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Every year on May 10, Mexico celebrates Mother’s Day.
This is an international holiday dedicated to mothers around the world. Mother’s Day was first declared by the governor of West Virginia (USA) in 1910.
Not so long time after, other countries celebrating Mother’s Day included Mexico, Canada, China, Japan, South America, and Africa. In different countries the dates were adopted differently.
Mother’s Day in Mexico
Mother’s Day began to be celebrated in Mexico in 1922, when the government of Alvaro Obregon decided to adopt the tradition of celebrating Mother’s Day from the United States. The conservative government tried to use it to support the traditional role of mothers in society.
With the coming to power of Lazaro Cardenas, who adhered to socialist views, the role of Mother’s Day has changed. It began to be used to emphasize the role of the family in national development and to reduce the influence of the Catholic Church on women.
In the 1940s, the holiday was used to encourage women to take a more active role in society. And some believed that in this way the government was trying to secularize the cult of the Virgin Mary.
In Mexico, this holiday is considered a real tribute to and love for a woman. On this day, at the invitation of children, musicians perform their favorite songs for their mothers.
Officially, May 10 is considered a working day, and yet many are in a hurry to congratulate their mothers and beloved women on this holiday, taking leave from work early. Traditionally, in the evening in all Mexican families, the holiday is celebrated with a noisy feast.
How to celebrate?
To demonstrate their love and respect for their mother, Mexicans traditionally begin the celebration with the song “Las mañanitas” (Spanish mañanita – dawn). It is performed, as a rule, a cappella, but some hire a trio or even a mariachi band. Most families on Mother’s Day converge at their parents’ house in order to spend as much time as possible with the heroes of the occasion. On this day, a magnificent table is necessarily prepared or the whole company goes to a restaurant. On Mother’s Day, flowers and gifts are obligatory. Many stores even offer special discounts to encourage kids to buy.
The celebration takes place not only in the family circle. The city authorities organize celebrations, schools host concerts organized by children for their mothers. They sing songs, read poetry, dedicate dances to the dearest people. Everyone participates in the concerts – from the smallest to the guys who are finishing their studies. In many schools, on the eve of the holiday, children make crafts or even home decorations and embroidery as a gift for their mothers.
Here is a short video to watch on this subject:
