# Why do Americans celebrate Cinco de Mayo? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 5, 2015, 12:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-americans-celebrate-cinco-de-mayo/719309 "2015-05-05T12:45:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2015, 2:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-americans-celebrate-cinco-de-mayo/719309/21 "2015-05-05T14:49:35Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > It’s Śmigus-Dyngus in Polish. > > Story behind it and the name [here](http://culture.polishsite.us/articles/art31fr.htm). From your link: > [@](#): > > Smigus Dyngus (shming-oos-ding-oos) is an unusual tradition of Easter Monday. This day (Monday after Easter Sunday) is called also in Polish “Wet Monday”, in Polish: “Mokry Poniedzialek” or “Lany Poniedzialek”. Easter Monday is also a holiday in Poland. It was traditionally the day when boys tried to drench girls with squirt guns or buckets of water. “Smigus” comes from the word smigac meaning swish with a cane since men tap the ankles and legs of the girls. Dyngus comes probably from German word dingen which means to come to an agreement since the girls needed to give men money to stop being swish and splash. The more a girl is sprayed with water, the higher are her chances to get married. Usually groups of young boys are waiting for accidental passerby near the farmer markets or in the corners of the streets. Older men behave like gentlemen spraying their wives with cologne water rather than with the regular one. The girls got their chances for revenge the following day. They can spray boys with water as much as they wanted on Tuesday. I grew up in a Polish-American community, and I _Never_ heard of this before. Believe me, if we had an excuse to shoot girls with squirt guns, we would have. According to Wikipedia, it’s more of a Ukrainian thing. In the US, it’s apparently big in the Buffalo NY area. I can attest that it cxertainly wasn’t where I grew up. > **[Śmigus-dyngus](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C5%9Amigus-Dyngus)** > > Śmigus-dyngus\[a\] (.mw-parser-output .IPA-label-small{font-size:85%}.mw-parser-output .references .IPA-label-small,.mw-parser-output .infobox .IPA-label-small,.mw-parser-output .navbox .IPA-label-small{font-size:100%}Polish pronunciation: \[ˈɕmigus ˈdɨnɡus\]) or lany poniedziałek\[b\] (Polish pronunciation: \[ˈlanɨ ˌpɔɲɛˈd͡ʑawɛk\]) is a celebration held on Easter Monday across Central Europe, and in small parts of Eastern and Southern Europe. The tradition is widely associated with Poland in English-spe... > [@](#): > > Dyngus Day is observed in many Polish American communities, most notably in Buffalo, New York, which hosts the largest continuing event commemorating the day.[6] The Buffalo Dyngus celebrations only started in the 1960s as an effort by the Polish-American community in the city to find a new focus for its identity. It proved hugely successful, to the point that a local newspaper claimed that “everybody is Polish on Dyngus Day.”[16] It has become a fusion of Polish and American traditions, with polka bands, a parade, and Polish food accompanying American patriotic songs sung in English.[17] Party-goers dress up in the red-and-white colors of the Polish flag and carry balloons saying “Happy Dyngus Day” in English.[18] > > Dyngus Day in Cleveland is celebrated with a parade, polka, and the crowning of Miss Dyngus. Large celebrations are found in several West Side neighborhoods, including Ohio City, Tremont, and Detroit-Shoreway.[19] > > Dyngus Day is also celebrated annually in South Bend, Indiana and the surrounding region. People from South Bend and many visitors come to the area. Each bar is a bus stop for the day to ferry people to each bar. In South Bend, Indiana, the day marks the official beginning to launch the year’s political primary campaign season (particularly among Democrats)- often from within the West Side Democratic Club, the M.R. Falcons Club, and local pubs and fraternal halls. Notable politicos who have celebrated Dyngus Day in South Bend include the late Robert F. Kennedy; former Governor Joe Kernan; Senator Evan Bayh; former Congressman and New York University President John Brademas; former Maryland Lt. Governor Kathleen Kennedy Townsend; former Congressman, 9/11 Commission member and former Ambassador to India Timothy J. Roemer; former President Bill Clinton; the famous philanthropist Thomas A. White; and the late Aloysius J. Kromkowski, a long time elected St. Joseph County public servant, for whom the “Al Kromkowski polka” is named.[20][21 I’ll bet the Kennedys never celebrated Dyngus Day in Massachusetts. ---
**Author:** ![Omega\_Glory](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/7c8e57/32.png) [@Omega\_Glory](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omega_Glory)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2015, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-americans-celebrate-cinco-de-mayo/719309/22 "2015-05-05T15:00:47Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > In Buffalo, even non-Polish people celebrate Dyngus Day. Yep. [http://www.dyngusday.com/](http://www.dyngusday.com/) > [@](#): > > Buffalo, NY is officially the Dyngus Day capitol of America, hosting the largest concentration of festival locations, polka bands and Polish traditions in the nation. Smaller festivals can be found in communities with sizable Polish American populations such as: South Bend, IN, Elizabeth, NJ and Bristol, CT. This year, with the marketing support of Dyngus Day USA, Chicago, IL., Cleveland, OH. and Pittsburgh, PA. will all see significant growth in the number of people and places celebrating this quirky event. Ironically, it’s not widely observed in Poland. But we’re working on it. I guess you probably needed to have grown up around Buffalo to know about it. ---
**Author:** ![doorhinge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a5b964/32.png) [@doorhinge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doorhinge)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2015, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-americans-celebrate-cinco-de-mayo/719309/23 "2015-05-05T15:04:48Z")
Cinco de Mayo, St. Paddy’s day, Valentine’s day, the Kentucky Derby, Secretaries day, Talk-Like-A-Pirate day, are all a good excuses to Par-Tay. The only real difference is the kind of liquor that’s served. ---
**Author:** ![Diceman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Diceman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diceman)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2015, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-americans-celebrate-cinco-de-mayo/719309/24 "2015-05-05T16:09:24Z")
> [@tanstaafl](#): > > I suspect that is probably right. It’s an excuse to eat and drink. That’s probably why St. Patricks day is celebrated in the US too. Exactly right. In the US, Cinco de Mayo is mainly a “drinking holiday,” in the same league as St. Patrick’s day. ---
**Author:** ![even\_sven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dfb087/32.png) [@even\_sven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/even_sven)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2015, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-americans-celebrate-cinco-de-mayo/719309/25 "2015-05-05T16:14:52Z")
> [@Diceman](#): > > Exactly right. In the US, Cinco de Mayo is mainly a “drinking holiday,” in the same league as St. Patrick’s day. I think this varies by region. In California, I recall more family-oriented events. I would guess that it becomes more drinking oriented areas with less Mexican-American influence. ---
**Author:** ![Scumpup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce73a5/32.png) [@Scumpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scumpup)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2015, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-americans-celebrate-cinco-de-mayo/719309/26 "2015-05-05T16:26:38Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > According to Wikipedia, it’s more of a Ukrainian thing. I am an ethnic Ukrainian and married to a Ukrainian national. I have never heard of this. ---
**Author:** ![Anne\_Neville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Anne\_Neville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anne_Neville)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2015, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-americans-celebrate-cinco-de-mayo/719309/27 "2015-05-05T16:39:15Z")
I get to eat, drink (at least when I’m not pregnant), and even imagine that I might be pissing off some racists. I’m not seeing anything here not to like, so far. A lot of cultures have a holiday around now. There’s May Day in a number of European cultures, and Lag B’Omer in Judaism. The weather’s generally getting nice. But we haven’t really had a holiday between Easter and Memorial Day in the US. Maybe Cinco de Mayo fits this need. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2015, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-americans-celebrate-cinco-de-mayo/719309/28 "2015-05-05T17:16:27Z")
> [@Scumpup](#): > > I am an ethnic Ukrainian and married to a Ukrainian national. I have never heard of this. Carpathian here, and nope. Note that Cinco de Mayo is such a issue in CA cities liek San Jose that there were massive police problems, and pretty much for years Downtown was under police lockdown for days every year. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2015, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-americans-celebrate-cinco-de-mayo/719309/29 "2015-05-05T17:30:03Z")
> [@even\_sven](#): > > I would guess that it becomes more drinking oriented areas with less Mexican-American influence. Yep. The place I’m going tonight is guaranteed to have 8 - 10 Mexican Americans present; all are employees of the place. ---
**Author:** ![Blue\_Blistering\_Barnacle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blue_blistering_barnacle/32/3386_2.png) [@Blue\_Blistering\_Barnacle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blue_Blistering_Barnacle)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2015, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-americans-celebrate-cinco-de-mayo/719309/30 "2015-05-05T17:43:03Z")
> [@doorhinge](#): > > Cinco de Mayo, St. Paddy’s day, Valentine’s day, the Kentucky Derby, Secretaries day, Talk-Like-A-Pirate day, are all a good excuses to Par-Tay. The only real difference is the kind of liquor that’s served. Don’t forget OktoberFest! ---
**Author:** ![An\_Gadai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@An\_Gadai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Gadai)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2015, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-americans-celebrate-cinco-de-mayo/719309/31 "2015-05-05T17:50:48Z")
And Scotchtoberfest. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2015, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-americans-celebrate-cinco-de-mayo/719309/32 "2015-05-05T18:09:06Z")
> [@An\_Gadai](#): > > And Scotchtoberfest. Last year we celebrated St Practice Day one month prior to St Patrick’s Day. It’s all good. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2015, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-americans-celebrate-cinco-de-mayo/719309/33 "2015-05-05T18:12:52Z")
> [@RickJay](#): > > The answer to this has already been cited: St. Patrick’s Day. If you have a large enough ethnic group with a day you can drink and\* eat one\*, you’ll have a holiday. You eat Irish folks on St Paddy’s Day in Toronto? :eek: ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2015, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-americans-celebrate-cinco-de-mayo/719309/34 "2015-05-05T19:08:08Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > I grew up in a Polish-American community, and I _Never_ heard of this before. I’m Polish-American, too, and my folks (Polish-born and raised) both are familiar with dyngus. It’s not really observed as much here in Chicago (though it exists, [here is the Facebook page for it](https://www.facebook.com/DyngusDayChicago)) …not sure why it took hold in Buffalo in particular. Hungary also has a similar tradition for Easter Monday. Just Google image search “lany poniedziałek” (another name for it), and you’ll see plenty of photos from Poland observing this day. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2015, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-americans-celebrate-cinco-de-mayo/719309/35 "2015-05-05T19:18:04Z")
There’s a strong theory that, had they won on 5 May 1862, the French would have went on to support the Confederate Army and effectively changed the outcome of the war. So _Cinco de Mayo_ has that going for it as well. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2015, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-americans-celebrate-cinco-de-mayo/719309/36 "2015-05-05T21:26:55Z")
Growing up in SoCal in the early 1960s Cinco de Mayo was already an all-family holiday bigger than St. Patricks. There’s be cultural heritage days for the Mexicans held in the city parks and all the Gringo families would go & see the costumes and a few years later, the low-riders. And of course by then Mexican food was pretty mainstream restaurant fare for Gringos, although few cooked it at home. I left SoCal in the early 80s for the Midwest, where they were just barely starting to hear of both Mexican food and Cinco de Mayo as Corona’s beer advertising blitz was just reaching them. Oklahoma thought then (and probably still thinks now) of Taco Bell as the genuine article. ---
**Author:** ![GreasyJack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/df705f/32.png) [@GreasyJack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreasyJack)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2015, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-americans-celebrate-cinco-de-mayo/719309/37 "2015-05-05T21:54:18Z")
> [@not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](#): > > There are a lot of Mexicans in America. And it’s a great excuse to drink a margarita. Although I think the mystery isn’t “why do Americans celebrate a Mexican holiday?” it’s why did they pick Cinco de Mayo (which as I understand it is a pretty minor holiday in Mexico) instead of, say, Mexican Independence Day? ---
**Author:** ![Cartoonacy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/848f3c/32.png) [@Cartoonacy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cartoonacy)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2015, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-americans-celebrate-cinco-de-mayo/719309/38 "2015-05-05T21:59:29Z")
It’s also [National Cartoonists Day](http://nationaldaycalendar.com/days-2/national-cartoonists-day-may-5/). Or, as I like to call it, \*\*\*Inko \*\*\*de Mayo. ---
**Author:** ![Slithy\_Tove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slithy_tove/32/18248_2.png) [@Slithy\_Tove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slithy_Tove)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2015, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-americans-celebrate-cinco-de-mayo/719309/39 "2015-05-05T22:32:17Z")
> [@Skywatcher](#): > > There’s a strong theory that, had they won on 5 May 1862, the French would have went on to support the Confederate Army and effectively changed the outcome of the war. So _Cinco de Mayo_ has that going for it as well. At the Battle of Palmito Ranch, the last of the war, the French supplied the Confederates with intelligence and a few artillerymen. ---
**Author:** ![Potestas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/50afbb/32.png) [@Potestas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Potestas)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2015, 11:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-americans-celebrate-cinco-de-mayo/719309/40 "2015-05-05T23:15:44Z")
They dont. Only illegals do from what ive heard. Why celebrate Cinco De Mayo when our history with Mexico has been anything but friendly or amicable? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-americans-celebrate-cinco-de-mayo/719309.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-americans-celebrate-cinco-de-mayo/719309.md?page=3)