Dia de Los Muertos: Honoring Our Loved Ones Through Ritual, Color, and Memory

Join us on November 1 for Missoula’s annual Día de los Muertos celebration at Confluence Center! As we get ready for this year’s event, our friend Antonio Ibarra-Olivares shares the history and traditions behind Día de los Muertos, including the significance of the ofrenda and the many ways this observance brings people together to honor loved ones and celebrate cultural heritage.

Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) is an ancestral, Indigenous multi-day cultural holiday primarily observed all throughout Mexico and parts of Central America. During its observance, families and communities come together to honor and remember their loved ones who have passed. At the heart of the celebration is the ofrenda – a beautifully decorated altar that creates a space where the living can reconnect with the spirits of loved ones.

According to tradition, as souls return to the world of living, they are nourished by the essence of the food, drink, and cherished items left for them on the altar. This ancestral cultural practice integrates pain with joy, and memory with the yearning of a reunion with our loved ones who are no longer here.

For Mexicans, death is not seen as the ultimate end or something to fear. Death is viewed as a natural transition to another life, a central element of the cycle of life and an opportunity for celebration, memory and renewal of ties with our absent loved ones.

In recognition of its deep cultural significance, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) declared Dia de Los Muertos an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2008.

When is Dia de los Muertos Celebrated?

Dia de Muertos is celebrated on Nov. 1 and 2. However, festivities are not only observed during these two days. Celebrations can begin days before depending on family, home and/or community traditions passed down through generations or new traditions incorporated by newer generations.

Day of the Dead observance days:

• October 27: Remembering pets that have passed away. This is a new date that has been moderately incorporated by pet lovers and owners into the days of observance.
• October 28-29: Honoring those who died tragically, through violence or accidents.
• October 30: Honoring the spirits of children who have been forgotten or who died without family.
• October 31: Remembering children who died without being baptized.
• November 1: “All Saints’ Day,” offerings are made for children that passed away at a young age.
• November 2: “Day of the Faithful Departed,” offerings are dedicated to all loved ones who have passed away.

Throughout these days, families add photographs of their loved ones to the altar and light new candles as the observance continues.

The Altar: A Bridge Between Worlds

The altar, or ofrenda provides a space for people to revisit with the spirits of their passed loved ones. Whether set up at home or at a gravesite, altars are adorned with photos of family members and decorated with a variety of bright and colorful traditional and cultural arrangements. Two elements in particular help guide spirits home:

• The cempasuchil, or marigold flower, has been used in this tradition for thousands of years. Indigenous communities in Mexico would scatter its petals in a path from home to gravesite. Its bright yellow-orange color and strong fragrance are believed to help light the way for souls returning to the altar.
• The burning of copal, a tree resin incense that’s been used for millennia by Indigenous communities of Mesoamerica during ceremonial practices such as Día de Muertos. Its rich aroma is used to aromatize the altar and help guide the souls of loved ones to the altar.

What You’ll Find on an Ofrenda

On the altars, we traditionally place certain items that reflect a blend of beliefs and practices that have been passed down for generations.

• Photos & Portraits (fotos y retratos): The portraits help guide the spirit of our loved ones and serve as a bridge, connecting the world of the dead with the world of the living.
• Candles (velas y veladoras): The flame signifies light, faith, and hope. They help guide souls to the altars and illuminate their return home.
• Incense (copal e incienso): The aroma is used to purify the environment and guide souls to the altar.
• Glass of Water (vaso de agua): It is offered to souls to quench their thirst after their long journey back home and to strengthen their return.
• Salt (sal): It is placed throughout the altar so that the visiting spirit does not get lost or corrupted during its stay in the world of the living. 
• Marigold flower (flor de cempasúchil): It is believed that its aroma and bright color help souls reach the altar.
• Bread of the Dead (pan de muerto): Traditional bread whose shape represents the cycle of life and death.
• Fruit (fruta): In addition to the favorite foods of the deceased, there are traditional fruits that are placed on the altar.
• Favorite Foods (comida): It is customary to place our loved ones favorite foods.
• Ash or Salt Cross (cruz de sal o ceniza) : When the soul reaches the altar it helps atone and purify for its pending sins.
• Sugar Skulls (calaveritas): Made of sugar, chocolate or amaranth, and serve as a decorative piece given its traditional colors and elements.

The Meaning Behind the Colors

Sugar skulls and other altar decorations often lean on a specific color palette, each shade carrying its own symbolism:

• Yellow (amarillo): Represents the sun and unity, reminding us of our equality under its light.
• White (blanco): This color signifies spirit, hope, and purity in decorations.
• Blue (azul): Represents water, quenching the thirst of our spirits.
• Green (verde): symbolizes the natural cycle of life and growth, especially for those who left us in their youth.
• Pink (rosado): This joyful color represents happiness.
• Purple (morado): For this occasion, purple stands for mourning, grief, and suffering.
• Red (rojo): symbolizes blood and life.

La Catrina and El Catrin: Icons of Day of the Dead

If you’ve spent any time around Dia de los Muertos, you have probably spotted La Catrina either as a figure placed on an ofrenda or its image reflected on papel picado. La Catrina is commonly portrayed as an elegantly dressed skeletal figure, representing death as a natural and common part of life and a satire of elite vanity. It is an iconic figure and symbol during Day of the Dead and it is also an icon of Mexican culture. 

La Catrina is also a common costume Mexicans wear during Day of the Dead. People often wear elegant clothing and elaborate, colorful face paint inspired by La Catrina. The Catrines are their male counterparts and are also dressed in a sophisticated and elegant manner. 

Its creation is attributed to José Guadalupe Posada, a renowned Mexican painter and illustrator. Posada depicted the skull figure in a 1912 engraving that became popular after his death. In his earliest depictions, La Catrina was shown wearing only a hat, but over the years, the use of elegant attire was adopted.

La Catrina’s image was later incorporated into the artwork of the famous Mexican muralist, Diego Rivera, and it can be spotted in some of his famous murals. This figure did not become popular until 1947, when Diego Rivera renamed this character as “La Catrina” and added a complete outfit that enriched its cultural representation in his mural “Dream of a Sunday Afternoon in the Alameda Central.”

Day of the Dead Away from the Homeland: How Missoula’s Mexican American Community Continues to Embrace and Honor Their Cultural Heritage

Despite living away from their homelands, immigrants continue to connect with their heritage by embracing their culture and traditions. Many choose to do it privately in their own homes and safe spaces with family and friends. Others choose to share cultural practices by inviting the broader community to celebrate and learn about their traditions. 

Since 2023, the Mexican, Mexican-American community, and other folks in Missoula who are from countries where Day of the Dead is observed, have come together to organize the city’s first Latino-led, open to the public Day of the Dead celebration at Confluence Center, with support from Headwaters Foundation. With cultural input from Latino community members who hail from the Mexican states of Colima, Jalisco, Oaxaca and Morelos (among others), this Day of the Dead celebration has become a beacon of cultural exchange and educational opportunity for folks interested in learning more about this famous cultural holiday.

The Día de los Muertos ofrenda creates a space for Missoula’s Latino and broader community to come together, build connections, and share traditions. We hope you’ll join us on November 1 to experience the celebration for yourself. Find event details and ways to participate here.