Mental Floss

5 Ways to Celebrate National Hispanic Heritage Month

Of course, your local community will have its own festive events.

Scenes from the 2019 Hispanic Heritage Parade in New York City.
Scenes from the 2019 Hispanic Heritage Parade in New York City. | Ira L. Black - Corbis/GettyImages

From September 15 to October 15 each year, Hispanic culture is celebrated with National Hispanic Heritage Month, a nationwide tribute to the history and culture of Americans who came from or who have relatives descended from Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean, or Central and/or South America.

The honor began in 1968 as Hispanic Heritage Week; Ronald Reagan extended it to last for a month beginning in 1988. The timeframe not only encompasses Columbus Day (which is celebrated as Día de la Raza, or Day of the Race, in many Spanish-speaking nations), but the start on September 15 acknowledges the anniversary of independence for many Latin American countries.

If you’d like to get involved, check out some of the highlights that you can engage with in addition to any local or community events. (And if you’d like more on the differences between the terms Hispanic, Latino, and Latinx, we can explain.)

  1. Take a trip to the Smithsonian.
  2. Visit the Hispanic Museum and Library in New York City.
  3. Drop in on Elgin, Illinois.
  4. Celebrate with the New York Public Library.
  5. Tune into the Hispanic Heritage Foundation Awards.

Take a trip to the Smithsonian.

The Smithsonian is holding a number of performances, writing workshops, lectures, gallery tours during Hispanic Heritage Month. Many events will take place at the institution’s buildings in Washington, D.C., though some will be held at the American Indian Museum in New York City and a small number of virtual options are scheduled as well.

Visit the Hispanic Museum and Library in New York City.

The Hispanic Museum and Library is open year-round, but Hispanic Heritage Month brings an entire slate of special programming. This year, there are several live music and film events throughout September and Day of the Dead celebration on October 91, among other exhibitions.

Drop in on Elgin, Illinois.

Nearly half of the population of the city of Elgin, Illinois, is Hispanic, and the Gail Borden Public Library is celebrating by offering a number of events. October 5 will feature a Hispanic Heritage Month celebration complete with live music, dancing, and crafts; October 26 is slated to host the grand opening of the library’s Day of the Dead exhibit.

Celebrate with the New York Public Library.

The NYPL has a number of event programming scheduled, including in-person craft activities, book discussions, writing workshops, online trivia, and a screening of the 2021 film In the Heights. You can find out more on the library’s website.

Tune into the Hispanic Heritage Foundation Awards.

The Hispanic Heritage Foundation will be honoring a number of Hispanic and Latino legends during their awards ceremony on Thursday, September 5; the event is scheduled to air on Friday, September 27, at 10 p.m. ET on PBS.

Discover More Fun Facts for Hispanic Heritage Month:

A version of this story originally ran in 2021; it has been updated for 2024.

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