Brazilian Families: A Great Diversity of All Types and Modes
As Brazilian families, as well as the ethnic formation of the Brazilian people, it is vast and diverse. Over the years, families have gone through several changes since their construction, nowadays as families don’t necessarily have a blood bond, just a bond of love and affection to be a family, regardless of how it was built. What really makes each family special is the love above all between its members. All families have their own way and each one of them is formed in a way and with characteristics different from the others. The formation of the family has changed over time, but what unites its members will always be the love between them. Within Brazilian families there are several traditions and typical national and regional customs, including:
meet at the table
There is no lunch on the weekend without family gathered for socializing with relatives to catch up, in addition to the main family meeting we have on the Brazilian calendar, Christmas, if you don’t have a complete family at the table, it’s not Christmas traditional.
We also have one of the characteristic symbols of Christmas, Santa Claus, which children adore.
Brazilian families have diverse cultural habits that received elements and influences from indigenous, African, Portuguese, Spanish, Italian and Japanese peoples, among others, due to colonization, immigration and the peoples who once lived here. They are characteristic elements of Brazilian families that are linked to Brazilian culture, with the stories of our folklore, popular music that predominates in each region, literature, cuisine with the famous typical dishes of each region that prepare the parties, in addition to the traditional national parties, such as carnival, where family members dress up and play carnival in the city’s streets, a famous June party with its delicious dishes, dances and games, in addition to the famous bonfire that everyone gathers to heat up.
Religion is very present in Brazilian families, as several of them suffered miscegenation, which we call religious syncretism. Brazilian religious syncretism brings together elements of Candomblé, Christianity and indigenous religions, forming a plural religious conception that families have and, according to their generations, pass on from generation to generation. An example of this is the day of the holy brothers São Cosme and Damião, where children incorporate sweets collected by the population.
Therefore, we can conclude that there is no known Brazilian standard. Brazilian families are diverse and each one of them has its peculiarities.