Fiestas in Spain and Latin America: the year in celebrations, and the words that go with them
El calendario de fiestas · pick a month
24 de diciembreSpain, Latin AmericaNochebuenaChristmas Eve: the big family dinner. In much of Latin America, presents are opened at midnight.
Cenamoswe-dineen casaat homede mis padres.of my parents
theh-NAH-mohs en KAH-sah deh mees PAH-dres · “We’re having dinner at my parents’.”
31 de diciembreSpainNocheviejaNew Year’s Eve: one grape on each of the twelve midnight chimes, for twelve lucky months.
¿Tieneshave-youlas uvas?the grapes
TYEH-nes lahs OO-bahs · “Have you got the grapes?”
Short answer: a fiesta is both a party and a public holiday. Spain’s big dates are Christmas Eve (Nochebuena), New Year’s Eve (Nochevieja, with twelve grapes at midnight), Three Kings on 6 January (Reyes, when children get presents) and Easter week (Semana Santa). Every town also has its own patron-saint fiesta. In Latin America, add Día de Muertos in Mexico and Carnival across the region.
Las Navidades
From 24 December to 6 January
The Spanish Christmas season lasts two weeks and has three peaks. Families eat together on the 24th, not the 25th; New Year’s Eve ends with a grape on each of the twelve chimes; and the Three Kings bring presents on the night of 5 January.
22 DecEl Gordoel GOR-dohThe Christmas lottery draw, sung on TV by schoolchildren all morning.
24 DecNochebuenanoh-cheh-BWEH-nahFamily dinner; midnight mass is la Misa del Gallo.
28 DecLos Santos Inocenteslohs SAN-tohs ee-noh-THEN-tesSpain’s April Fool’s Day: pranks are inocentadas.
31 DecNocheviejanoh-cheh-BYEH-hahTwelve grapes at midnight, then parties until dawn.
6 JanReyesRREH-yesPresents, and roscón de Reyes cake with a hidden figure.
Semana Santa
Processions, pasos and nazarenos
Easter week (“holy week”) is Spain’s most visual fiesta, especially in Andalusia. Brotherhoods called cofradías carry huge floats (pasos) through the streets, followed by nazarenos in long robes and pointed hoods. The hoods are centuries older than, and unrelated to, any other use of that shape.
Los pasosthe floatssalengo-outa medianoche.at midnight
lohs PAH-sohs SAH-len ah meh-dyah-NOH-cheh · “The floats come out at midnight.”Salir, “to go out”, is the verb for a procession leaving its church.
Los costalerosthe bearersllevancarryel paso.the float
lohs kos-tah-LEH-rohs YEH-ban el PAH-soh · “The bearers carry the float.”Costaleros carry the weight on their necks, hidden under the float.
Se oyeone-hearsuna saeta.a saeta
seh OH-yeh OO-nah sah-EH-tah · “You can hear a saeta.”A saeta is an unaccompanied flamenco song sung from a balcony to a passing float.
Local fiestas
Every town has its own fiesta
Each town and city celebrates its patron saint (el patrón or la patrona) once a year with las fiestas: music, fireworks, food stalls and often a week off school. A few have become world-famous.
Latin America
Día de Muertos, Carnaval, Inti Raymi
Latin American fiestas mix Catholic dates with older Indigenous traditions. Three you will hear about most:
Mexico · 1–2 NovemberDía de MuertosDEE-ah deh MWEHR-tohs
A joyful festival, not a sad one: families build ofrendas with photos, marigolds, candles and the dead person’s favourite food, and spend the night at the cemetery.
Days of costumes, music and street parades before Lent; Barranquilla’s is the second-largest in the world.
Cusco, Peru · 24 JuneInti RaymiEEN-tee RRAI-mee
The Inca festival of the sun, revived in the 20th century and staged at the Sacsayhuamán fortress.
What to say
¡Feliz Navidad!, ¡felicidades!, ¡que aproveche!
Each occasion has its fixed phrase. Feliz (happy) becomes felices before a plural: ¡Felices fiestas!. Tap to hear it.
Days off and name days
Hacer puente and celebrating your santo
When a holiday falls on a Thursday or Tuesday, many Spaniards take the day in between off too: hacer puente, “to make a bridge”. And traditionally, people with a saint’s name also celebrate that saint’s day, el santo, as well as their birthday.
lunwork
marwork
miéwork
juefiesta
viepuente
sábweekend
domweekend
Holiday on Thursday 6 December (Día de la Constitución), bridge on Friday: a four-day weekend, un puente. When two holidays fall close together, it becomes un acueducto.
Hacemoswe-makepuentebridgeel viernes.on-Friday
ah-THEH-mohs PWEN-teh el BYEHR-nes · “We’re taking Friday off too.”Hacer puente: no article before puente.
Hoytodayesismi santo:my saint’s-daySan José.Saint Joseph
oy es mee SAN-toh, sahn hoh-SEH · “Today is my name day: Saint Joseph.”People called José or Josefa celebrate on 19 March, which is also Father’s Day in Spain.