The Spanish word quinceañera commonly names the female honoree celebrating her fifteenth birthday.
The same word can also describe the celebration, especially in English-language use. In Spanish, context determines whether quinceañera refers to the young woman or to the event. The masculine form quinceañero is used in some communities for a boy’s comparable fifteenth-birthday celebration.
The word is built from quince, meaning fifteen, with a feminine ending associated with the person or occasion. Spanish spelling uses the letter ñ, so quinceañera is distinct from the incorrectly written form quinceanera when standard spelling is being used.
Terminology varies by region. Families may also use quince, quince años, or quinceañera party in everyday speech. These labels do not by themselves determine whether the celebration includes a Mass, a court, formal dancing, or any particular symbolic ritual.