Altar de Día de Muertos durante el Paseo de las Ánimas en el barrio de La Ermita, Mérida, Yucatán.

Day of the Dead in Yucatán: Janal Pixán, Traditions & Vocabulary

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Learning Spanish also means discovering the Day of the Dead!

Day of the Dead

Day of the Dead is much more than a colorful celebration. It is a way of remembering, telling stories, and keeping alive the bonds with those who were once part of our lives. Learning about its vocabulary, symbols, and customs helps us better understand an essential part of Mexican culture.

For Spanish learners, this celebration also offers a special opportunity to discover how language is connected to history, food, traditions, and everyday life. In this article, we will explore some of its most important elements and see what distinctive features this celebration takes on in Yucatán.

Day of the Dead altar during the Paseo de las Ánimas in La Ermita neighborhood, Mérida, Yucatán.
Traditional altar during the Day of the Dead.

Day of the Dead in Yucatán: Janal Pixán, Hanal Pixán, or Finados?

In Yucatán, the commemoration of the dead has its own distinctive features and has traditionally been known as Día de Finados, or simply Finados. Today, the spellings Janal Pixán and Hanal Pixán are also commonly found, an expression usually translated as “food of the souls.” Although it shares elements with the Day of the Dead celebrated in other regions of Mexico, it preserves traditions closely linked to Maya culture and Yucatecan gastronomy.

The celebration begins on October 31, traditionally dedicated to deceased children; continues on November 1, dedicated to adults; and on November 2, the souls of the dead are remembered more generally. During these days, families prepare altars with candles, photographs, flowers, drinks, and food. Among the most characteristic dishes is pib, or mucbipollo, a large tamal traditionally cooked underground. In this article, we will mainly use the term Janal Pixán, although both forms can be found in Yucatán.

The Day of the Dead Altar

The Day of the Dead altar is one of the most important elements of the celebration. Families prepare it to remember and honor loved ones who have passed away. Photographs, candles, flowers, food, drinks, and personal objects that held special meaning for the person being remembered are placed on the altar.

Each element of the altar has a symbolic value. Candles represent the light that guides the deceased; marigold flowers, with their intense color and fragrance, symbolically help mark the way; water is offered to quench thirst after the journey; and food recalls the tastes and customs of the person who has died. It is also common to find decorative cut paper, sugar skulls, pan de muerto, and other objects connected with the life of the person being remembered.

More than a sad space, the altar is a way of keeping memory alive. Through colors, flavors, aromas, and memories, families celebrate the lives of those who are no longer present and pass this tradition from one generation to the next.

The Day of the Dead Altar in Mexico

Day of the Dead altar with photographs, candles, marigold flowers, bread, and sugar skulls in Mérida, Yucatán.
Traditional Day of the Dead altar.

What Distinguishes a Janal Pixán Altar?

In Yucatán, the Janal Pixán altar preserves elements of the Maya and Yucatecan tradition and often differs from Day of the Dead altars found in other regions of Mexico. Food plays a central role, with regional dishes such as pib or mucbipollo, as well as fruit and drinks. Photographs, candles, flowers, and the presence of a cross, reflecting the coexistence of Maya and Christian traditions, are also common.

The floral decoration may also be different. While the marigold is the most emblematic Day of the Dead flower in much of Mexico, in Yucatán local flowers such as xpujuc, also known as amor seco and characterized by purple tones, and x’tes, with its fuchsia color and fan-like shape, may also be used. These flowers give the altar a distinctive regional appearance and reinforce the Yucatecan identity of Janal Pixán.

Traditional Janal Pixán altar in Yucatán with photographs, candles, flowers, food, fruit, and a cross.

The Paseo de las Ánimas

In Mérida, one of the best-known public celebrations is the Paseo de las Ánimas. During this procession, hundreds of people walk through the streets from the General Cemetery to the La Ermita de Santa Isabel neighborhood, in a symbolic representation of the souls returning to the world of the living.

Along the route, visitors can find altars, music, gastronomy, traditional clothing, and different expressions of Yucatecan culture. For anyone visiting Mérida during these dates, it is a special opportunity to observe how a long-standing family and religious tradition is transformed into a large community celebration.

Day of the Dead Vocabulary

To better understand this tradition, it is useful to learn some of the words that frequently appear during Day of the Dead celebrations. Many are related to the altar, the offerings, the food, and the objects families use to remember their loved ones.

Words such as ofrenda (offering), cempasúchil (marigold), papel picado (decorative cut paper), calaveritas (sugar skulls), pan de muerto (traditional Day of the Dead bread), vela (candle), incienso (incense), and altar form part of the essential vocabulary of this celebration. Learning them not only helps you talk about Day of the Dead in Spanish, but also helps you better understand the cultural meaning of what you see in homes, markets, streets, and celebrations during this time of year.

Traditional Catrina with makeup and clothing inspired by Day of the Dead in Mexico.

La Catrina is an elegant figure with a skull face who has become one of the best-known symbols of Day of the Dead. She often appears in parades, decorations, and celebrations. She represents a very Mexican way of looking at death through humor, art, and memory.

The marigold is one of the most representative flowers of Day of the Dead. Its intense orange color and fragrance are used to decorate altars and offerings. According to tradition, its petals symbolically help mark the path for the souls.

Marigold flowers traditionally used on Day of the Dead altars and offerings in Mexico.
Copal used as a traditional element in a Day of the Dead offering in Mexico.

Copal is an aromatic resin that is burned during some ceremonies and offerings. Its smoke is traditionally associated with purification and with welcoming the souls. Its scent is very characteristic during this time of year.

Papel picado is a decoration made from sheets of colored paper cut into different shapes and designs. It is placed on altars, in homes, and along streets during celebrations. It adds color and movement and is one of the most recognizable visual elements of Day of the Dead.

Colorful papel picado used to decorate Day of the Dead altars and celebrations in Mexico.
Traditional pan de muerto sprinkled with sugar during Day of the Dead celebrations in Mexico.

Pan de muerto is a traditional sweet bread prepared especially for Day of the Dead celebrations in many regions of Mexico. It is often placed on altars as an offering and is also shared with family during this time of year.

During Day of the Dead, parades and processions are organized in different parts of Mexico. In Mérida, Yucatán, the Paseo de las Ánimas is closely associated with Janal Pixán. The streets fill with altars, music, traditional clothing, and cultural activities.

The Paseo de las Ánimas is part of the Janal Pixán celebrations in Mérida, Yucatán.

What Makes Janal Pixán Different in Yucatán?

Although Janal Pixán shares with Day of the Dead in the rest of Mexico the idea of remembering and welcoming deceased family members, Yucatán has its own customs. In addition, there is no single way to prepare the celebration: practices may vary from one family or community to another. Let’s look at some of the most distinctive elements of Day of the Dead in Yucatán.

Food for the Souls

Food plays a fundamental role. On traditional Yucatecan altars, local foods often take center stage. While pan de muerto and sugar skulls are commonly associated with Day of the Dead in other parts of Mexico, Yucatecan altars may feature foods such as pib or mukbilpollo, tamales, atole, pan de finados, and xe’ek, a preparation made with jicama and citrus fruits.

Pib is probably one of the most representative foods of this season in Yucatán and is traditionally prepared by cooking it underground.

Pib or mukbilpollo, tamales, atole, pan de finados, and xe’ek, traditional foods of Janal Pixán in Yucatán.

An Altar with Distinctive Elements

Traditional Janal Pixán altar in Yucatán with jícaras, clay containers, white and colored candles.

Traditional Yucatecan altars can also be distinguished by the objects used on them. Jícaras and clay containers are common. According to a traditional belief, glass containers are avoided because the souls might be frightened by seeing their reflection.

Candles can also indicate who the offering is dedicated to: traditionally, white candles are used for adults and colored candles for children.

The Flowers of Yucatán

In much of central Mexico, the marigold is the flower most closely associated with Day of the Dead. In Yucatán, however, local wildflowers that bloom during this season can also be found, such as xpujuc, known as amor seco (dry love), as well as other flowers native to the region.

For this reason, not all Day of the Dead altars have exactly the same colors, flowers, or decorations.

Traditional Janal Pixán altar in Yucatán decorated with local flowers, including xpujuc, also known as amor seco.

The Biix: Farewell to the Souls

Yucatecan family during the Biix, with offerings and candles placed on a traditional stone wall to bid farewell to the souls.

The celebration does not necessarily end on November 2. Eight days later, the biix may be observed, when food, offerings, and candles are once again placed to bid farewell to the souls.

In some communities, there is also the biix-mes toward the end of November. Candles placed at entrances and along traditional stone walls symbolically help show the souls the way back.

Resources for Learning and Comparing

To help you better understand this celebration, we have prepared several visual resources that bring together vocabulary, symbols, and the main differences between Day of the Dead in Mexico and Janal Pixán in Yucatán. First, you will find our Day of the Dead vocabulary guide, designed to help you quickly recognize the most important elements of this tradition. After that, you can consult two infographics: one focused on Day of the Dead in Mexico and another on Janal Pixán in Yucatán, where you can compare foods, flowers, objects, customs, and ways of remembering the souls.

These materials are designed as reference and review resources. You can use them to learn new words, identify the elements of an altar, and observe how the same celebration takes on different characteristics depending on the region.

In addition, these materials are part of the support resources we provide to students during our immersion experiences in Yucatán. The idea is that they can use them during cultural activities and keep them afterward as review material and as a reminder of what they experienced during their stay.

Educational infographic with Day of the Dead vocabulary in Spanish and traditional words related to the celebration.
Infographic comparing Janal Pixán in Yucatán with Day of the Dead in other regions of Mexico.

Learning Spanish also means experiencing its traditions


Every year at AmaELEspañol, we pay tribute to those who are no longer with us and use Day of the Dead and Janal Pixán as a special opportunity to introduce our students to some of Mexico’s deepest and most meaningful traditions.

Because learning a language is not only about studying vocabulary or grammar. It also means understanding how a community lives, remembers, celebrates, and feels. Few experiences allow us to do this as deeply as preparing an altar, learning the meaning of its elements, tasting traditional foods, listening to family stories, and taking part in the celebrations that fill Yucatán during this season.

That is why, every year, we want our students not only to learn about this tradition, but also to experience it, understand it, and share it in Spanish.

If you take part in one of our two-week immersion experiences in Yucatán during this time of year, Day of the Dead and Janal Pixán will no longer be simply a cultural topic. They will become a real experience of language, memory, and culture that you can take home with you long after your stay.

👀 Eureka! 💡

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