The Spanish term quinceañera commonly describes the young woman honored at the celebration.
In Spanish-speaking usage, the word can identify the girl reaching her fifteenth birthday. In English, it also commonly refers to the entire celebration, which is why the same word may describe both the person and the event.
The masculine form quinceañero is used in some contexts for a boy’s comparable fifteenth-birthday celebration, although terminology and popularity vary by region. The feminine form is much more widely recognized because the tradition historically centered on girls.
Quinceañera is different from dama, which commonly identifies a female member of the court, and from madrina, which generally means a sponsor or godmother. Those roles may appear at the same event but do not name the celebrant.