<u>Answer:</u>
The Spanish people discovered that in the 16th century once they landed in central Mexico. Día de los Muertos (Days of the Dead) emerged in medieval Mesoamerica (Mexico and northern Central America), where native groups, such as Aztec, Maya and Toltec, had specific memories of their departed loved ones.
It was rejected by the people and the church as a day to syncrete pagan concepts with Catholic Christianity. Its etymology went back to good old-Columbian instances where people used to think that their soul could go to different spots if someone passed away, based on how the man died.
In an effort to "reform" the local people, the Spaniards mixed some of their values with those of the natives and even switched the representations of the gods with those of the Catholic apostles.
