Posted
on October 12, 2014
On
this date in 1492, the lookouts on a small sailing ship spotted land.
And,
it turned out, they had “discovered” what was, for Europeans, a
whole New World – more than 16 million square miles (or 41 million
square kilometers) of previously unknown and unsuspected land lying
between Europe and the sought-after spices and riches of the Far East
and Eastern Indies.
You
probably know that the captain of the fleet of three ships was
Christopher Columbus, and that he was sailing for Spain. Because of
this momentous discovery, which had bajillions of consequences both
good and bad, many countries celebrate October 12 (or, in modern
times, the Monday closest to the twelfth),
and some people mourn the date! In the United States, the day is
generally called Columbus
Day;
and in much of Latin America, the day is called Discovery
Day or
Dia
de la Raza.
The day is also commemorated – sort of an anti-celebration – by
some as the
National
Day of Mourning or
Indigenous
People's Day.
I've
known all that for years – decades, even.
What
I didn't know was that it was celebrated in Spain, too!
Spanish
celebrations of the anniversary of Columbus's discovery began in
1935. The day was called “Day of Hispanidad” (Dia de la
Hispanidad), a day to honor the connection between Spain and the
worldwide Hispanic community.
In
1981, a royal decree established Dia de la Hispanidad as a
national holiday.
In
1987, the name of the holiday was changed to Fiesta Nacional.
Now the day serves as the national day of Spain (along with December
6, Constitution Day), and it is accompanied by a military parade in
Madrid that is presided over by Spain's king and prime minister.
(Notice, however, that the name change de-emphasizes Spain's
connection to the Hispanic community or Latin America.)
 |
| Military parade in Madrid |
 |
| Many, many people in Catalonia do not agree with this sign. |
Having
just been to Spain, and having read about the groups that identify as
Spanish (but instead as Basque or Catalan), I wondered if people were
very patriotic, and if they REALLY celebrated Fiesta Nacional. The
answer, apparently, is no and no. There are no widespread parades or
patriotic events. I didn't even read about any fireworks. Spain has
some amazing holidays (like this one and this other one),
but this apparently isn't one of them.
Also
on this date:
Plan
ahead:
Check
out my Pinterest boards for:
And
here are my Pinterest boards for:
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