, hemp, clay, feathers, shells, or paper mache. Some masks date back to 1000 BC.