Hispanics Case

* The Flag of the Hispanic People or Hispanic flag is a flag sometimes used to represent the Hispanic people or Hispanic community.

* Symbolism

* The Hispanic flag is a white flag with three purple crosses and a rising sun.

* The three purple cross symbolize Christopher Columbus's three ships, the Niña, the Pinta, and the Santa María. They also symbolize Christianity.

* The golden sun symbolizes the awakening of the new lands on a white field (symbolizing peace and purity).

* The purple color of the crosses comes from the ancient use of this color in the lion of the Kingdom of León (later Crown of Castile), where the Spanish language was born.

* The flag was designed by Ángel Camblor, a captain of the Uruguayan Army. He was the winner of a contest organized by Juana de Ibarbourou in 1932. The flag was first raised on Independence Square of Montevideo on October 12, 1932.

* The flag was officially adopted as the Flag of the Americas -- in this usage representing besides Hispanic Americans also Anglo Americans, Franco Americans , Portuguese and Brazilian Americans , Dutch Americans and Greenlanders

* Hispanic Holidays

* Cinco de Mayo is a proud day for Mexicans who celebrate the victory over the French at the battle of Pueblo on May 5, 1862. The French army was better armed and three times larger but the Mexican army still defeated them. Now every May 5th there are parades, music and lots of celebrating!

* Mexican Independence Day

* September 16th, 1810 marks the day when Mexican priest, Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla, called for the arrest of all Spanish settlers living in the town of Delores. He sparked a revolution that lasted over 11 years. But, by 1821, Mexico managed to claim its independence from Spain.

* Puerto Rican Emancipation Day

* Emancipation is when slaves were set free. Puerto Ricans celebrate Emancipation Day on March 22nd.

* "Heritage" is defined as the customs and traditions that are handed down from generation to generation of families and society. A person with Latino heritage is a descendant of a family from Mexico, Central America, or South America. Peeps who are Hispanic are from a country where Spanish is spoken. Let's check out some of their traditions.

* Hispanic Traditions and Culture

* Piñata: A decorated container filled with candy and toys is suspended in the air to be broken by blindfolded kids with sticks. Piñata's are used as part of Christmas and birthday celebrations in certain Latin-American countries.

* Aztecs: These peeps are the native people of central Mexico whose civilization was at its height at the time of the Spanish conquest in the early 16th century.

* Quinceañera: The Quinceañera is the Latina coming-of-age celebration on a girl's 15th birthday. The word "quinceañera" comes from the Spanish words "quince" for 15 and "años" for years.

* El Chupacabra: El Chupacabra is a mythological creature whose name translated into English means "the goat-sucker," because that's exactly what it does. El Chupacabra made its first appearance in the farmlands of Puerto Rico where it left tons of goats dead. All of the goats had been left fully intact, but were drained of all their blood. Scary.

* Hispanic Food

* Hispanic foods have many different characteristics, but one of the main things that make it distinctive is that it tends to be spicy! Here are some traditional Hispanic dishes:

* Moles: Pronounced Mo-lay, the name of this dish comes from the Aztec word for "mixture." Mole Poblano de Guajolote, is a mixture of dried chiles, nuts, seeds, vegetables, spices and chocolate.

* Tortillas: This flat bread is made of wheat flour or masa and forms the base of tons of tasty Mexican dishes like enchiladas, burritos and fajitas.

* Ceviche: A Mexican dish of raw fish marinated in limejuice, often in a chopped salad.

* Poc