Learn How to Celebrate New Year's Day in Mexico
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| Hi everybody! I’m Alex from SpanishPod101.com |
| Do you know how Mexican people celebrate New Year's Day? In this lesson, you'll learn some important phrases about Mexican New Year's and some valuable cultural tips. |
| In Spanish, New Year's Day is called |
| Año Nuevo |
| [slowly] Año Nuevo |
| Nochevieja means "New Year's Eve." This is the last night of the year, the one that marks the beginning of a new year. This holiday does not stop until the next day, January 1. |
| On Año Nuevo, or New Year's Day, we greet each other by saying Feliz año nuevo. |
| (slow) Feliz año nuevo |
| It means "Happy New Year!" |
| Once the new year starts, it's normal to congratulate, hug, and toast with all the family. In these toasts, it is normal to put a gold ring into a glass to attract money. |
| On the other hand, when you meet a group of people on New Year's Day, you can say... |
| Feliz Año Nuevo a todos. |
| (slow) Feliz Año Nuevo a todos. |
| It means “Happy New Year, everyone." |
| Mexican people also celebrate the holiday with special events and customs. The most popular one is... |
| nueva ropa |
| (slow) nueva ropa |
| This means "new clothes." |
| It is normal on New Year's to wear new clothes for the first time, but not only that! It is also tradition to wear a new set of underwear for New Year's Eve. Normally, it will be yellow in color if you want to attract money, or more often, red, if you want to attract love. |
| On this special day, Mexican people eat 12 uvas |
| (slow) 12 uvas |
| It means 12 grapes. |
| As 12 o'clock approaches, you can feel the excitement. The bowls are prepared, and each contains twelve grapes. You can find it in all cities, and it's also common to eat them at home in front of the television. It seems this tradition doesn't have any religious or cultural motivations; it is actually economical. On New Year's Eve of early 1900s, the grape harvesters had a large harvest of grapes. Because of this, they invented the tradition of eating the lucky grapes on the last night of the year. |
| Let's wrap up this lesson by recapping what you've learned. Listen to the expression and repeat after me. |
| “New Year's Day (Lunar New Year's day).” |
| Año Nuevo |
| *beep |
| Año Nuevo |
| “Happy New Year!” |
| Feliz año nuevo |
| *beep |
| Feliz año nuevo |
| “new clothes.” |
| nueva ropa |
| *beep |
| nueva ropa |
| “12 grapes.” |
| 12 uvas |
| *beep |
| 12 uvas |
| Well done! [pause] |
| You just learned how Mexican people celebrate "New Year's Day" and some important facts about the holiday. |
| And, if you really want to become fluent and speak Spanish from the very first lesson, go to SpanishPod101.com. |
| I’ll see you next time. Nos vemos |
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