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Spain is openly multilingual,[157] and the constitution establishes that the nation will protect "all Spaniards and the peoples of Spain in the exercise of human rights, their cultures and traditions, languages and institutions.[158] Spanish (español)—officially recognized in the constitution as Castilian (castellano)—is the official language of the entire country, and it is the right and duty of every Spaniard to know the language. The constitution also establishes that "all other Spanish languages"—that is, all other languages of Spain—will also be official in their respective autonomous communities in accordance to their Statutes, their organic regional legislations, and that the "richness of the distinct linguistic modalities of Spain represents a patrimony which will be the object of special respect and protection."[159] The other official languages of Spain, co-official with Spanish are: Basque (euskara) in the Basque Country and Navarre; Catalan (català) in Catalonia, the Balearic Islands and in the Valencian Community, where its distinct modality of the language is officially known as Valencian (valencià); and Galician (galego) in Galicia As a percentage of the general population, Basque is spoken by 2%, Catalan (or Valencian) by 17%, and Galician by 7% of all Spaniards.[160] In Catalonia, Aranese (aranés), a local variety of the Occitan language, has been declared co-official along with Catalan and Spanish since 2006. It is spoken only in the comarca of Val d'Aran by roughly 6,700 people. Other Romance minority languages, though not official, have special recognition, such as the Astur-Leonese group (Asturian, asturianu; also called "bable", in Asturias[161] and Leonese, llionés, in Castile and León) and Aragonese (aragonés) in Aragon. In the North African Spanish autonomous city of Melilla, Riff Berber is spoken by a significant part of the population. In the tourist areas of the Mediterranean coast and the islands, English and German are widely spoken by tourists, foreign residents, and tourism workers. Education Main article: Education in Spain State education in Spain is free and compulsory from the age of 6 to 16. The current education system was established by an educational law of 2006, LOE (Ley Orgánica de Educación), or Fundamental Law of Education.[162] Religion Main article: Religion in Spain Further information: History of the Jews in Spain, Bahá'í Faith in Spain, Hinduism in Spain and Islam in Spain Religions in Spain Catholicism 69% No religion 26% Other faith 2% No answer 3% Numbers from the following source:[163] Roman Catholicism has long been the main religion of Spain, and although it no longer has official status by law, in all public schools in Spain students have to choose either a religion or ethics class, and Catholicism is the only religion officially taught. According to an April 2014 study by the Spanish Centre for Sociological Research about 69% of Spaniards self-identify as Catholics, 2% other faith, and about 26% identify with no religion (9.4% of the total are atheists). Most Spaniards do not participate regularly in religious services. This same study shows that of the Spaniards who identify themselves as religious, 59% hardly ever or never go to church, 15% go to church some times a year, 8% some time per month and 14% every Sunday or multiple times per week.[163] Santiago de Compostela Cathedral, A Coruña; terminus of the Camino de Santiago Altogether, about 22% of the entire Spanish population attends religious services at least once per month.[164] Though Spanish society has become considerably more secular in recent decades, the influx of Latin American immigrants, who tend to be strong Catholic practitioners, has helped the Catholic Church to recover. There have been four Spanish Popes. Damasus I, Calixtus III, Alexander VI and Benedict XIII. Spanish misticism was an important intellectual fight against Protestantism with Teresa of Ávila, a reformist nun, ahead. The Society of Jesus was founded by Ignatius of Loyola. Protestant churches have about 1,200,000 members.[165] There are about 105,000 Jehovah's Witnesses. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has approximately 46,000 adherents in 133 congregations in all regions of the country and has a temple in the Moratalaz District of Madrid.[166] A study made by Unión de Comunidades Islámicas de España demonstrated that there were about 1,700,000 inhabitants of Muslim background living in Spain as of 2012, accounting for 3-4% of the total population of Spain. The vast majority was composed of immigrants and descendants originating from Morocco and other African countries. More than 514,000 (30%) of them had Spanish nationality.[167] The recent waves of immigration have also led to an increasing number of Hindus, Buddhists, Sikhs and Muslims. After the Reconquista in 1492, Muslims did not live in Spain for centuries. Late 19th-century colonial expansion in northwestern Africa gave a number of residents in Spanish Morocco and Western Sahara full citizenship. Their ranks have since been bolstered by recent immigration, especially from Morocco and Algeria. Judaism was practically non-existent in Spain from the 1492 expulsion until the 19th century, when Jews were again permitted to enter the country. Currently there are around 62,000 Jews in Spain, or 0.14% of the total population. Most are arrivals in the past century, while some are descendants of earlier Spanish Jews. Approximately 80,000 Jews are thought to have lived in Spain on the eve of the Spanish Inquisition.[168] Culture Salamanca is one of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites. The School of Salamanca was the intellectual origin of human rights theories and modern international law. Main article: Culture of Spain Culturally, Spain is a Western country. Because of the great strength of the Roman heritage in almost every aspect of Spanish life, Spain is often described as a Latin country. Nevertheless, there have been many influences on many aspects of Spanish life, from art and architecture to cuisine and music, from many countries across Europe and from around the Mediterranean, through its long history. Monuments and World Heritage Sites Aqueduct of Segovia, Roman. Santa María del Naranco, pre-romanesque. Sant Climent de Taüll in Vall de Boí, Romanesque. Cathedral of Burgos, Gothic. Santa María de Guadalupe Monastery, Mudéjar. Llotja de la Seda, Renaissance. Main article: World Heritage Sites in Spain See also: Castles in Spain and Cathedrals in Spain It should be noted tha that after Italy (49) and China (45), Spain is the third country in the world with the most world heritage sites. At the present time it has 44 recognized sites, including Monte Perdido at the Pyrenees, which is shared with France.[169] In addition, Spain has also 14 Intangible cultural heritage, or "Human treasures", Spain ranks first in Europe according to UNESCO's Intangible Cultural Heritage List, tied with Croatia.[170] 1984 — Obras de Antoni Gaudí (in Spanish) (Barcelona). 1984 — Monasterio y Sitio de El Escorial en Madrid (Community of Madrid). 1984 — Cathedral of Burgos (Burgos). 1984 — Alhambra, Generalife y Albaicín (Granada). 1984 — Historic centre of Córdoba (Córdoba). 1985 — Santa María del Naranco (Principality of Asturias). 1985 — Cave of Altamira and Paleolithic Cave Art of Northern Spain (Cantabria, Principality of Asturias, Vizcaya and Guipúzcoa). 1985 — Segovia's old town and it's Aqueduct (Segovia). 1985 — Santiago de Compostela's old town (La Coruña). 1985 — Ávila's old town, wall and churches (Ávila). 1986 — Mudéjar Architecture of Aragon (Teruel, Zaragoza). 1986 — Parque nacional de Garajonay (Santa Cruz de Tenerife). 1986 — Ciudad vieja de Cáceres (Cáceres). 1986 — Historic city of Toledo (Toledo). 1987 — Cathedral, alcázar and General Archive of the Indies in Seville (Seville). 1988 — Salamanca's old town (Salamanca). 1991 — Poblet Monastery (Tarragona). 1993 — Archaeological Ensemble of Mérida (Badajoz). 1993 — Santa María de Guadalupe Monastery (Cáceres). 1993 — Camino de Santiago de Compostela (Comunidad Foral de Navarra, Huesca, La Rioja, Burgos, Palencia, León, Lugo and La Coruña). 1994 — Parque nacional de Doñana (Cádiz, Huelva and Seville). 1996 — Historic city of Cuenca (Cuenca). 1996 — Lonja de la seda de Valencia (Valencia). 1997 — Palau de la Música Catalana and hospital de Sant Pau in Barcelona (Barcelona). 1997 — Las Médulas (León). 1997 — Ordesa national park and Monte Perdido (Huesca). 1997 — Monasteries of San Millán de la Cogolla (La Rioja). 1998 — Rock art of the Iberian Mediterranean Basin (Alicante, Castellón, Valencia, Teruel, Huesca, Zaragoza, Albacete, Cuenca, Guadalajara, Region of Murcia, Jaén, Almería, Granada, Tarragona, Lérida y Barcelona). 1998 — University and historical city of Alcalá de Henares (Community of Madrid). 1999 — Ibiza, biodiversity and culture (Islas Baleares). 1999 — San Cristóbal de La Laguna (Santa Cruz de Tenerife). 2000 — Archaeological Site of Atapuerca (Burgos). 2000 — Palmeral of Elche (Alicante). 2000 — Catalan Romanesque Churches of the Vall de Boí (Lérida). 2000 — Roman Walls of Lugo (Lugo). 2000 — Archaeological Ensemble of Tarraco (Tarragona). 2001 — Mistery play of Elche (Alicante). 2001 — Cultural landscape of Aranjuez (Community of Madrid). 2003 — Renaissance monumental sites in Úbeda and Baeza (Jaén). 2006 — Vizcaya Bridge (Vizcaya). 2007 — Teide National Park (Santa Cruz de Tenerife). 2009 — Tower of Hercules (La Coruña). 2010 — Prehistoric Rock-Art Sites in the Côa Valley and Siega Verde Paleolithic Art (Salamanca). 2011 — The Cultural Landscape of Serra de Tramuntana (Islas Baleares). 2012 — Heritage of mercury (Almadén and Idria) (Ciudad Real). Alhambra in Granada with Sierra Nevada. Literature Main articles: Spanish literature, Royal Spanish Academy and Instituto Cervantes The earliest recorded examples of vernacular Romance-based literature date from the same time and location, the rich mix of Muslim, Jewish, and Christian cultures in Muslim Spain, in which Maimonides, Averroes, and others worked, the Kharjas (Jarchas). During the Reconquista, the epic poem Cantar de Mio Cid was written about a real man—his battles, conquests, and daily life. Bronze statues of Don Quixote and Sancho Panza, with Miguel de Cervantes, in the Plaza de España in Madrid. Other major plays from the medieval times were Mester de Juglaría, Mester de Clerecía, Coplas por la muerte de su padre or El Libro de buen amor (The Book of Good Love). During the Renaissance the major plays are La Celestina and El Lazarillo de Tormes, while many religious literature was created with poets as Luis de León, San Juan de la Cruz, Santa Teresa de Jesús, etc. The Baroque is the most important period for Spanish culture. We are in the times of the Spanish Empire. The famous Don Quijote de La Mancha by Miguel de Cervantes was written in this time. Other writers from the period are: Francisco de Quevedo, Lope de Vega, Calderón de la Barca or Tirso de Molina. During the Enlightenment we find names such as Leandro Fernández de Moratín, Benito Jerónimo Feijóo, Gaspar Melchor de Jovellanos or Leandro Fernández de Moratín. During the Romanticism, José Zorrilla created one of the most emblematic figures in European literature in Don Juan Tenorio. Other writers from this period are Gustavo Adolfo Bécquer, José de Espronceda, Rosalía de Castro or Mariano José de Larra. In Realism we find names such as Benito Pérez Galdós, Emilia Pardo Bazán, Leopoldo Alas (Clarín) or Vicente Blasco Ibáñez and Menéndez Pelayo. Realism offered depictions of contemporary life and society 'as they were'. In the spirit of general "Realism", Realist authors opted for depictions of everyday and banal activities and experiences, instead of romanticized or stylized presentations. The group that has become known as the Generation of 1898 was marked by the destruction of Spain's fleet in Cuba by US gunboats in 1898, which provoked a cultural crisis in Spain. The "Disaster" of 1898 led established writers to seek practical political, economic, and social solutions in essays grouped under the literary heading of Regeneracionismo. For a group of younger writers, among them Miguel de Unamuno, Pío Baroja, and José Martínez Ruiz (Azorín), the Disaster and its cultural repercussions inspired a deeper, more radical literary shift that affected both form and content. These writers, along with Ramón del Valle-Inclán, Antonio Machado, Ramiro de Maeztu, and Ángel Ganivet, came to be known as the 'Generation of 98.' Miguel de Unamuno, José Ortega y Gasset and Federico García Lorca The Generation of 1914 or Novecentismo. The next supposed “generation” of Spanish writers following those of ´98 already calls into question the value of such terminology. By the year 1914—the year of the outbreak of the First World War and of the publication of the first major work of the generation's leading voice, José Ortega y Gasset—a number of slightly younger writers had established their own place within the Spanish cultural field. Leading voices include the poet Juan Ramón Jiménez, the academics and essayists Ramón Menéndez Pidal, Gregorio Marañón, Manuel Azaña, Maria Zambrano, Eugeni d'Ors, and Ortega y Gasset, and the novelists Gabriel Miró, Ramón Pérez de Ayala, and Ramón Gómez de la Serna. While still driven by the national and existential questions that obsessed the writers of ´98, they approached these topics with a greater sense of distance and objectivity. Salvador de Madariaga, another prominent intellectual and writer, was one of the founders of the College of Europe and the composer of the constitutive manifest of the Liberal International. The Generation of 1927, where poets Pedro Salinas, Jorge Guillén, Federico García Lorca, Vicente Aleixandre, Dámaso Alonso. All were scholars of their national literary heritage, again evidence of the impact of the calls of regeneracionistas and the Generation of 1898 for Spanish intelligence to turn at least partially inwards. The two main writers in the second half of the 20th century were the Nobel Prize in Literature laureate Camilo José Cela and Miguel Delibes. Spain is one of the countries with the most number of laureates with the Nobel Prize in Literature, and with Latin American laureates they made the Spanish language literature one of the most laureates of all. The Spanish writers are: José Echegaray, Jacinto Benavente, Juan Ramón Jiménez, Vicente Aleixandre and Camilo José Cela. The Portuguese writer José Saramago, also awarded with the prize, lived for many years in Spain and spoke both Portuguese and Spanish. He was also well known by his Iberist ideas. See also: Catalan literature, Basque literature, Galician-language literature and Latin American literature Art Las Meninas (1656), Diego Velázquez, Museo del Prado. Main article: Spanish art Artists from Spain have been highly influential in the development of various European artistic movements. Due to historical, geographical and generational diversity, Spanish art has known a great number of influences. The Moorish heritage in Spain, especially in Andalusia, is still evident today and European influences include Italy, Germany and France, especially during the Baroque and Neoclassical periods. During the Golden Age we find painters such as El Greco, José de Ribera and Francisco Zurbarán. Also inside Baroque period Diego Velázquez created some of the most famous Spanish portraits, like Las Meninas or Las Hilanderas. Francisco Goya painted during a historical period that includes the Spanish Independence War, the fights between liberals and absolutists, and the raise of state-nations. Joaquín Sorolla is a well-known impressionist painter and there are many important Spanish painters belonging to the modernism art movement, including Pablo Picasso, Salvador Dalí, Juan Gris and Joan Miró. Cinema Main article: Cinema of Spain Pedro Almodóvar and Penélope Cruz in Cannes. Spanish cinema has achieved major international success including Oscars for recent films such as Pan's Labyrinth and Volver.[171] In the long history of Spanish cinema, the great filmmaker Luis Buñuel was the first to achieve world recognition, followed by Pedro Almodóvar in the 1980s. Spanish cinema has also seen international success over the years with films by directors like Segundo de Chomón, Florián Rey, Luis García Berlanga, Carlos Saura, Julio Medem, Alejandro Amenábar, and brothers David Trueba and Fernando Trueba. Actresses as Sara Montiel or Penélope Cruz are among those who have become Hollywood stars. Architecture Main article: Spanish architecture The Sagrada Família by Antoni Gaudí, Barcelona Due to its historical and geographical diversity, Spanish architecture has drawn from a host of influences. An important provincial city founded by the Romans and with an extensive Roman era infrastructure, Córdoba became the cultural capital, including fine Arabic style architecture, during the time of the Islamic Umayyad dynasty.[172] Later Arab style architecture continued to be developed under successive Islamic dynasties, ending with the Nasrid, which built its famed palace complex in Granada. Simultaneously, the Christian kingdoms gradually emerged and developed their own styles; developing a pre-Romanesque style when for a while isolated from contemporary mainstream European architectural influences during the earlier Middle Ages, they later integrated the Romanesque and Gothic streams. There was then an extraordinary flowering of the gothic style that resulted in numerous instances being built throughout the entire territory. The Mudéjar style, from the 12th to 17th centuries, was developed by introducing Arab style motifs, patterns and elements into European architecture. The arrival of Modernism in the academic arena produced much of the architecture of the 20th century. An influential style centred in Barcelona, known as modernisme, produced a number of important architects, of which Gaudí is one. The International style was led by groups like GATEPAC. Spain is currently experiencing a revolution in contemporary architecture and Spanish architects like Rafael Moneo, Santiago Calatrava, Ricardo Bofill as well as many others have gained worldwide renown. Music and dance Main article: Music of Spain Flamenco is an Andalusian artistic form that evolved from the Seguidilla Spanish music is often considered abroad to be synonymous with flamenco, a West Andalusian musical genre, which, contrary to popular belief, is not widespread outside that region. Various regional styles of folk music abound in Aragon, Catalonia, Valencia, Castile, the Basque Country, Galicia and Asturias. Pop, rock, hip hop and heavy metal are also popular. In the field of classical music, Spain has produced a number of noted composers such as Isaac Albéniz, Manuel de Falla and Enrique Granados and singers and performers such as Plácido Domingo, José Carreras, Montserrat Caballé, Alicia de Larrocha, Alfredo Kraus, Pablo Casals, Ricardo Viñes, José Iturbi, Pablo de Sarasate, Jordi Savall and Teresa Berganza. In Spain there are over forty professional orchestras, including the Orquestra Simfònica de Barcelona, Orquesta Nacional de España and the Orquesta Sinfónica de Madrid. Major opera houses include the Teatro Real,the Gran Teatre del Liceu, Teatro Arriaga and the El Palau de les Arts Reina Sofía. Thousands of music fans also travel to Spain each year for internationally recognized summer music festivals Sónar which often features the top up and coming pop and techno acts, and Benicàssim which tends to feature alternative rock and dance acts.[173] Both festivals mark Spain as an international music presence and reflect the tastes of young people in the country. The most popular traditional musical instrument, the guitar, originated in Spain.[174] Typical of the north are the traditional bag pipers or gaiteros, mainly in Asturias and Galicia. Cuisine Main article: Spanish cuisine Paella, a traditional Valencian dish[175] Spanish cuisine consists of a great variety of dishes which stem from differences in geography, culture and climate. It is heavily influenced by seafood available from the waters that surround the country, and reflects the country's deep Mediterranean roots. Spain's extensive history with many cultural influences has led to a unique cuisine. In particular, three main divisions are easily identified: Mediterranean Spain – all such coastal regions, from Catalonia to Andalusia: heavy use of seafood, such as pescaíto frito; several cold soups like gazpacho; and many rice-based dishes like paella from Valencia[175] and arròs negre (arroz negro) from Catalonia.[176] Inner Spain – Castile – hot, thick soups such as the bread and garlic-based Castilian soup, along with substantious stews such as cocido madrileño. Food is traditionally conserved by salting, like Spanish ham, or immersed in olive oil, like Manchego cheese. Atlantic Spain – the whole Northern coast, including Asturian, Basque, Cantabrian and Galician cuisine: vegetable and fish-based stews like pote gallego and marmitako. Also, the lightly cured lacón ham. The best known cuisine of the northern countries often rely on ocean seafood, like the Basque-style cod, albacore or anchovy or the Galician octopus-based polbo á feira and shellfish dishes. Science and technology Roque de los Muchachos Observatory, Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias. In the 19th and 20th centuries science in Spain was held back by severe political instability and consequent economic underdevelopment. Despite the conditions, some important scientists and engineers emerged. The most notable were Miguel Servet, Santiago Ramón y Cajal, Narcís Monturiol i Estarriol, Celedonio Calatayud, Juan de la Cierva, Leonardo Torres y Quevedo and Severo Ochoa. Sport 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona. Main article: Sport in Spain While varieties of football had been played in Spain as far back as Roman times, sport in Spain has been dominated by English style association football since the early 20th century. Real Madrid C.F. and FC Barcelona are two of the most successful football clubs in the world. The country's national football team won the UEFA European Football Championship in 1964, 2008 and 2012 and the FIFA World Cup in 2010, and is the first team to ever win three back-to-back international tournaments. Basketball, tennis, cycling, handball, futsal, motorcycling and, lately, Formula One are also important due to the presence of Spanish champions in all these disciplines. Today, Spain is a major world sports powerhouse, especially since the 1992 Summer Olympics that were hosted in Barcelona, which stimulated a great deal of interest in sports in the country. The tourism industry has led to an improvement in sports infrastructure, especially for water sports, golf and skiing. Rafael Nadal is the leading Spanish tennis player and has won several Grand Slam titles including the Wimbledon 2010 men's singles. In north Spain, the game of pelota is very popular. Alberto Contador is the leading Spanish cyclist and has won several Grand Tour titles including two Tour de France titles. Public holidays and festivals Main article: Public holidays in Spain San Fermín festival, Pamplona Public holidays celebrated in Spain include a mix of religious (Roman Catholic), national and regional observances. Each municipality is allowed to declare a maximum of 14 public holidays per year; up to nine of these are chosen by the national government and at least two are chosen locally.[177] Spain's National Day (Fiesta Nacional de España) is 12 October, the anniversary of the Discovery of America and commemorate Our Lady of the Pillar feast, patroness of Aragon and throughout Spain. There are many festivals and festivities in Spain. Some of them are known worldwide, and every year millions of people from all over the world go to Spain to experience one of these festivals. One of the most famous is San Fermín, in Pamplona. While its most famous event is the encierro, or the running of the bulls, which happens at 8:00 am from 7 to 14 July, the week long celebration involves many other traditional and folkloric events. Its events were central to the plot of The Sun Also Rises, by Ernest Hemingway, which brought it to the general attention of English-speaking people. As a result, it has become one of the most internationally renowned fiestas in Spain, with over 1,000,000 people attending every year. Other festivals include the carnivals in the Canary Islands, the Falles in Valencia or the Holy Week in Andalusia and Castile and León. |
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