catalan culture

The first digital platform to distribute European cinema and television series in Catalan was launched on Friday in Barcelona

Ireland’s ‘Houses of the Oireachtas’ will create a friendship group on Catalonia in order to get a deeper understanding of its political situation, as well as enhancing trade relationships and promoting cultural exchange. The initiative gathers together members of the Irish Assembly and the Senate representing Fine Gael, Fianna Fáil, and Sinn Féin, the main parties in the bicameral parliament. Thus, Ireland is following the example of other countries such as the United Kingdom, Finland, Switzerland, and Estonia, who also have discussion groups on Catalonia. Catalan Minister for Foreign Affairs, Raül Romeva, will travel to Dublin on Wednesday to attend the presentation of the cross-party group and explain Catalonia’s referendum roadmap to the participants.

“Strength, balance, courage, and sanity” are the four key elements that guide the new Human Tower Museum of Catalonia in Valls, 100 km south of Barcelona. This ambitious project, aims to become a reference for the human tower world. All that is on show at the moment is indoor equipment with the most spectacular set ups: latest videos, support tools, and interactive games. The aim of its creator, Ignasi Cristià, who has designed the space for both experts from the ‘castells’ world and for the more inexpert public as well, is to create a new space for explaining human towers.

Every year on 23rd April, the UNESCO World Book Day, Catalans celebrate their patron saint, Sant Jordi's Day (Saint George). It is one of the Catalans’ most cherished national days, when people give books and red roses to friends and loved ones in celebration of love and literature. Traditionally men used to give a red rose to women and women gave men books in return. But the tradition has evolved and nowadays men and women both give and receive books and roses to each other as well as to friends and even co-workers. This year’s Sant Jordi's Day was an especially sunny day in Catalonia. The streets of Barcelona and all around the country were flooded with books and flower stands, where people lined up to buy books and roses or just stroll around enjoying the magic moment. Like every year hundreds of authors from Catalonia but also from all around the world came to the Catalan capital to sign their books and to join the festive atmosphere. In addition, emblematic buildings such as Gaudi’s Casa Batlló on the famous Passeig de Gracia was decorated with red roses and encouraged visitors to learn about the legend of Sant Jordi.

London’s Borough Market hosted the celebration of Sant Jordi’s Day in the British capital. Like all over Catalonia, stalls selling books and roses colored one of the most iconic spots in the city, complete with Catalan food tasting, storytelling, traditional human towers (Castellers) and a mix of both Catalan and English folklore. The Delegation of the Catalan Government to the UK and Ireland, together with the Catalan community in the UK, the Tourism Office, and Institut Ramon Llull London, which promotes Catalan culture and literature, also took part in the celebrations and had their own stalls at the market. 

More than 6,000 students worldwide learn Catalan language and culture in 28 countries in Europe, America, Asia and Oceania. More than 150 universities teach Catalan at different levels, 88 of which receive funding through Institut Ramon Llull (IRL), a public body in charge of promoting Catalan culture and language abroad. Indeed, in 2016 IRL designated €1,270,722 to helping to fund the teaching in these universities. These are some of the figures on the University Network of Catalan Studies Abroad, presented this Tuesday by IRL’s director, Manuel Forcano. According to him, the Network “offers a very positive image of Catalonia to the world since it promotes the Catalan language everywhere”. France, Germany and the United Kingdom are the three countries with the highest number of universities teaching Catalan. 

‘Patum’ is a popular festival celebrated every year during Corpus Christi in the Catalan city of Berga. In this town, the earliest reference to this festival dates from 1454 although the celebration has its origins in pre-Christian festivities. During five days, the streets of Berga are transformed into a massive stage. The ‘Patum’ festival,  which was declared as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2005, comprises several parts and is a mixture of sound, fire and parades of allegorical and traditional figures such as ‘Guites’ (mule dragons), the Eagle and giant-headed dwarves. All the figures join to perform the final dance, the Tirabol. This years’ ‘Patum’ will take place from the 25th to the 28th of May.

At this year’s edition of the Warsaw Book Fair, where Barcelona along with Catalan culture and literature were guests of honour, 1,700 people attended activities meant to promote the culture of the region. The activities were organised by the Institut Ramon Llull (IRL), which is a public institution in charge of promoting Catalan culture and language. A total of 72,000 visitors attended the Book Fair, which was held from the 19^th to the 22^nd of May. 800 booths from 25 different countries participated in the cultural event, and the booth specifically dedicated to Catalan literature saw the participation of 580 people in its activities. The activities were led by a coalition of Catalan writers composed of Sebastià Alzamora, Blanca Busquets, Jaume Cabré, Jenn Díaz, Rafel Nadal, Marc Pastor, Jordi Puntí, Care Santos, Màrius Serra and Jordi Sierra i Fabra, whose goal was to promote Catalan literature and contemporary creation. 

After the 2016 celebrations for Sant Jordi’s festival came to a close, Catalan Minister of Culture Santi Vila announced that the Catalan Government will offer its full support to an initiative to recognise the feast day as UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH). As opposed to UNESCO World Heritage, ICH safeguarding works to promote and protect traditions, practices, and other living expressions of culture beyond physical sites, objects, and monuments. Until now, the Catalan Booksellers Guild and the Catalan Publishers Guild have discussed the initiative with the House of Books — the same institute that worked to have the 23^rd of April recognised as UNESCO World Book Day. 

The festivity of Sant Jordi, one of the most romantic and anticipated days of the year for many Catalans, was a success. Hundreds of thousands of people headed to the streets this Saturday in search of a book and a rose for their loved ones. Barcelona was particularly crowded, but so were the other capitals of Catalonia, Girona, Lleida and Tarragona, and all the small towns and villages of the country. Late in the afternoon, the rain slightly hampered the celebration in parts of the country, especially in the north. Book sellers and florists, however, were satisfied with expected sales of about 1.5 million books and around 5.5 million roses. Sant Jordi was also a great occasion for readers to meet their favourite authors, who took part in different book signings. In Barcelona, where the most famous authors were, but also in other cities, there were long queues for a signature. The bestseller in Catalan was 'La filla del capità Groc', by Víctor Amela.

London's Shard, in the Tower Bridge area, is Europe's tallest building. Its viewpoint, located on the 72^nd floor, opened its doors in 2013 and has offered a wide range of events since then: silent discos, winter experiences and in the near future a very ambitious project: a traditional Catalan human tower performance. "The image would be amazing" stated 'The View from the Shard's marketing head Anna Domingo. Although she admits that there is not yet a specific date, she declared to CNA that they are "working very tight" with the Delegation of the Catalan Government to the UK "to promote the Catalan culture also from here". In 2012, Castellers de Vilafranca, one of the most iconic group of Castellers, displayed a tower on the 20^th floor of a building located right in front of New York's Empire State building.

Catalan human towers, ‘Castellers’, celebrated Monday their fifth anniversary of their recognition by UNESCO as an element of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. The ‘Castellers’ community had been awaiting the committee’s decision for years, as the candidature was first submitted in 2007. “The number of ‘Castellers’ groups has increased by 30% in the last five years, totalling 97 groups all over Catalonia”, stated ‘Castellers’ Groups Coordination president Maria Cortès, “our goal is not to reach 100 groups, but to make higher, stronger and safer ‘castells’ each time”. Cross-party list ‘Junts Pel Sí’s top member, Raül Romeva, also attended the event, as he is also a member of a group of Castellers. “Castellers teach us that things must be done well, in an organised way and to add to each other, as everybody has their role” he declared in an interview, probably in reference to the negotiations between pro-independence forces ‘Junts Pel Sí’ and CUP.

‘Barcelona Catalonia Culture Week’, the first Catalan cultural week organised in Shanghai awoke the interest of 73,000 people. Coinciding with the 10^th anniversary of the Catalan Society ‘Casal Català de Xangai’ and 15 years since the twinning of Barcelona and Shanghai, China’s financial capital hosted more than 30 activities to present Catalonia’s cultural heritage to the local audience. International icons such as surrealist painter Salvador Dalíand architect Antoni Gaudíwere the centre of some of the art exhibitions. Another key point of the programme was the participation of ‘Castellers de Vilafranca’, whom displayed Catalan human towers all around the city. “This initiative introduces Catalonia to China’s collective imagination”stated the Catalan Institute of China’s President, Alexis Roig, and is the result of “a joint effort from civil society, companies and the Catalan institutions”. 

“Barcelona and Catalan literature will be the main focus” at the Warsaw Book Fair 2016, stated the Director of Institut Ramon Llull (IRL), which is a public institution in charge of promoting Catalan culture and language, Àlex Susanna. Next year it will be time to “set the coveted invitation” to the Bologna Book Fair, he added and declared that IRL is “working hard” on a possible “Catalan landing” in the multidisciplinary Edinburgh Festival in two years’ time. Susanna admitted to be optimistic regarding Catalan culture’s international projection and highlighted that this development coincided with the economic crisis.   

The Wine and Cava Fair celebrates its 35^th year at the feast of ‘La Mercè’, in Barcelona. From the 19^th to the 24^th of September, 81 wineries from all 12 of Catalonia’s wine and Cava regions will be represented. The fair is a way of demonstrating that Catalonia produces top-quality wines which successfully compete with other regions. It is also an interesting way of introducing new enthusiasts to wine culture. Wine and Cava will be sold by all the wineries at the fair, and there is a large area reserved for wine tasting. There is also the opportunity to sample other typical Catalan products, including a selection of the best local sausages and cheeses.