Some have more religious traditions and others have American traditions. Modern quinceañeras combine Spanish, Mexican, indigenous, and even new American traditions. The diversity in the United States influences these traditions. Many Latino families may be unsure about celebrating their culture in the United States because of how different the culture is. This can be related to how American culture can influence others. There is a court of honor, which includes 14 young men and women who are friends of the honoree. Some traditions are explained with patterns of income of families and the circulation of knowledge/traditions.

“Sweet 15? Quincearnera and work of Eva Castellanoz.” Faces: People, Places, and Cultures (July-Aug. 2017): p. 22+. General OneFile, 20 Oct 2018.

The diversity in the United States affects quinceañeras because gender, sexuality, and race are represented differently in another culture. This coming of age for young women allows for them to make decisions by themselves like their curfew, who their friends are, and how they dress. They expect to be treated like more of an adult. This is actually related more to the American culture and its behavioral norms. In a Latino community, the parents exert more control over their adolescent’s behavior. They value close supervision and strict rules. These norms and values influence Latino parents to restrict dating. However, in the American culture, this is normal for teenagers to date so Latino girls often just do it behind their parents’ back. Latino parents are very controlling and enforce family events and close family ties and obligations. They have responsibilities like cooking and cleaning. This adheres to traditional gender roles

Romo, Laura F, Rebeca Mireles-Rios and Gisselle Lopez-Tello. “Latina Mothers’ and Daughters’ Expectations for Autonomy at Age 15 (La Quinceañera) .” Sage Journals 29.2 (2013): 271-294.

The purpose of a quinceañera is to mark a young girl’s rite of passage from childhood into young womanhood when she turns 15. This is about gaining independence as well as possibly dating. It’s suppose to increase communication and decision making between the mother and daughter. Many mothers and daughters perceive this to be a religious event. Daughter think of this more as a time of celebration with a party after. There’s different explanations of a quinceañera because it’s based-on experience. There’s different meanings of this celebration because of the many different cultures in the world which can be related to religion and beliefs of the family.

“Sweet 15? Quincearnera and work of Eva Castellanoz.” Faces: People, Places, and Cultures (July-Aug. 2017): p. 22+. General OneFile, 20 Oct 2018.

Quinceañeras are celebrated in Latino communities when a girl turns 15. They are mainly celebrated in Mexico, Cuba, Brazil, and Puerto Rico. Some believe this has been a celebration since the Aztecs, which is now Mexico. Others believe this celebration was from European traditions when the Spanish came to America. This explains the Catholic religious traditions. The honoree has always worn a special dress and a headpiece which is a corona. This represents the girl’s style, personality and matches with the dress. This coming of age ceremony is very important in some cultures. Other countries celebrate this step to adulthood as well, for example, a Jewish bat mitzvah.

“Sweet 15? Quincearnera and work of Eva Castellanoz.” Faces: People, Places, and Cultures (July-Aug. 2017): p. 22+. General OneFile, 20 Oct 2018.

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