Culture & Society in Mexico: Group Report 1 | 2

Culture:

Family

Historically, Mexican culture was very traditional regarding male and female roles -- females at home with the children and men working to support the family. This is slowly changing.

• Family, weekends, holidays and festivities take priority over work although we observed that work is becoming more important in many Mexican lifestyles.

• It is customary for children to remain in the home until they marry -- in urban areas these attitudes are starting to change.

• There are different values amongst classes -- the gap between the very wealthy and the poor has grown much wider over the last decade according to research from the University of Toronto -- Cultural Profile Project. However, we learned from Engineer Hans Neufeld, that this trend is changing.

• There is a Machismo behavior for men -- they appear proud, confident, and in control. Men seldom reveal fear, disappointment, or sadness and it is important to appear strong.

Sports and Recreation

• Football (soccer) is the most popular sport, other favorites include baseball and American football. Personal observations indicate that there are many world class gyms in Guadalajara. In Northern Mexico, horseback riding is enjoyed by many, and rodeos are popular.

• Bullfighting or "corrida de torros" remains popular -- there is a saying that Mexicans arrive on time for only 2 events, funerals and bullfights! Mexico City has the largest bullfighting arena in the world.

Food

• Corn has been the staple food for hundreds of years.

• The tortilla is the equivalent to North America's bread and is usually made from corn, however in Northern regions is made from wheat flour.

• Native Mexicans attach a mystical importance to corn.

• Most Mexicans eate3 meals a day: breakfast (desayuno), lunch (almuerzo) or dinner (comida), and supper (cena). In commerce, business hours are usually 9:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m. to accommodate a long lunch. Supper hour is usually between 8:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m.

• Each meal usually includes 1 or more of the 3 national foods - the tortilla, beans, (prepared by boiling or frying) and, spicy-hot peppers called chilies, or jalapenos.

• Meals are considered a way of socializing with family, friends or business partners. It is considered impolite to discuss business over a meal. Business discussion takes place over coffee at the end of the meal.

• Families tend to meet for a meal at least once a day. Often, employees will go home for a long lunch with their families.

• Tequila is the national beverage, it comes in a variety of quality and it is intended for sipping. Many Mexicans drink tequila on a daily basis. The margarita drink is not popular among Mexicans. It is primarily a tourist drink.

Arts and Literature

• Mexican culture is a mixture of Native Mexicans', Spanish, and American traditions. In rural areas there are many Native people of Mayan and Aztec descent, whose colorful handmade traditional clothing differs from place to place.

• The States of Guerrero and Oaxaca are known for silver jewelry and religious woodcarvings using the local copal tree. Oaxacan rugs are handmade and it takes a month to produce a single rug by hand, most of the designs are taken from ancient Mayan geometric patterns.

• The guitar, especially the large bass guitar or guittaron, accompanies folk dances and songs. Although songs and dances are performed to honour Christian saints and feast days, they retain traces of ancient rituals. Dances tell stories from the nation's history.

• Mexico is renowned for writers and poets. For example, Octavio Paz, the winner of the Nobel Prize for literature in 1990.

• A tradition of painting and sculpture existed in Mexico long before the arrival of the conquistadors.

• Combining tradition with imported Spanish techniques, artists of the colonial period produced works of remarkable depth and purity.

• One of the most significant artists of the present century was Jose Guadalupe Posada who produced violent, powerful posters, lithographs and woodcuts of contemporary scenes. Other artists include: Diego Rivera, David Alfaso Siqueiros and Jose Clemente Orozco -- all were leaders of a remarkable group of distinctly Mexican artists.

Religion

Mexico is made up of mostly Christians with 89% of the population being Roman Catholic. Other religious minorities includes Protestants and Jews.

• Religion was extremely important in Aztec life -- they worshipped hundreds of gods and goddesses, each of whom ruled one or more human activity or aspects of nature. The people had many agricultural gods, for example: Centeotl, a corn god, Tlaloc, a rain and fertility god, Xipe Totec, the god of springtime and re-growth -- Quetzalcoatl, the god of civilization and learning and Ehecatl, the god of wind.

• Nearly all Natives are Christians but their Christianity is mixed with ancient beliefs.

Language

• The majority of Mexicans speak Spanish which is the official language, however, many are familiar with English.

• 7% of the population speak various AmerIndian languages.
  There are about 50 Native languages and dialects -- Spanish is taught to all Natives.

History and Evolution

• Mexico has the oldest culture in the Americas. Pre-Hispanic civilizations can be traced to the Stone Age.

• Olmecs, starting around 300 B.C. - 1200 A.D. (Encyclopedia Britannica) were known for their achievements in sculpture, science and philosophy. They were the first astronomers of the ancient Americas and were the first people to use a calendar and develop a written language, (later perfected by the Mayans).

• Mayan civilization, 2600 BC – 1000 AD, built temples and ceremonial centers that still stand.

• Aztecs, also known as Mexica, settled in the Valley of Mexico in the 14th century. The eagle representing the sun, and the serpent representing the earth, were ancient symbols of the basic forces of the cosmos. According to legend, the Aztecs were told to look for an eagle perched on a cactus eating a serpent. They were to settle at that site. They founded Tenochtitlan, now known as Mexico City. Tenochtitlan was built in an area surrounded by the marshes of Lake Texcoco. Today the symbol of the eagle eating a serpent is seen on the Mexican flag.

• The Aztec empire came to an end when Hernan Cortes and his fellow conquistadors came from Spain in the 16th century. They conquered Tenochtitlan.

• "New Spain" was governed by Viceroys appointed by the King of Spain - Viceroys directed military expeditions and gained control of areas we now know as Texas, New Mexico and California.

• In 1810 the Mexican people revolted and their struggle for independence began.

• There was turbulence in the late 19th century and early 20th century when Mexico became industrialized during the dictatorship of Porfirio Diaz.

• Another revolution began in 1910 led by Francisco Madero, Venustiana Carranza, Alvaro Obregon, Emiliano Zapata and Francisco (Pancho) Villa - they wanted to take the land from the landlords and distribute it to the poor and the farm workers - political unrest continued until the 1950s.

• Today Mexico is struggling to improve its economy and deal with demands for political reform.

Political Environment

• Mexico is comprised of 31 states and 1 federal district. Its capital city is Mexico City.

• Partido Accion National (PAN) is the current government in power and was elected on July 2, 2000, after 71 years of the Dictatorship of the Partido de la Revolucion Democratica (PRI).

• The President, Vicente Fox Quesada is both the chief of state and head of government.

• The Cabinet is appointed by the president, and elections are held every six years. The president remains in power for 1 term only.