Galicia

History

Galicia owes its name in old Gallaeci, people Celtibère established in this area (to the Douro river) about the 6th century or 5th century before the Christian era. However, although the Celtic language was maintained until the arrival of the Roman invaders, she did not survive until the end of the Roman Empire. Gallaecia became a Roman province equipped with a certain autonomy with its own capitals (Braga, Lugo and Astorga). During last decades of the Roman Empire, that is to say at the beginning of the great Germanic invasions, the Suèves, people established between the the Rhine and the the Danube, arrived at the Iberian peninsula in 409. The Royaume suève lasted almost two centuries (409 - 585). The most durable influence left by the Romans remains the Galician language which developed starting from Latin spoken in this area.

The kingdom of Galicia

The Roman conquest (137-22 before Jesus-Christ), moved by the high content in ores, created, with the wire of the centuries, a culture where the indigenous elements appeared with an increasing force. The Roman ways, the bridges (Bibei, Orense), the walls (Lugo) and the farms around the villae change little by little the image of the country. Gallaecia becomes an independent Roman province with its own capitals, Braga, Lugo and Astorga. But the fundamental trace left by the Romans remains the Galician language.

Christianity changes the popular religiosity gradually, even if this one remains through particularly rich myths, rites and symbolisms. At the 4th century, the first episcopal sees make their appearance, the doctrines priscillianists having a singular success in the rural world. Priscillien ends up being carried out, marked of magic and of sexual orgies but he was regarded in the Gallaecia as a martyr, at such a point that the Galician bishops, during the synod of Tolède of 396, refused to regard the priscillianists as martyrs.

In 425 - 426, the Vandal S, another Germanic people, drove back Suèves and were also established in Galicia. After one initial time of conflicts, Galicians, Suèves and Vandales were combined and founded a kingdom which lasted one century and half. Then, the king Visigoth Léovigild annexed, in 585, the kingdom suève of Galicia, which then became an administrative unit of the kingdom Visigoth. During a few centuries which followed, various people composing Galicia, i.e. the Galéïco-Romans, Suèves, the Vandals, and the Visigoths, were integrated socially and linguistically, then strengthened their kingdom. It was one time of golden age for the Galicia which extended on almost all the west coast from the peninsula (the north of current Portugal). In 711, the Arab S reflect fine with the domination wisigothe on the whole of the Iberian peninsula, but the Arab influence remained always weak in Galicia.

On the linguistic level, the Galicians consolidated their language, the Galician ( galego ), which developed not only in Galicia of North (current autonomous Communauté of Galicia), but also in all the Galicia of the South (the North of Portugal of today). During all Middle Ages, one spoke the same language in Galicia about North and Galicia about the South. The river Miño, which separates Galicia from North and the Galicia of the South (Northern of Portugal), was in the center of the surface of the language common galeïco-Portuguese.

The Galician , a language and a culture

Romance Language, the Galician with the Portuguese a base the joint, galaïco-portugués or Galician-Portuguese resulting from Latin, during the Moyen-âge. This fact justified the creation of a rich person medieval literature and gave rise to the two current languages: the Galician and Portuguese of a rather strong resemblance.

A linguistic movement (the Reintegracionisme) supports that the Galician and Portuguese are only two varieties of the same language gallego-luso-brasileiro , and that current separation between official Portuguese and the official Galician is due only to the normative hispanisation of the Galician (only galaïco-portugués variety being written with an orthography similar to that of the Castilian).

In fact, according to much of linguists, the difference between the Galician and spoken Portuguese are roughly the same one as that which separates the two varieties from the Dutch spoken: Flemish Dutch of the Netherlands and of Belgium (these two varieties share the same orthography on the other hand). A Galician and a Portuguese thus include themselves/understand rather well.

The oldest known document written in Galician was recently found. It dates from the year 1228, and is called the Foro C bo burgo C Castro Caldelas . It was granted by Alphonse IX, king de León, in April of this year at the town of Orense, of Allariz.

After the cultural decline of the modern time, the Galician and his literature re-appeared with the rebirth of the XIXe century, called the century of the Rexurdimento and with the period Our (“Us”) of the first third of XXe. In spite of the interruption of the process, because of the war of Spain and the pro-Franco dictatorship, the Galician culture again was essential gradually since the Fifties until our days. With the arrival of autonomy in 1981, the Galician became official language with the Castilian in Galicia.

The Galician is taught at the elementary school, and it is important common language in the secondary education and the three universities of the Galician territory: that of Saint-Jacques-with-Compostelle (with its campus of Lugo), that of has Corogne (with its campus with Ferrol) and that of Vigo (with two campuses, with Ourense and Pontevedra).

The separation of the Galician and Portuguese

Subjected by the kings of Asturies to the 8th century, Galicia was joined together with the kingdom of León and Castille in 1071. In 1230, under the reign of Ferdinand III of Castille, the kingdom of Galicia was integrated definitively into monarchy Castilian of Leon and Castille. Previously, part of the Galicia of the South (the north of current Portugal) had become independent, then the kingdom of Portugal definitively constituted in 1139 with the current borders.

Consequently, the political border which was fixed definitively between Portugal and Galicia took little by little effect on the language common galeïco-Portuguese. This language, however born in Galicia of the North, which had been established in the south at the time of the Reconquest against the Arabs, was cut of its Galician roots and sudden of the different influences. Thus, whereas the Galician of North (galéïco-Castilian) started to be colonized by Spain and borrowed massively from the Castilian, the Galician of the South (galeïco-Portuguese) is subject to the Arab influence, then, later, subjected to the dynasty of Burgundy and the influence of the monks of Cluny (abbey of Burgundy celebrates), it borrowed part of its vocabulary from French. As from 1500, the Portuguese term definitively replaced that of galego to indicate the spoken language by the Portuguese, which sealed the fragmentation of the galego in two languages.

Decline of the Galician

During all the 16th century, a last period of economic prosperity in Galicia involved a demographic explosion and an artistic development and linguistics which will reach its culminating point at the time Baroque. However, the royal absolutism, the Catholic religion and the culture official Castilian, the three major forces which were to link Spain, made so that the Galician, excluded from any official use, were regarded as a language only being able to be used in the abstract oral communications. It followed one dark long period called the Séculos Oscuros (dark Centuries), which will finish only with the advent of the Démocratie in 1975. Galicia continued its decline at the 19th century and remained crossed remainder of Spain. For various reasons, modernization rural has not be possible in Galicia, which left the 19th century with an economy underdeveloped and exclusively agricultural, which initially involved a massive emigration towards Spain, then outside the country. Between 1860 and 1936, the majority of the emigrating Galicians left for Cuba, the Argentine, the Brésil and the Venezuela. Galicia then took a considerable delay on the remainder of Spain and the Galician language remained confined with the oral communications and lost any social prestige.

Under the authoritarian regime of Francisco Franco (1936 - 1975), the use of the Galician was interdict at the school.

In the Fifties, the Galician emigration continued towards Europe (the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Netherlands, Belgium and Suisse) like in the principal industrial centers of Spain (Catalogne, Basque Country and Région of Madrid).

This bleeding of the population started to slow down with the beginning of the year seventy.

Then, once passed the mode of the pro-Franco dictatorship (1975), Galicia finally could profit from a statute of autonomy where its condition of nationality was proclaimed under the terms of the provisions of the Spanish Constitution of 1978.

The autonomous Community of Galicia was then established and the Galician was recognized Co-official with the Castilian.

The use of the language by the population has been in reduction for the latter years in the rural sectors with the profit of the Castillan (Spanish). This language is influential in the urban centres since longer still.

In spite of this historical evolution in favor of the Castilian, a recent study on the habits idiomatic of the Galician population shows that 80% of this population always practice the Galician.

Although it is proportionally the most spoken language, the Galician enjoys less social prestige than the Castillan, and profits from a regional policy in his favor less strong than the Catalan in Catalogne or the Basque with the Basque Country. So the Galician badly succeeds in asserting himself like normal language in the formal communications, as well with the oral examination as with the writing. And yet the Galician remains very attached in the friendly conversations and the family intimate medium. In the street the Galicians always address themselves or answer unknown (almost systematically), in Castilian.

Many Galicians emigrated with the Brésil and in Argentine, so much so that one calls gallego today (“Galician” in French) the fair people and with the clear color in Brazil. Still today, in most of the Latin America, all the inhabitants coming from Spain or alive in these countries one still calls them, the Galician , some is their regional origins.

Galicia has the autonomous statute of community since the April 28th 1981.

The November 13rd 2002, the '' Prestige '' made shipwreck with 270 km of the coasts. The fuel reached the Galician beaches.

During the summer 2006,175 486 hectares of vegetation one destroyed by Forest fires in Galicia.

Geography

Galicia covers a surface of 29.574 km ² (almost like Belgium) and has 1.300 km of coasts. With the Roman epoch Galicia had important resources of Or, money and tin.

Galicia is an geographical area limited to north and the west by the Atlantic Ocean, to the east by the end of the mountainous chain of the Cantabric coast, (Os Ancares) and to the western south by the river Miño, whose end of the course is border with the Portugal.

The area is divided into 4 provinces, 53 comarcas (cantons), 316 concellos (common), 3847 parishes and 31 855 “cores of population” (half of all Spain which in account 63 613) or “aldeas” (hamlets). But the parish is for the Galician, the absolute reference. It is common, if you ask a Galician from where it comes, that he answer you by the name of his parish.

The origin of these parishes is due to Suèves, populates Germanic which founded one of the first Christian kingdoms of Europe towards 410. A document of year 569 attests this admistrative organization, “Parochial Suevorum”.

Towns of Galicia

Galicia is characterized, unlike other Spanish areas, by the absence of a metropolis dominating the territory. Indeed, the urban reinforcement consists of several medium-sized cities which net the area.

Vigo (300 000 inhabitants)
Corogne (250 000 inhabitants)
Ourense (110 000 inhabitants)
Saint-Jacob de Compostelle (90 000 inhabitants)
Lugo (90 000 inhabitants)
Ferrol (80 000 inhabitants)
Pontevedra (80 000 inhabitants)
Vilagarcía de Arousa (35 000 inhabitants)
Narón (35 000 inhabitants)
Redondela (30 000 inhabitants)
Monforte de Lemos (20 000 inhabitants)
Lalin (20 000 inhabitants)

Policy

As a the autonomous Community of the Kingdom of Spain, Galicia exerts the Compétence S and the To be able S which are reserved for him by the statute of autonomy within the framework of the Constitution of the Spanish State.

The executive power is exerted by the Xunta de Galicia (“Junta of Galicia”) with the head of which the president of Galicia is.

The Parliament of Galicia, where 75 deputies sit exerts the legislative power. Every four years, of the elections are organized to renew the Parliament.

The last took place in June 2005 and saw the first alternation in this autonomous region, directed since always by the Popular party. It is from now on an alliance between the PSdeG and the Bloque Nacionalista Galego or BNG (nationalist) which controls.

Résutats 2005:

PP: 44,9% of the voices, are 37 deputies (- 4)

PSdeG : 32,5% of the voices, are 25 deputies (+8)

BNG 19,6% is 13 deputies (- 4).

Left plain (EU-IU) 0,8% of the voices, is 0 deputy.

Manuel Fraga Iribarne was the president of the autonomous community until July 2005. It was replaced the July 29th by the socialist Emilio Pérez Touriño with the head of a coalition government PSdeG - BNG.

Culture

Galicia is known for the Pèlerinage of Saint-Jacques-of-Compostelle. One has also attended for a few years a return of the Galician traditional music, and in particular the gaïta galega (Galician Cornemuse). The revival of the Galician culture, in particular in music, is sought, inter alia, through the community of what one calls today " the countries celtes" , the Asturies, the Scotland, the Ireland and the Brittany.

The close friend Romanesque art Galician

Galicia counts the greatest number of Romance buildings in Spain, even if such a patrimonial richness is not revealed as in other places of the peninsula. Only one certain delay in the catalog of these monuments prevented that this area is evaluated as it deserves it in a context of the Hispanic Romanesque art; the history and the evolution of art Galician novel passes by a series of phases and too complex vicissitudes to detail them here.

Throughout the Middle Ages developed in Galicia one period of construction where the Romanesque art prevailed, in the large cathedrals like that of Saint-Jacques-with-Compostelle, as well as in the monasteries, as those of the Ribeira Sacra, characterized by the importance of the monuments, true strong plates of medieval architecture. But the Romanesque art also was essential in hundreds of rural parishes, scattered a little everywhere in the territory, more particularly in the center of Galicia.

With the head of the Galician novel one finds the Saint cathedral Jacques-of-Compostelle, but Galicia is rich in medieval cathedrals, like Lugo, Ourense, Tui and Mondoñedo. The zones inside, where the four provinces are almost plain in only one point, one finds one of the greatest concentrations of Romanesque art of all Spain.

All the length also of the Atlantic coast, since Pontevedra until Lugo, passing by Corogne, the rural Romanesque art is wide especially also at the coasts of Pontevedra and of the Ártabro gulf of Corogne and to other zones further away from the coast, in all the green or mountainous valley one had set up hundreds of rural parishes. Some communes have several Romance churches, of the parochial temples and the hermits of greatest artistic quality. They pass often unperceived taking into consideration public not informed.

The visual force as of these granite buildings, almost all preserved well except by the direct action of the man, one is made consubstantial with the Galician territory.

Another characteristic of this Galician art is its conservation in the time and the persistence of the architecture of the Romance forms during the centuries of bottom Moyen Áge. Although some Gothic innovations were used, convents and rural temples of the XIIIe centuries in XVe, which all almost, perdurent of clear Romance reminiscences, especially derived from the world “mateano” (of the Mateo Master) of the cathedral of Jaques saint.

The close friend simplicity of this art was fully identified with the spirit of meditation of the landscape and the devotion Galician. In the hamlets or localities, now isolated, ways in margin of the usual tourist roads lead towards these witnesses of such an amount of history. To visit them, it is necessary to be addressed without reserve for the inhabitants of the village who keep the keys of the vaults and know more than one history on their past. Sometimes given up by the Church and the administration, sometimes wild victims of restorations, this inheritance still keeps, in its secular granite, the smoothness of a wolf, in San Miguel of Eire, the secular concise signs of the tailors, or jealousies of Celtic inspiration embedded with other pre-Romance stones of size, in the walls of the church of saint Estevo d' Atán. Pierre in the stone, the world galaïco always was in this superposition of cultures and civilizations.

The earthenware of Sargadelos

The complex industrial and cultural of Sargadelos answers an integral and modern project of great importance for Galicia, the company, whose origins go back to two centuries behind, towards the end of XVIIIe, to reappear at the XXe century and thus contributes to the recovery of the memory of the country and a use of the natural resources of the area, where industry and artistic dimension are in relation closely dependant.

The initiator of the project was illustrates it Galician-asturien, Antonio Raimundo Ibáñez Llano there Valdés , liberal lit, that the people and the first historians made Marquis de Sargadelos and who will start the first integral iron and steel industry of Spain. After having discovered and identifyhaving identified tanks close to the caolín (Kaolin), at the beginning of XIXe. In this same complex will as create a factory for the manufacture of earthenware as, inter alia innovations, into the Iberian panorama a particular drawing of mechanical decoration of the printed crockery introduced. However, during the war of the Independence of Spain (1808-1813), Napoleonean war, Ibáñez, shown by his enemies to be a “ afrancesado ”, a partisan of Napoleon, was trailed by ground until he dies in the streets of Ribadeo, where he had his “pazo” (manor), vis-a-vis the passivity of the English army cut off in the city. This episode, tragedy and unjust were the object of research discussed among the historians, and literary reason for a great number of writers.

Assassinated Ibáñez, its factories had an unequal subsistence until they cease in 1875, date with which closing is consumed and initiates the degradation of the architectonic complex.

Sargadelos was an important point to undertake the recovery of the history of Galicia. And with its restoration, is born from a project from 1963 from the Laboratory from Forms from Galicia, then supported and associated by the experience gained of Earthenware of Castro since 1947. Consequently, convention between the Laboratory of the Forms, institution conceived in Argentina by Shine Seoane and Issac Diaz Pardo , creators artistic and intellectuals exiled Galleguiste S, and Earthenware of Castro, they will start the projects which had crystallized with an experimental sector in 1968, which will end finally, on May 10th, 1970 by the inauguration of the new company of Sargadelos of which the goals were to restore the historical memory hidden by the dictatorship of the Franco general and to create a clean industry at the same time.

The company located the industrial facilities out of the old enclosure of the complex of Sargadelos, and then, the Laboratory of Forms had required into 1972 that this unit is protected and declared History-Artistic , protection to him was granted this same year.

Thus, under the direction of Diaz Pardo, turned over in Galicia, is based again the “ Faïencerie of Sargadelos ”. Since then, of the Galician traditional forms and the experiments of before guard international combine in an infinite variety of parts of daily or decorative use of a quality and an extraordinary success. In parallel, the Sargadelos Group is at the origin of cultural projects and industrialists, become fundamental in Galicia current.

Among his initiatives, one can quote, inter alia, the seminar of Sargadelos, devoted to technical, artistic and historical research; in Sada, on the one hand, the museum Carlos Maside d' Art Galician contemporary, on the other hand, the complex C Castro: earthenware, graphic arts and publisher, as well as the geological Laboratory of Laxe of the Foundation Parga Pondal; with Saint-Jacques-with-Compostelle, the Galician Institute of Information (IGN) and its auditorium and, finally, everywhere in Galicia and in other countries in Europe.

The Royal Employers of Sargadelos, which protects the unit, has its seat in the new rebuilding of the Casa da Administracion (House of the Administration).

The emigration, a cultural and political resistance

The Galician emigration goes up at the time modern, when the most disinherited moved towards other places of the Iberian peninsula to realize, as seasonal workers the hardest work, like the harvest or haulage.

But, actually, it is at the XVIIIe century which the true diaspora of the workers began towards Americas. Throughout this century, the economic delay, the geographical location and the Spanish policy made favourable the massive exodus of the Galicians to America, so much so that this one reached a third of the population, a figure which turns around the two million people. The number of emigrants originating in Galicia being so important that, in several American countries, it was usual to call “Gallegos” all the Spaniards who settled there.

With time, these Galicians of outside organized themselves in religious organizations and charitable organizations, creating large committees in Havana, Buenos Aires, or Montevideo. Some among most fortunate financed the safeguarding and the radiation of the traditions and the language Galician in the emigration, as well as the realization of philanthropic works in their ground of origin: public works, schools, arts centres…

The Latin America could not be explained any more without Galicia (the Cuban president Fidel Castro or the Argentinian former president Raúl Alfonsín is downward Galicians) but, in return Galicia cannot include itself/understand either without the Latin America (the Galician anthem was composed in Cuba and everywhere there exist traces of the print “Indiana” - turned over emigrants -, for example, in architecture or botany).

At the XXe century, the civic concern and “Galleguiste” of some of these emigrating communities joined the claiming attitude of exiled arrived to America after the bursting of the civil war. There then was outside an important hearth of cultural and political resistance of the Galician specificity, persecuted in Galicia by the dictatorship of the Franco general. For this period, a new emigration occurred, this time bound for the Central European countries, where new emigrating associations thus were create.

He is not Galician family which did not know, consequently, the emigration, either through his aïeux, or among his close relations.

See: Photographs of ''' Manuel Ferrol ''' (1923-2003) {{be}} {{gl}}

Gastronomy

The products of the sea, such fish and shellfish are recognized for their variety and their quality in all Spain. One can for example find there hulls, clams, shrimps, crawfish, spider crabs, knives, pushes foot ( percebes )

The " tarta of Santiago" (" tart of Jacques" Saint;) is a gastronomical receipt carried out for the pilgrims of passage. This tart is typical area of Galicia and more especially of Saint Jacques de Compostelle, place of pilgrimage.

Men of Galicia

Writers and artists

Castelao, Rianxo (1886-1950) writing journalist and draftsman caricaturist of the review Our .
Camilo Jose That, writer and Nobel Prize of literature
Ramón María del Valle-Inclán
Rosalía of Castro
Manual Curros Enríquez
Ignacio Ramonet, Redondela, director of the diplomatic World
Ramón Chao, writer, journalist
María Casares Pérez, Corogne, 1922 - Paris, 1996 - artist
Fernando Casado Arambillet, known as Fernando Rey, has Coruña, 1917 - Madrid, 1994 - Actor
Emilia Pardo Bazán
Gonzalo Torrente Ballester, O Ferrol (1910-1999)
Caroline Otero, known as beautiful Otero (Valga Big shot, 1868 - Nice, 1965)
Carlos Núñez, musician
Susana Seivane, musician
Julio Iglesias, Born with Madrid, crooner.
Juan Pardo, Born in Palma de Majorque, crooner.
Vicente Risco, writer.
Manuel Rivetted, writer, born in 1957 in Corogne.

Politicians

Castelao, Rianxo (1886-1950) politician, deeply galleguist.
Francisco Franco, O Ferrol (1892-1975), general and Head of the State (Caudillo de Espana).
Pablo Iglesias Poses, O Ferrol (1850-1925), founder of the PSOE - Spanish working Socialist party and of the UGT
Concepción Arenal, O Ferrol (1820-1893), one of the initiators of Spanish feminism
Jose Calvo Sotelo, Tuy (1893-1936) was a Spanish politician monarchist of foreground before the Spanish civil war.
Raúl Alfonsín, first president of the Argentinian Republic * Mariano Rajoy, president of the Popular party since 2004.
Manual Fraga, former minister of Free, then one of the fathers of the Spanish Constitution of 1978, president of the autonomous Community of Galicia of 1989 with 2005
Emilio Pérez Touriño, socialist, president of the autonomous Community of Galicia since 2005.
Loly Bolay, vice-president of the Great Council of the Republic and canton of Geneva 2007.

Sportsmen

David Cal, world champion of oar (gold in Athens 2004)
Iván Raña, champion of Europe and the world of triathlon
Oscar Pereiro, racing cyclist
Javier Gomez Drowned, vice-champion of the world, Champion of Europe and victorious of the circuit World cup of Triathlon

Children of Galicians

“For the Galicians, Finisterre forever be the end, but the beginning” dixit Raúl Ricardo Alfonsín, first elected president of Argentina and wire of Galician.

Bleeding the Galician emigration towards Americas, then Europe, obliges to mention some famous “wire”:

Manual Chao, known as Manu Chao, Galician father and mother Basque, born in Paris, singer
Jose Doval, known as Jose Garcia, wire of Galicians, born with Paris, actor
Gabriel García Márquez, grandson of Galicians
Bernardino Rivadavia, first Argentinian president 1780-1845, captain of the “Tercio of Gallegos” since 1807
Pedro Benito Cambón, founder of San Francisco
Jorge Lorenzo, pilot, wire of Galician (originating in the village of Oporto C Its)
Fidel Castro, born with Cuba, wire of a Galician originating in the village of Lancara, president de Cuba since 1959
Niki Lauda, grandson of Galician (Jose Lauda Soto) originating in the village of Loña C Assembles
Raúl Alfonsín, Argentinian former president, wire of Galician originating in the village of Ribadumia
Nélida Piñón, girl of Galicians in Brazil
Rubén Blades, wire of Galicians in Panama
Ramón Estévez, known as Martin Sheen, wire of Galicians originating in Parderrubias
Adolfo Pérez Esquivel, Nobel Prize of Peace, born with Buenos-Surfaces, wire of Galician originating in the village of Combarro
Fernando Caldeiro, known as Frank Caldeiro, astronaut with NASA, born with Buenos-Surfaces, grandson of Galicians originating in Devesela
Luís Vaz de Camões, the largest Portuguese poet of the 16th century (1524-1580), a national reference for the Portuguese would have been born in Lisbon in 1524. It is the son of Simão Vaz de Camões, gentleman of the house of the king resulting from a family originating in Galicia.
Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra, known in particular for its work, Don Quichotte , bears the name Saavedra of Galician origin by his/her mother.

See too

the autonomous Communities of Spain
List of the presidents de Galice
Provinces of Spain
Saint-Jacques-with-Compostelle
Blazon of Galicia

External bonds

2 charts of Galicia (via Michelin)
site of Xunta for the promotion of tourism in Galicia, French version - very complete site

a small round of Galicia
Xunta de Galicia, self government site of Xunta de Galicia
the Galician flag, history
Celtic Grounds, the guide Web of the Celtic countries beautiful photographs of Galicia on the site of Breton a

Simple: Galicia (Spain)

Random links: