The traditional Spanish term for a boy’s fifteenth-birthday celebration is quinceañero.
Quinceañera is grammatically feminine and traditionally names the girl reaching 15, while quinceañero is the masculine counterpart. In practice, terminology is not completely uniform: some communities use quinceañera or quince años broadly for celebrations involving young people of different genders.
The adaptation reflects changes in how families observe the milestone. Modern celebrations may be more secular, may include same-gender or mixed-gender courts, and may emphasize the celebrant’s interests rather than a fixed set of gendered rituals.
The underlying age remains 15. The vocabulary distinction is useful when discussing Spanish-language traditions, but regional usage can override a strict dictionary-style division. English speakers also frequently use quinceañera as the familiar name for the entire cultural tradition, regardless of the celebrant’s gender.