| The Quinceañera
A Quinceañera celebrates a girl's coming of age on
her 15th birthday (also called her Quince Años). It's
a tradition celebrated throughout Hispanic communities around
the world. This is an important moment in a young woman's
life, considered to be as important as her wedding day. Let
the experience of Park Cities Limousine make the day trouble
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The celebration began with the native peoples of Latin America.
In the Mayan and Aztec cultures, a girl nearing the age of
15 was taken from her family to prepare to enter womanhood
and marriage. She would learn the history and traditions of
her people while learning how to be a responsible adult in
society and a good wife in marriage. When the girl returned
to her community, she entered as a woman amidst great celebration.
When the Conquistadors arrived, the Quinceañera was
integrated into the Catholic religion and 400 years later
it remains a central rite of passage from childhood to adulthood.
Today, rather than be taken from their families, the girls
prepare for adulthood by attending classes and group discussions
on religion, family, and adulthood, often for six months or
longer. Preparations for the Quinceañera event will
begin up to two years in advance and involves as much planning
as the wedding, which it resembles. The girl wears a long
gown of white or pastel colors (such as pink or lavender),
with gloves, flat shoes, and a tiara, and carries a bouquet
of flowers. Relatives and friends arrive with gifts in the
morning. Musicians play music and Las Mañanitas, a
birthday song. Then friends and family drive or are driven
to the church for a special birthday mass.
Fourteen couples walk down the aisle, each representing one
year of the girl's life. She is escorted down the aisle by
her parents. During the hour-long mass, special individuals
will speak and make special presentations of gifts. The bouquet
is given in gratitude to the Virgin Mary, and the girl ends
the mass with a traditional speech. After mass, there is a
party with Mariachi and modern music, food, and dancing. Traditional
foods served are mole, rice, chicken or turkey, tamales, and
a large cake. During the party, the young woman will present
her younger sister with a porcelain doll, representing that
she has entered the next stage of her life and is leaving
childhood to her sister. Her father will change her flat shoes
into shoes with heels, symbolic of his acceptance that she
is now a young lady.
The Quinceañera Celebration
The Dance
The first dance goes to the young lady and her father. After
that dance, he will escort her to her chambelan (boyfriend),
so that they may dance. After this day, she will be allowed
to have boyfriends and go out on dates. In the United States,
the typical Quinceañera celebration can cost many thousands
of dollars. In Mexico and Central America, the celebration
is simpler than in the United States. Wherever it is held,
the cost is shouldered by the girl's extended family. Aunts,
uncles, grandparents, parents, and cousins will donate items,
time, and money. It is considered an honor to be asked to
participate. More than just a birthday party, this is a celebration
of womanhood, which helps the young woman prepare for the
responsibility that comes with adulthood.
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