Cinco de Mayo festivities will light up the South Bay for nearly a month.

Cinco de Mayo is a specific date on the calendar. But the South Bay will spend almost a month celebrating the Mexican patriotic holiday with free festivals, entertainment, dances, a parade and a luncheon scheduled over the coming weeks.

Kicking off local festivities this weekend, Wilmington and Carson expect big turnouts for fiestas marking the Battle of Puebla on May 5, 1862, in which outnumbered Mexican troops defeated a large force of French soldiers. Although the French dominated Mexico for several more years, the battle came to symbolize Mexican resistance to foreign intervention.

If the first Cinco de Mayo was all about fighting, today’s holiday is all about fun, with food, and singing and dancing that mingles traditional Mexican culture with Latin rock.

“We want the people of the Harbor area to celebrate,” said John Mendez, who heads the Wilmington Fiesta Committee sponsoring the celebration Saturday from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. at Wilmington’s International Longshoremen’s & Warehousemen’s Union hall at 231 West C St.

Community organizations will operate food and game booths to raise funds. Headlining the entertainment will be Mariachi Los Camperos, which backed Linda Ronstadt on her “Canciones de Mi Padre” album. “They’re like the Glenn Miller of mariachis,” Mendez said.

Carson’s 15th annual Cinco de Mayo celebration will be held Sunday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. at Carson Park, 21411 Orrick St. “It’s a joyous afternoon, a celebration,” said Park Director Dan Cisneros. “It’s become a popular event and we get more than 2,000 people.”

This year’s entertainment includes amateur boxing and, in the musical vein, Mexican recording artist Mari Jimenez, a Wilmington band called Chiyle, and the Grupo Xochitlan Folklorico Dancers from Carson. The colorfully costumed dancers keep the regional dances of Mexico alive, said Cisneros. “Kids don’t understand it, so they try to expose them to this type of music and culture, explaining each dance in detail,” he said.

Cal State Dominguez Hills--at 1000 E. Victoria St. in Carson--will mark Cinco de Mayo on Thursday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Once again, Mariachi Los Camperos, along with a group performing Aztec dances, will headline the celebration, which will be open to students and the public. Several Mexican folk artists will be on hand to discuss their work, which will be on display.

Three South Bay Cinco de Mayo events are scheduled next Friday, the traditional holiday date.

Lawndale senior citizens will be able to enjoy Mexican food and entertainment by a kitchen band, which makes music with kazoos and utensils. The luncheon will take place at the Prairie Avenue Community Center, 15331 Prairie Ave., from noon to 2 p.m. Donation is $1.25. Advance reservations are suggested and can be made by calling 973-4321, Ext. 143.

Torrance will have a Cinco de Mayo teen dance from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. at the Recreation Center, 3341 Torrance Blvd. A snack bar will serve Mexican foods, and 12 pinatas will be given as door prizes. The dance will be open to sixth- through eighth-graders who are members or guests of the city Co-Rec Club. The cost at the door is $3 for members and $5 for guests who are not members.

Manhattan Beach also will stage a Cinco de Mayo teen dance for seventh- and eighth-graders who attend city schools. The dance will be held from 7 to 10 p.m. at Manhattan Heights Community Center, 1600 Manhattan Beach Blvd. Admission will be $5 at the door.

A parade, festivals and a concert will mark Cinco de Mayo on May 6.

The parade will step off at 10 a.m. in Gardena at Vermont Avenue and Gardena Boulevard. It will end at Recreation Park at 158th Street and Normandie Avenue, where Mexican dancing, music and food will be available until 3:30 p.m.

Folkloric dancing and a low-riders antique car show will highlight a celebration from noon to 6 p.m. at the Wilmington Recreation Center, 325 Neptune Ave. There also will be food booths and arts and crafts.

Sister City committees in Redondo Beach and Hermosa Beach will join in a public Cinco de Mayo festival, with food and traditional Mexican dancing, from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Knights of Columbus Hall, 215 Avenue I, Redondo Beach.

In Hermosa Beach, another holiday celebration will include the appearance of Tito Puente and the Latin Jazz All Stars in concert May 6 at 8 p.m. at the Hermosa Civic Theatre, 710 Pier Ave. Reserved seats are $25 and information is available at 318-3452.

Manhattan Beach will have a Cinco de Mayo dance for adults on May 19 from 8 to 11 p.m. at Joslyn Community Center, 1601 Valley Drive. Admission at the door is $4.

Finally, Inglewood will salute Latino cultures with its annual Hispanic Fiesta on May 21 from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Rogers Park, 400 W. Beach St. An outgrowth of the city’s previous Cinco de Mayo observance, the fiesta was established three years ago. Flags from six countries--Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, Cuba, Nicaragua and Costa Rica--and from Puerto Rico will fly over the festival, which will feature Latino music, Mexican cowboys, soccer and volleyball tournaments, food from many countries, and pinatas, puppets and storytelling for the children.

Janice Morimoto, administrative assistant in the city Recreation and Community Services Department, said attendance last year was 7,000. “This has grown into a huge fiesta.”