Catalonia (historic territory)
From Freepedia
- This article is about the historic territory of Catalonia. For the Spanish autonomous community, see Catalonia. For the historic part of Catalonia under French jurisdiction, see Northern Catalonia
Catalonia or the Principality of Catalonia (Catalan: Catalunya or Principat de Catalunya ; Spanish: Cataluña or Principado de Cataluña; Aranese: Catalonha or Principautat de Catalonha ; French: Catalogne or Principauté de Catalogne) is a historic region in southern Europe, formerly an independent country, embracing a territory now situated in the north-east of Spain and an adjoining portion of southern France.
The historic territory of Catalonia corresponds to the present-day Autonomous Community of Catalonia (also named Southern or Spanish Catalonia with respect to French or Northern one), plus other territories including Northern Catalonia (Catalan: Catalunya Nord), part of France since the 1659 Treaty of the Pyrenees, and the small Franja de Ponent or Western Strip, which is also disputedly considered part of the historic territory of Aragon because of several Aragon-Catalonia border changes throughout history.
The term Catalonia is usually now used to mean the Autonomous Community of Catalonia, a Spanish autonomous community with limited political sovereignty.
Catalan nationalists view Catalonia as a stateless nation. In September 2005, the Catalan Parliament approved (with the support of 120 deputies to 15) the definition of Catalonia as a nation in the text of the new Catalan Statute (autonomous basic law). This issue is currently in discussion in the Spanish Cortes or Parliament.
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History of Catalonia
Main article: History of Catalonia
Development of Catalonia as part of the Crown of Aragon into a Mediterranean Power
The territory that is now Catalonia was colonized by Ancient Greeks and Carthaginians. Like the rest of the Iberian Peninsula, it participated in the pre-Roman Iberian culture and was part of the Roman Empire, followed by Visigothic rule. In the eighth century it was part of Moorish (Muslim-ruled) al-Andalus, but the northern part of it was conquered within a century by the expanding Carolingian Empire.
Identifiably Catalan culture begins in the Middle Ages under the rule of the Counts of Barcelona. As part of the Crown of Aragon, Catalonia became a great maritime power, expanding by trade and conquest into Valencia, the Balearic Islands, and even Sardinia, Sicily and as far as Greece.
Catalonia after the Middle Ages
The marriage of Isabella I of Castile and Ferdinand II of Aragon (1469) joined the so called Catholic Crowns; in 1492, the last of al-Andalus was conquered and the Spanish conquest of the Americas began. Political power began to shift away towards Castile.
Catalonia continued to retain part of its own laws, but these gradually eroded (albeit with occasional periods of recovery). Over the next few centuries, it was generally on the losing side of a series of wars that led steadily to more centralization of power in Castille.
In 1659, after the Treaty of the Pyrenees the comarques (districts) of Rosselló, Conflent, Vallespir and the northern half of Cerdanya were ceded to France. In recent times, this area has come to be known, specially by Catalan nationalists, as Northern Catalonia. Catalonian institutions were suppressed and public use of Catalan language was prohibited. Currently, this region is administratively part of French Départment of Pyrénées-Orientales.
At the end of the War of the Spanish Succession (between the Castilian-French axis and the Catalan-English axis), after 1714 Barcelona fell to French and Castilian troops. Philip V abolished the Crown of Aragon and all remaining Catalonian institutions, prohibiting the public use of Catalan language with the Decretos de Nueva Planta (New Regime Decrees), which have never been formally abolished.
In the latter half of the 19th century, Spanish Catalonia became a center of Spain's industrialization; to this day it remains one of the most industrialized parts of Spain, along with Madrid and the Basque Country. On several occasions during the first third of the 20th century, Spanish Catalonia gained and lost varying degrees of autonomy, but as in most regions of Spain, Catalan autonomy and culture were crushed to an unprecedented degree after the defeat of the Second Spanish Republic (founded 1931) in the Spanish Civil War (1936–1939) brought Francisco Franco to power. Public use of the Catalan language was again banned after a brief period of general recuperation.
Catalonia under Spanish jurisdiction recovered political and cultural autonomy following Franco's death in 1975. It became one of the Autonomous Communities of Spain. In comparison, Northern Catalonia has still a much more limited degree of autonomy.
Language
Main article: Catalan language
Catalonia constitutes the original nucleus where Catalan is spoken. Catalan is regarded by most linguists as being an Ibero-Romance language (the group that includes Spanish), but it has many features of Gallo-Romance languages such as French.
Catalan is one of the two official languages of Autonomous Community of Catalonia, as laid down in the Catalan Statute of Autonomy; the other is Spanish. However, Catalan is not an official language neither in Northern Catalonia nor in La Franja.
Occitan, in its Aranese variety, is official and subject to special protection in the Val d'Aran (Aran Valley), which is notable, as this small region of 7,000 is the only place where Occitan (spoken mainly in France and some Italian valleys) has full official recognition.
Culture
Traditions
Image:Correfocs.jpg Image:Castells bao 2005.jpg Catalonia's festivals and traditions unify Catalan society and help to give it its particular character. Amongst the most striking of festive events are the correfocs, in which "devils" play with fire and with the people. These devils are not the incarnation of evil; they are sprightly and festive, dancing to the sound of drums and the traditional gralla, while they set off their fireworks.
Another tradition occurs during the spring festival day of Sant Jordi (St George's Day, 23 April, also known as Book Day, coinciding with the anniversaries of the deaths of William Shakespeare, Miguel de Cervantes and Josep Pla). Men give roses to women, and women give a book to men as a present. The streets are full of people, book and flower stands.
Perhaps the most spectacular of the Catalan festivals are those of the colles castelleres, groups of enthusiasts who form impressive human towers (up to ten people high). This is an old tradition of the Tarragona region, which has now spread to many parts of Catalonia, and has become a real spectacle, or sport, that attracts thousands of people. Amongst other important festivities are the carnival in Vilanova i la Geltrú and the Patum in Berga.
Then, there is the very special music of the cobles, the wind bands that play sardanes. The sardana is a circular, open dance, that originated in the Empordà region (north of the country by the Mediterranean sea) and the Pyrenees (Catalan Pirineus), and is now danced in many squares and streets.
As in other countries, there is a Christmas tradition similar to that of Santa Claus . In Catalonia it is enacted in the very popular figure of the Tió de Nadal.
The Catalan "Diada" or National Day of Catalonia is on September 11, after the defeat and surrender of Barcelona to the French-Castilian army of Philip V of Spain and his supporters during the War of Spanish Succession. Similarly November 7 is also remembered in Northern Catalonia after the Treaty of the Pyrenees.
The anthem of Catalonia is Els Segadors (The Reapers). Popular folk songs include "El Rossinyol", "La Balanguera" and "El Cant dels Ocells", which became something of an unofficial national anthem under the years of Franco's oppression. Such songs became popular all over the world with the success of the Orfeó Català choir around the beginning of the 20th century. Another song, created by the present singer Lluís Llach, L'Estaca, also gained this national feeling.
In Catalonia, sport support usually have a strong national and political connotation, that's the case of Barça football team, which is popularly known as "more than a club", or USAP Perpignan rugby team. Both may be considered to act as unofficial national teams of Catalonia.
See also
- Catalan Countries
- Category:Catalan culture
- Cuisine of Catalonia
- Famous Catalan People
- Catalan nationalism
- Generalitat de Catalunya
