Hispanic Heritage Month was originally a week-long celebration to recognize the contributions of the minority population in America – more specifically in East L.A., represented at the time by California Congressman George E. Brown. Now it’s a month-long dedication to Hispanic Independence. 

Hispanic Heritage Month starts on Sept. 15 and ends on Oct. 15. Although the dates might seem a little odd, there is a reason why it starts and ends in the middle of two months. That is because most of the Central American countries celebrate their independence days within those two months.

In the 1960s, Congress asked President Lyndon B. Johnson to declare Sept. 15 and 16 the start of National Heritage Week – a request he fulfilled that very same day. The celebration was officially extended to 31 days after two decades.

Because numerous Central American countries celebrate independence in these 31 days, there’s a diverse collection of festivals happening. Each one celebrates a different country, with their own traditions and customs of celebrating. 

Costa Rica shares its independence day with various other Hispanic countries that share the same holiday on Sept. 15. Celebrating with an “Independence Torch,” the light is carried through the streets.

Though their independence days take place on the same day as Costa Rica, celebrations begin on Sept. 9 in Guatemala. The torch is lit and then marched over 1,000 kilometers south, through Hondura, El Salvador, Nicaragua, ending in Cartago, Costa Rica on Sept. 14, the eve of Independence Day.

Costa Rica adds “faroles” to the celebration; handmade lanterns, to symbolize the 19th-century journey of those that would carry messages of Central American independence to Costa Rica.

This tradition started with a brave Guatemalan woman named María Dolores Bedoya. On the night of Sept. 14, 1821, Bedoya went into the night, with a glowing lantern and fierce determination, she navigated the town’s streets to rally the citizens in support of independence.

Bedoya addressed the crowd, her speech had urged them to raise their voices in support of independence. The citizens had stayed the whole night assembled around the National Palace of Guatemala, where the aristocracy was deliberating independence. The following night, on Sept. 15, 1821, Costa Rica had officially gained independence.

Mexico’s independence day is on Sep. 16, starting the evening before with “El Grito de Dolores,” or “The Cry of Delores.” This tradition began in 1810, when Roman Catholic Priest, Miguel Hidalgo, called for the people to revolt against the Spanish colonial government in an impassioned speech from the church.

Hidalgo’s exact words were debated, they agreed that he chanted “Death to bad government!” This speech kicked off Mexico’s war against Spain.

The President of México initiates the independence ceremonies with a version of Hidalgo’s speech. Every year on Sept. 15, at 11:00 p.m., the president stands on the balcony of the National Palace and rings the same bell that Hidalgo rang in 1810. The crowd recites the patriotic grito, though the speech varies from year to year. It always, however, includes ¡Viva México!

All of the Latin American countries have a story behind their independence, each showing how they had struggled and had to fight for their independence. This month-long celebration is filled with festivals, parades, traditional dances and is a day for the Hispanic community and everyone else to celebrate the Latin countries independence.