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The 'culture of Mexico' reflects the complexity of Mexico's history through the blending of pre-Hispanic Mesoamerican civilizations and the culture of Spain, imparted during Spain's 300-year colonization of Mexico. Influences from the United States have shaped Mexican culture, and to a lesser extent, influences from Europe, Africa, and Asia.

Contents

Community

International

Religion

Art

Literature

Cuisine

Sport

References

See also

Community

Citizens take pride in their lifestyle and economic independence, one nation that still cherishes “community" in its cities and towns, its plazas and schools, and its work organizations is Mexico. In Mexican culture the expectation of working and socializing together is a key component of society, and has a basis in the strong ties formed within the family.
However, lack of faith in the government and other organizations is a result of widespread political corruption.'' Mexican culture is the result of a historical process of violent and peaceful exchange of ideas.

International

Mexico's relationships with the rest of the world are also quite complex. The arrival and conquest of the Spaniards left the country searching for an identity – as a result of extensive interbreeding with the Spanish (the vast majority of Mexicans are ''mestizo'', that is, mixed blood), they lost their native heritage, but similarly are not like their European conquerors.

Religion

With the Spanish conquest and colonization of Mexico, Catholicism was established as the dominant religion of Mexico, and today, Mexico is 96 percent Christian of whom 92 percent are Catholic.^[1] After Brazil, it has the second largest population of Catholics in the world. ^[2] Weekly church attendance is forty-six percent of the Mexican population. Evangelical denominations have grown in recent years, after being introduced by missionaries and settlers from Europe and the United States in the 19th century. There has also been notable growth among The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and the Jehovah's Witnesses.
The methods of Spanish conquest of Mexico resulted in the conversions to Catholicism of increasing numbers of the indigenous population. Yet many people continued to practice aspects of their previous belief system. This led to widespread religious syncretism, incorporating indigenous practices into Catholicism.
Perhaps the most striking example of this fusion of different traditions is the widespread veneration of Our Lady of Guadalupe. The Day of the Dead is another example of religious syncretism, in which the European Catholic All Souls' Day is combined with indigenous rites of ancestor veneration. In many Mexican communities, ''curanderos'' (traditional healers) use indigenous folk medicine, spiritual, and Christian faith healing to treat ailments and "cleanse" spiritual impurities.
In the southern areas of the country, which are predominantly indigenous, traditional religion has been mostly incorporated into Catholic rituals, as can be seen by the change in priest's attires, which instead of being decorated with the usual western symbols, instead include indigenous weaving designs and symbols. For example, the Christian cross converted to a flowery tree of life. In Mayan communities, the jmen, or healer, has an important place in the community comparable to (but not in competition with).

Art

Mexico is known worldwide for its folk art traditions, mostly derived from a combination of the indigenous and Spanish crafts. Particularly notable among handicrafts are the clay pottery made in the valley of Oaxaca and the bird and animal figures made in the village of Tonala. Colorfully embroidered cotton garments, cotton or wool shawls and outer garments, and colorful baskets and rugs are seen everywhere. Between the Spanish conquest and the early Twentieth Century, Mexican fine arts were largely in imitation of European traditions. After the Mexican Revolution, a new generation of Mexican artists led a vibrant national movement that incorporated political, historic, and folk themes in their work. The painters Diego Rivera, José Clemente Orozco, and David Alfaro Siqueiros became world famous for their grand scale murals, often displaying clear social messages. Rufino Tamayo and Frida Kahlo (Rivera's wife) produced more personal works with abstract elements. Mexican art photography was largely fostered by the work of Manuel Alvarez Bravo.

Literature

Main articles: Mexican literature

Cuisine

Main articles: Cuisine of Mexico

Mexican gastronomy, in terms of diversity of appealing tastes and textures, is one of the richest in the world, rich in proteins, vitamins, and minerals, though some people unaccustomed to eating it characterize it as greasy and excessively spicy. Popular dishes include tacos, enchiladas, and pozole. Traditionally the main Mexican ingredients consisted of Chicken, Beef, sweetcorn (not really sweet), tomatoes, peppers, chillis, onions, squashes, peanuts, avocados, guavas. The Spanish then influenced these by adding milk, cheese, rice, wheat, cinnamon, and oranges.

Sport

Main articles: Sport in Mexico

Football (soccer) (''fútbol'' in Spanish) is by far the most popular sport in Mexico. Every state has its own representative teams. Among the country's well known teams are Club América, Chivas de Guadalajara and Cruz Azul. Notable players include Hugo Sánchez, Claudio Suárez, Luis Hernández, Francisco Palencia, Cuauhtémoc Blanco, Jared Borgetti, Rafael Márquez, Pavel Pardo, Ramón Ramírez, Jorge Campos and Oswaldo Sánchez.
Charreria and bullfighting are also widely appreciated. Many large cities have bullrings. Mexico City has the largest bullring in the world, seating 55,000 people. Bullfights usually occur on Wednesdays, and other weekdays.
Mexico is also known for its strong boxing tradition, having produced world champions such as Julio César Chávez, Salvador Sánchez, Erik Morales, Marco Antonio Barrera, Juan Manuel Márquez, and Jesús Chávez. Other popular sports and activities include baseball, basketball, and Jai alai.
The country hosted the Summer Olympic Games in 1968 and the FIFA World Cup in 1970 and 1986.hello im george

References

1. INEGI
2. http://www.zenit.org/english/archive/9906/ZE990613.html#item5 ''BRAZIL AND MEXICO HAVE LARGEST NUMBER OF CATHOLICS'' Zenit News Agency (June 13, 1999) Accessed Jan. 3, 2007

See also

★ Hispanic culture

★ Latin American culture