Padrinos is the Spanish word for the adult sponsors who may help provide ceremonial items or financial support for a quinceañera. The singular forms are padrino for a man and madrina for a woman.
Padrinos can sponsor a dress, cake, jewelry, flowers, photography, music, or religious objects, depending on family custom. They are often relatives or close family friends, and their role may be acknowledged publicly during the celebration.
The sponsorship system resembles compadrazgo, a broader Latin American tradition of creating social and spiritual kinship through ceremonial responsibilities. However, quinceañera sponsorship is not identical everywhere, and some modern families fund the event themselves. Padrinos are adults supporting the celebration; they are not the teenage attendants, who are called damas and chambelanes.