Wiktionary
n. A national celebration in Mexico, commemorating the victory of Mexican forces led by General Ignacio Zaragoza over the French expeditionary forces in the Battle of Puebla on May 5, 1862, also celebrated widely by immigrants living in the United States.
Wikipedia
Cinco de Mayo (; Spanish for "Fifth of May") is a celebration held on May 5. The date is observed to commemorate the Mexican Army's unlikely victory over French forces at the Battle of Puebla on May 5, 1862, under the leadership of General Ignacio Zaragoza.
In the United States, Cinco de Mayo has taken on a significance beyond that in Mexico. In the U.S. the date has become associated with the celebration of Mexican-American culture. In Mexico, the commemoration of the battle continues to be mostly ceremonial, such as through military parades.
In the United States, Cinco de Mayo is sometimes mistaken to be Mexico's Independence Day—the most important national holiday in Mexico—which is celebrated on September 16.
Usage examples of "cinco de mayo".
Then one day two weeks ago, I was walking along Avenida Cinco de Mayo from the Plaza Mayor to the museum where I was about to wind up my translation assignments, when I almost ran into Duke Hollister-in the flesh!
A Cinco de Mayo picnic filled the bamboo grove of Kaifungfu Park with music and merriment.
They tell me that the Chicano students were holding a Cinco de Mayo celebration at Campbell Hall and that the pigs came in and busted some heads.
One night a year ago, Cinco de Mayo, there was a mariachi Mexican Spanish Pachuco conga lineup through the halls and down through the tenement, gassed on wine and enchiladas.
Or Cinco de Mayo, which Ensign Andujar had described in great detail.