On October 22, the second-floor foyer of Victoria College came alive with poetry, music, dancing and treats.
The occasion was Día de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead — a beloved holiday with Mexican origins, where celebrants gather to pay their respects and celebrate loved ones who have died.
The celebration usually takes place on Nov. 1 and 2, but its growing popularity has given rise to a kind of Día de los Muertos season, with different events starting at the end of October.
Central to Día de los Muertos is the “ofrenda”: an altar traditionally decorated with photos of the deceased, candles to guide their spirits, marigolds and food. The Victoria College ofrenda was tailored to include poetry by professors from the Department of Italian, Spanish, Portuguese & Latin American Studies (ISPLAS), along with candy skulls bearing their names.
The humorous décor was the inventive idea of Juan Carlos Rocha Osornio, associate professor, teaching stream in ISPLAS. Originally from Mexico’s state of Querétaro, Rocha Osornio’s Día de Muertos party is becoming an annual fixture at Victoria College.
Rocha Osornio says that the spirit of Día de los Muertos is infectious and is rapidly spreading outside of Mexico. It’s now an annual tradition in Guatemala, Ecuador, El Salvador and Costa Rica, as well as in countries with large Mexican communities such as Canada and the United States.
“Some of this is due to the influence of some recent movies, such as Coco and the James Bond film Spectre,” he says. “Spectre featured a parade that was not originally part of the celebration — but after it came out, yearly parades are held in Mexico thanks to the influence of this film.”
In another corner, visitors were treated to “pan de muertos,” the traditional sweet bread always eaten at this time of year. And a life-sized “Catrina” — an elegantly dressed female skeleton and the holiday’s most prominent symbol — presided over the festivities.
At the party, students from Rocha Osornio’s First-Year Foundations course made short presentations explaining the holiday’s significance. Entitled More Than Nachos and Tequila: Mexican History and Culture, the course looks at Mexico’s history through an interdisciplinary lens.
Ayaana Mariam, a first-year member of St. Michael’s College, discussed the symbolism attached to the ofrenda’s candy skulls and flowers in her presentation.
“The flowers are very vibrant and easy to see,” she said. “It’s thought that they guide the deceased back to the living, and that they also represent the actual life cycle. The sugar skulls are a way to respect the dead, but they also represent a link between Indigenous and Christian traditions.”
While Día de los Muertos falls during the Christian period of Allhallowtide — when Hallowe’en and All Saints’ Day are observed — it has also absorbed Indigenous influences, such as its vision of death as a natural continuation of life, not its end.
First-year University College member Gracy Dogra also discussed the fusion of traditions on display during the holiday, and, like Mariam, praised how Rocha Osornio’s class has introduced her to all aspects of Mexican life.
“When I was younger, Mexican culture was very glamorized,” she says. “This class has given me a more realistic picture of what it’s like there. It’s a great way to really understand Mexican history, as well as culture.”
Kishoth Koneswaran, a first-year member of Trinity College, agrees, saying: “Tourist life in Mexico can be quite glamorous, but the reality is more complicated than that. In our class we learn about poverty and globalization, as well as the richness and diversity of Mexico and its people.”
A professor of both Spanish language and Latin American culture, Rocha Osornio makes history and current events come alive. In the past, he’s hosted an Oscars party in Spanish, a tradition he plans to revive this awards season.
It will be an obviously festive occasion — much like Día de los Muertos which, despite its apparently mournful theme, is similarly full of fun.
“Of course, we mourn when someone passes,” Rocha Osornio says, “but we mourn differently. It’s important to stress that this holiday is not like Hallowe’en, which we tend to see as something scary, with frightening costumes and so forth. For us, sugar skulls and figures like the Catrina are not something to be scared of.”