Dia de los Muertos, or the Day of the Dead, is a spiritual celebration and a time to remember loved ones that were lost, said University of Idaho Assistant Professor of Spanish Lori Celaya.
Celaya said the holiday, which is held on Nov. 1 and 2, is celebrated primarily in Mexico, but many parts of Latin America also use this time to honor and remember those that have died.
This celebration takes place in a variety of ways, but Celaya said the most common way to celebrate ancestors is through the construction of altars.
Celaya said common items found on altars include marigolds, sugar skulls, the honoree”s favorite foods or an item that represents who they were as a person.
Leathia Botello | Courtesy
The first Day of the Dead altar made at UI was created in 2011 to honor a student who passed away.
Since the idea of the celebration is to honor the spirits of individuals who have died, Celaya said when spirits come to visit their families and see the altars full of familiar foods or scents, they will feel welcomed and understand they are remembered.
Celaya said visiting the graves and cemeteries where loves ones are buried is also a large part of the celebration and families begin going as early as the week before November.
During these visits, Celaya said families plant flowers and take the time to paint the tombstones of their loved ones.
Although many people think of death as a macabre occurrence, Celaya said The Day of the Dead is meant to be a lively celebration, which is why it”s not uncommon to see families picnicking around the graves or children playing while family members spend time praying or talking about the person they are there to honor.
In addition to altars and visiting the graves of loved ones, Celaya said other aspects of the Day of the Dead celebrations include Calaveras.
Celaya said these are light-hearted verses about people who are still living and what will happen to them when they”re dead.
“They”re funny, they”re satirical, they”re ironic,” Celaya said. “It”s a way in which we can laugh at each other and laugh at our fear of death.”
Leathia Botello, coordinator of the Office of Multicultural Affairs, said UI”s Dia de Los Muertos celebrations are the collaborative efforts of the Department of Modern Languages and the Office of Multicultural Affairs.
Botello said UI”s first Day of the Dead celebration, which was held in 2011, was meant to honor a student, Shantelle Scott, who had died in a car accident the previous summer.
Scott was a member of the Gamma Alpha Omega sorority, and Botello said many of her friends and peers were having a difficult time coping with her death.
Botello said the university arranged their first day of the Dead celebration to help her friends and loved ones through the grieving process.
Since that first year, Botello said the university has held Day of the Dead celebrations encouraging students to create their own altars for their deceased loved ones or even for people that have had an impact on their lives.
Botello said last year”s celebrations included performing a play, making and painting sugar skulls and writing and reading Calaveras to participating students.
Faculty members support the celebrations, but Celaya said they like to keep the events student led.
Although the university was unable to hold Day of the Dead celebrations this year, Celaya said both the Department of Modern Languages and the Office of Multicultural Affairs hope to put together a larger, more extensive celebration next year.
Lizz Diaz can be reached at [email protected]