Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) By Oliver Ubeda The ritual
of Dia de los Muertos dates back to the era of the Aztecs in
Mexico. According to scholars, when the Spaniards arrived in the
New World, they encountered the Aztecs performing pagan rituals,
wearing skull masks and dancing to honor the goddess
Mictecacihuatl, the Lady of the Dead. The Spaniards purposefully
attempted to integrate the local traditions into Catholicism,
after unsuccessfully trying to eradicate the festivities. They
decided to move and shorten the monthlong celebration from
August to November 1 and November 2 (All Saints’ Day and All
Souls’ Day), to coincide with the Catholic holidays. The
celebration remembers departed ones and has taken hold in its
own way in many Meso-American cultures. I became aware of Dia de
los Muertos in Los Angeles more than a decade ago, through
friends who were originally from Oaxaca, Mexico. They told me
about the celebration and took me to a traditional Oaxacan
restaurant that had an altar with a large