Importance Of The Quinceañera In Hispanic Culture

The tradition of the Quinceañera is an important part of Hispanic culture. It is a ceremony on a girl’s fifteenth birthday that marks her passage to womanhood, to give thanks to God for his blessings, and to present a young woman to the community. Some refer to the celebration as, a female’s transition “from a girl to a señorita” (Arcaya & Salazar, 2004). Quinceañeras usually begin with a Misa de acción de gracias, or mass, at a Catholic church to give thanks for a completed childhood. The quince girl wears a formal floor length dress, traditionally white or light pink, as well as a diadema, a tiara or special headpiece. Girls are often given gifts that signify that she is about to join the adult word. The gifts usually include jewelry such as a ring with her birthstone, bracelet, or necklace, as well as a Bible and the libro y rosario, a prayer book and rosary. She is no longer given a child-sized rosary, but rather adult objects for worshiping as an adult (Cantú, 2002). During the mass, the priest blesses her new jewelry, and then the quince girl offers a bouquet of flowers to the Virgin Mary symbolizing purity and asking for continued guidance and protection. A girl might also give away a porcelain doll or childhood trinket to a younger sister or female relative to symbolize that she is leaving her childhood (Conger, n.d.). When the

They can be extremely religious or can be more of a social event with similarities to an American prom. No matter what traditions they are made up of, every celebration is extremely unique to the quince girl and her family. They will forever hold significance in the Hispanic culture because, “Every ritual preformed within the Quinceañera ceremony is meant to bring a young woman closer to her family, and they are a symbol of her transition to womanhood” (Plummer,