Piñata

thumb|right|250px|A nine-pointed star piñataA piñata is a brightly-colored paper container filled with candy, small fruit and/or toys. It is generally suspended on a rope from a tree branch or ceiling and is used during celebrations. A succession of blindfolded, stick-wielding children try to break the piñata in order to collect the sweets, small fruit (traditionally peanuts, sweet limes, sugarcane) and/or toys inside of it. It has been used for hundreds of years to celebrate special occasions such as birthdays, Christmas and Easter.

Origins

There are many hypotheses regarding the origins of piñatas and few reliable sources to confirm or dismiss them. One version speculates that the piñata was found in China by Marco Polo and brought to Italy. However, there is no evidence that the olla or piñata existed in Spain prior to the conquest of Mexico, nor did the piñata appear anywhere else in Spain's Latin America colonies until some time later.

In the Mexican Catholic celebration of Christmas, the piñata is traditionally shaped like a seven-pointed star which represents the devil and the seven deadly sins, while the contents are the goods or blessings he is withholding. Striking the devil with faith, symbolized by being blindfolded, releases the blessings. Piñatas are also used at Fiestas.

In South Indian villages during festivals a competition called Uri adithal (Pot breaking with blinded fold) which closely resembles the piñata event.

Making a piñata

Piñatas are made from easily breakable materials like straw, papier-mâché, or clay.Traditionally they were made in the shape of human or animal figures, but, in recent times, vehicles, cartoon characters, or corporate mascots have gained in popularity In some areas in Mexico and Central America, one finds small stores called piñaterías that are devoted exclusively to sales of piñatas.

Piñatas around the world

File:Pinateria.jpg

Piñatería in Tijuana, Mexico

A similar tradition in Denmark is slå katten af tønden ("hit the cat out of the barrel") in which a wooden barrel is struck to release candy.

Today the piñata tradition has been adopted in many parts of the world and has become a more common sight at parties and celebrations in the Southern United States, where they are commonly sold at both regular grocery stores and Hispanic specialty supermarkets. Piñatas can also be found in the North-East region of America.

The piñatas penetration in Europe has been slow over the past couple decades. The only country outside of the Americas to have adopted piñatas for cultural celebrations is India.

Piñatas popularity in the UK has rapidly increased within recent years due to mainstream retailers promoting the Piñata. Piñatas are now widely used for summer parties and events in the UK.

The Dale, Dale Song

While hitting the piñata the following rhyme is commonly sung:

Dale, dale, dale,

no pierdas el tino;

Porque si lo pierdes

pierdes el camino.

Ya le diste una,

ya le diste dos;

Ya le diste tres,

¡y tu tiempo se acabó!

Which translates as:

Hit it, hit it, hit it (or "go, go, go")

Don't lose your aim

Because if you lose it (your aim)

You will lose the path.

You've already hit it once

You've already hit it twice

You've already hit it thrice

And your time is over

Variation:

Dale, dale, dale,

No pierdas el tino

Porque si lo pierdes

pierdes el camino.

Dale, dale, dale

y no le dio

Quítenle la venda

¡porque sigo yo!

¡Se Acabó!

¡Sigo yo!

Gallery

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  A commercial piñata at a children's party in Gran Canaria, Spain.
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  Once the world's largest piñata in Mexico, constructed by Microsoft, it has since been superseded by Carnival Cruise Lines's piñata.
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  Mexico
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  Piñata in San Diego, California
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  traditional Mexican Piñata at the center of Mexico City