Vernacular Vernacular A vernacular, or vernacular language, is the language or variety of a language used in everyday life by the common people of a specific population. It is distinguished from a standard, national or literary language or a "lingua franca", used to facilitate communication across a large area. It is usually native, mostly spoken rather than written and usually seen as of lower status than more standardized forms. It can be a language, dialect or sociolect. Some linguists use "vernacular" and "nonstandard dialect" as synonyms. Usage of the word "vernacular" is not recent. In 1688, James Howell wrote: Concerning Italy,
Day of the Dead Mexico. It is served cold and quite sweet with a lot of ice. The ruby-red beverage is called hibiscus tea in English-speaking countries and called "agua de Jamaica" (water of Jamaica) in Spanish. In Belize, Day of the Dead is practiced by people of the Yucatec Maya ethnicity. The celebration is known as "Hanal Pixan" which means "food for the souls" in their language. Altars are constructed and decorated with food, drinks, candies, and candles put on them. "Día de las Ñatitas" ("Day of the Skulls") is a festival celebrated in La Paz, Bolivia, on May 5. In pre-Columbian times