Google welcomes the Day of the Dead with open arms and a sugary logo to boot.
The search giant changed its logo into colorful sugar skulls in honor of the Mexican annual celebration of Dia de Los Muertos, or Day of the Dead.
Google's Doodler for the logo, Lydia Nichols, made the logo from actual sugar skulls in keeping with and to honor the time-honored tradition, per Google.
Day Of The Dead History And Commemoration
The Day of the Dead, interestingly, did not originally come from the Mexicans we know. According to History, the tradition dates back 3,000 years ago. During this time, the early Mesoamericans, such as the Aztecs and other Nahua people living in central Mexico, held rituals to honor the dead.
The Mesoamericans believe in a cyclical view of the universe and that death is an ever-present part of life. As such, when a person dies, it is believed they travel to Chicunamictlán, the Land of the Dead.
The deceased person then goes through nine levels wroth with dangerous challenges over a four-year voyage, per the National Hispanic Cultural Center. Should they be successful, they will reach Mictlán, their final resting place.
To honor the dead and to provide them with what they need to complete their journey to Mictlán, the Nahua of pre-Columbian Mesoamerica offer food, water, and tools to them every August.
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When the Spanish arrived in the region, they brought with them their own tradition of bringing wine and spirit bread to the graves of their loved ones, along with flowers and lit candles to decorate them.
This tradition is meant to help the dead find their way back to their homes on Earth through the lit candles and spirit bread.
These two traditions were eventually blended into the Day of the Dead we know today. According to the Encyclopaedia Britannica, Spanish influence and the steady conversion of the Nahua to Roman Catholicism moved the traditional celebration from August to November. This move is meant to have Nahua's annual celebration of the Day of the Dead coincide with the Spanish's, which is normally done during All Saints' Day and All Souls Day.
Modern Celebration Of The Day Of The Dead
In modern times, the Day of the Dead is celebrated on Nov. 2. However, the way it is celebrated depends on the region. Some rural areas have families decorate their deceased loved ones' graves with candles and marigolds. They even bring their favorite food to entice them to return to them for a family reunion.
In urban areas, people take to the streets for celebrations reminiscent of Halloween. Some wear wooden skulls, while families build altars called ofrendas in their homes using the deceased loved one's photos, candles, flowers, and food.
The sugar skulls often found during the celebration are made with edible ingredients, according to The Spruce Eats. However, they aren't for eating as they become too hard by the time they're done, per Art is Fun.
Sugar skulls are used to represent a departed loved one and usually place at ofrendas or gravestones as an offering to their spirit.
Don't worry, though. Creating edible sugar skulls for human consumption is acceptable.
