Latin America It is a mostly Catholic and Christian region due to the influence of the Spanish colonization. The Christmas It is a celebration of Christian origin that aims to commemorate the birth of Jesus, the central figure of Christianity.
(You can also read: The Christmas message of the apostolic nuncio in Colombia, through EL TIEMPO)
This celebration of religious origin is part of the traditional festivals that are most popular in the region, however, there is a Latin American country that “eliminated” Christmas and other religious holidays a century ago.
This is Uruguay, the country that, although it maintains the holidays, stopped celebrating Christmas officially. In this nation, December 25 is a holiday, but for the celebration of Family Day.
This decision was made in 1919 obeying the principle of the Constitution of 1918, plebiscited in 1917, which established Uruguay as a secular country, For this reason, obeying the separation of the State and the Church, the Latin American country maintained the holidays, but stopped institutionally recognizing the religious reason behind them.
(You may be interested in: Christmas trips: where Colombians go to spend the holidays)
As in the case of Christmas, Easter Week is not celebrated either, but Tourism Week; Children’s Day is celebrated on the day of the Three Kings, and the day of the Virgin Mary is replaced by the day of the Beaches.
However, This does not mean that they are prohibited celebrations, because in the streets, and those who wish, celebrate Christmas on December 24 and they follow traditions such as decorating with lights and recognizing this celebration as a holiday of Christian origin.