Piñatas

Azucena Hernández de la Cruz

Braulio de la Cruz Sánchez
Valeria Alejandra Jiménez Noverola
GENERAL HISTORY
ABOUT PIÑATAS
What is a piñata?
Where do they come from?
What are they made of?
 HISTORY ABOUT PIÑATAS
A piñata is a container, often made of papier-mâché,
pottery, or cloth, that is decorated, filled with candy, and
then broken as part of a celebration.
There is some debate but it appears that their origin is not
Spanish but Chinese. The Chinese version was in the
shape of a cow or ox and used for the New Year.
The tradition arrived in Europe in the 14th century
where it was associated with the Christian celebration of
Lent; in Spain, the First Sunday of Lent.
HISTORY OF PIÑATAS IN
MÉXICO
HISTORY ABOUT PIÑATAS IN MEXICO
The European piñata tradition was brought to Mexico in the
16th century; however, there was a similar tradition in
Mesoamerica already.
The Mayan tradition was similar to the modern piñata tradition,
including blindfolding the participant hitting the piñata. The
Aztec tradition commemorated the birthday of Huitzilopochtli.
Priests would decorate a clay pot with colorful feathers. When
the pot was broken with a stick or club, the treasures inside
would fall to the feet of the idol as an offering.
HISTORY ABOUT PIÑATAS IN MEXICO

According to local records, the piñata was first used for the
purposes of evangelism in 1586, in Acolman, in the modern
State of Mexico, just north of Mexico City.
Piñatas remain most popular during Las Posadas with
birthday parties coming in second.
 THE TRADITION IN MEXICO
1. Each participant, usually a child, will have a
turn at hitting the piñata, which is hung from
above on a string.
2. The participant is blindfolded, given a wooden
stick, and then spun a number of times.
3. As the participants works to hit the piñata,
another moves it to make it harder to hit.
4. There is a time limit to any one person's
attempts, which is marked out by the singing of
a traditional song.
RELATIONSHIP OF
PIÑATAS WITH THE
HOLIDAYS
How are the piñatas related to the
holidays in Mexico?
PIÑATAS IN LAS POSADAS
The Augustinian monks there modified European
piñatas and created the Las Posadas tradition to
co-opt the celebration of the birth of
Huitzilopochtli, which was celebrated in mid
December.
The Mexican Catholic interpretation assigned
meanings related to the Catholic doctrine of
struggle against temptation, and used for
catechism purposes.
 PIÑATAS IN LAS POSADAS
In this tradition:
The seven spikes symbolize the deadly sins
The piñata should break blindfolded (alluding to the
fact that faith is blind)
With the help of a stick
As the participant beats the piñata, it is supposed to
represent the struggle against temptation and evil.
The candies represent the riches of the kingdom of
heaven.
PIÑATAS IN NEW YEAR’S
EVE
The piñatas, which are made up of five
spikes, represent the star of Bethlehem that
guided the Three Wise Men/the Magi
during the birth of Jesus.
Additionally, in some places of Mexico, is
common to make piñatas with 12 spikes,
each one representing a month of the year,
and breaking it represents the end of the
year.
THANK SO
MUCH!
Now, an activity...
 REFERENCES
De Información Agroalimentaria Y Pesquera, S. (s. f.). La piñata,
símbolo de la cultura mexicana. gob.mx.
https://www.gob.mx/siap/articulos/la-pinata-simbolo-de-la-cultura-
mexicana?idiom=es

Wikipedia contributors. (2023, 26 julio). Piñata. Wikipedia.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pi%C3%B1ata