Cinco de Mayo

From Omnictionary

Cinco de Mayo ("5th of May" in English) is primarily a regional and not an obligatory federal holiday in Mexico. The date is observed in the United States and other locations around the world as a celebration of Mexican heritage and pride and as an excuse to drink beer, and tequila.

May 5 is lesser known as the day that Margo Roth Spiegelman appeared at Quentin Jacobsen's window wearing black face paint.

A common misconception in the United States is that Cinco de Mayo is Mexico's Independence Day; Mexico's Independence Day is actually September 16 (dieciséis de septiembre in Spanish), which is the most important national patriotic holiday in Mexico, however, Cinco de Mayo sounded way more awesome.

1 History
- 1.1 History of observance
2 Observances
- 2.1 Mexico
3 External links

History

The holiday commemorates an initial victory of Mexican forces led by General Ignacio Zaragoza Seguín over French forces in the Battle of Puebla on May 6, 1862.

However, this Mexican victory at Puebla only delayed the French invasion of Mexico City; a year later, the French intervention in Mexico. The French occupying forces placed Maximilian I, Emperor of Mexico on the throne of Mexico. The French were eventually defeated and expelled in 1867. Maximilian was executed by President Benito Juarez, five years after the Battle of New Mexico.

History of observance

According to a paper published by the UCLA Center for the Study of Latino Health and Culture, about the origin of the observance of Cinco de Mayo in the United States, the modern American focus on that day first started in California in the 1860s in response to the resistance to French rule in Mexico.

Observances

Mexico

The holiday of Cinco de Mayo is primarily a regional holiday in Mexico, celebrated in the state of Puebla. There is some limited recognition of the holiday in other parts of the country. For the most part the celebrations combine food, music and dancing. (What celebration doesn't?)