Wonder no more, because here are some facts about Cinco de Mayo and why we celebrate it.

* The holiday is called El Día de la Batalla de Puebla (The Day of the Battle of Puebla) In Mexico, and is celebrated in the state of Puebla. It is not widely commemorated elsewhere in Mexico.

* The date of May 5th is significance because that was when the Mexican army triumped over French forces at the Battle of Puebla in 1862. France invaded Mexico in an attempt to secure repayment of money Mexico had borrowed. The victory by untrained Mexican soldiers, over a well trained and well armed French army was a surprise.

* They won the battle, but it took much longer for the Mexicans to win the actual war. It was not until 1867 that they defeated and drove out the French Army.

* Chicano activists in the U.S in the 1960s and 1970s popularized the holiday, identifying with the Mexican Indian and mestizo (people of Mexican Indian and European descent) soldiers’ triumph over European conquest attempts, reports Parents Magazine.

* The United States has 33.7 million residents who are of Mexican origin, according to the United States Census Bureau.

* Los Angeles, California hosts the largest Cinco de Mayo celebration in the United States.

* Margaritas are a very fun part of the celebration, and they’re big business, too. Americans spend about $2.9 billion annually on margaritas, which account for about 14 percent of the country’s cocktail sales, Bloomberg reports.

* About the aforementioned guacamole . . . the California Avocado Commission estimates that Americans consume approximately 87 million pounds of it on Cinco de Mayo.

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Prior Post: 5 Ways to Celebrate Talk Like Shakespeare Day

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