Spain

Andalusia, Spain
Spain is a storied country of stone castles, snowcapped mountains, vast monuments,
and sophisticated cities, all of which have made it a favoured travel destination. The
country is geographically and culturally diverse. Its heartland is the Meseta, a broad
central plateau half a mile above sea level. Much of the region is traditionally given over
to cattle ranching and grain production; it was in this rural setting that Miguel de
Cervantes’s Don Quixote tilted at the tall windmills that still dot the landscape in several
places. In the country’s northeast are the broad valley of the Ebro River, the
mountainous region of Catalonia, and the hilly coastal plain of Valencia. To the
northwest is the Cantabrian Mountains, a rugged range in which heavily forested, rain-
swept valleys are interspersed with tall peaks. To the south is the citrus-orchard-rich
and irrigated lands of the valley of the Guadalquivir River, celebrated in the renowned
lyrics of Spanish poets Federico García Lorca and Antonio Machado; over this valley
rises the snowcapped Sierra Nevada. The southern portion of the country is desert, an
extension of the Sahara made familiar to Americans through the “spaghetti western”
films of the 1960s and early ’70s. Lined with palm trees, rosemary bushes, and other
tropical vegetation, the southeastern Mediterranean coast and the Balearic Islands enjoy
a gentle climate, drawing millions of visitors and retirees, especially from northern
Europe.

Spain is bordered to the west by Portugal; to the northeast it borders France,

from which it is separated by the tiny principality of Andorra and by the great
wall of the Pyrenees Mountains. Spain’s only other land border is in the far
south with Gibraltar, an enclave that belonged to Spain until 1713, when it was
ceded to Great Britain in the Treaty of Utrecht at the end of the War of the
Spanish Succession. Elsewhere the country is bounded by water: by
the Mediterranean Sea to the east and southeast, by the Atlantic Ocean to the
northwest and southwest, and by the Bay of Biscay (an inlet of the Atlantic
Ocean) to the north. The Canary (Canarias) Islands, in the Atlantic Ocean off
the northwestern African mainland, and the Balearic (Baleares) Islands, in the
Mediterranean, also are parts of Spain, as are Ceuta and Melilla, two small
enclaves in North Africa (northern Morocco) that Spain h

As in much of western Europe, the culture of Spain was marked decisively by the period
of Roman rule. In language, religion, even architectural traditions, the Romans left a
lasting legacy. However, the subsequent course of Spanish history added elements to the
country’s cultural development that were missing or much weaker in other European
countries. The most important differences stem from the Arabic-speaking Muslims from
the Middle East and North Africa who invaded Spain in 711 CE and dominated much of
the country for almost 800 years. The Muslim cultural influence was very strong,
especially in the area of language; indeed, the Spanish language has taken more words
from Arabic than from any other source except Latin. Through contact with Muslims,
Christian Europe was able to recover much of the cultural and intellectual heritage
of Classical antiquity. It also gained access to many scientific advances made by
Muslims. Spain’s cultural mix was further enriched by the presence of a large and
influential Jewish population, and medieval Spain witnessed one of the periods of
greatest cultural achievement in Jewish history.

During the early modern and modern periods, Spain’s culture was fairly homogeneous.
The one significant exception was the presence and persistence of early languages other
than Castilian in some parts of the country. Two of these, Catalan and Galician
(Gallego), developed significant literary traditions during the Middle Ages. From the
16th century on, however, they lost ground to Castilian and increasingly became limited
to everyday use, especially among the peasantry. This had always been the case with the
third language, Euskera (Basque), which never had a significant literary tradition.

Beginning in the 19th century, all three languages enjoyed a revival. In the 20th century
the Franco regime prohibited the public use of languages other than Castilian, but this
did not lead to their disappearance. Instead, the use of these languages, both in daily life
and in high culture, increased greatly when they became the official languages in
the autonomous regions established under the constitution of 1978. They are now taught
in the schools and are used in the press and on television and radio.

For much of its history, and especially after the Reconquista was completed in 1492,
Spain has been strongly identified with the Roman Catholic Church. To a large extent
this identification and the virtual religious monopoly that the church has enjoyed since
the 16th century have been artificially imposed. Members of the two large religious
minorities were forced to convert or leave the country: the Jews in 1492 and the
Muslims in 1502. From 1478 until 1834 religious uniformity was enforced by the church
court, the Inquisition.

In the 19th and 20th centuries the Roman Catholic Church sought to have, and for much
of that time succeeded in having, the government declare Roman Catholicism as the
state religion, even though a large part of the population was nonpracticing or even
anticlerical. The church also encouraged the government to limit or even prohibit the
practice of other faiths. State support for the Catholic church was strongest during the
Franco regime, but since 1978 Spain has had no official religion. Today Spaniards enjoy
complete freedom of religion, although Roman Catholicism remains an important
cultural influence. Thus, at the beginning of the 21st century, the expression of
cultural diversity is easier than it was for at least 500 years. Ironically, this came at the
same time that Spain became increasingly drawn into a homogeneous global culture.

Daily life and social customs

Organization of the day
Daily life in early 21st-century Spain looks little different from that in other
industrialized countries of the West. There remain, however, some important practices
that are peculiar to Spain. The most obvious, especially for foreign visitors, is the
organization of the day and the scheduling of meals. Lunch, which is the main meal of
the day, is eaten between 2:00 and 3:00 PM. Traditionally it was followed by a nap—the
famous siesta—but, because most people now commute between home and work, this
custom is in decline. Supper, a lighter meal, is also taken late, between 9:00 and
10:00 PM, or even later during the hot summer months.

Business, shopping, and school hours reflect this pattern. There is a long break—
generally two to five hours long—in the middle of the day, during which most businesses
are closed and the streets are not very busy. (The few exceptions are bars, restaurants,
and the large department stores, which do not close at midday.) The main daily
television news is broadcast at this time, as are some of the most popular programs. The
workday resumes in the late afternoon, between 4:30 and 5:00 PM, and continues until
about 8:00 PM.
Food and drink

Learn to prepare some varieties of Spanish tapas

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Bars, which are open all day, generally serve food as well as drink, and it is
a widespread custom to go for a snack before meals, especially on non-working days.
The most well-known bar food, known as tapas, usually consists of prepared dishes,
many of which are quite elaborate and are often smaller versions of main-course dishes.
There are hundreds of different tapas, but a few typical ones
are mushrooms in garlic sauce, marinated seafood, Spanish omelette, lamb brochettes,
and octopus in paprika sauce.

Spanish cooking varies greatly from region to region, linked to local products and
traditions. Galicia, for example, is famed for its seafood, including dishes of baby eels
and Vizcayan-style codfish; Catalonia is renowned for meat and vegetable casseroles;
and Valencia is the homeland of paella, a rice dish made with seafood, meats, and
vegetables. From Andalusia comes gazpacho, a delicious cold soup made of tomatoes,
garlic, and cucumber, while the cattle-producing region
of Castile boasts succulent roasts and air-dried hams. Spanish food is frequently thought
to be very spicy, but, apart from a few dishes that contain small amounts of a mild chili
pepper, the most piquant ingredient in general use is paprika. Otherwise, dishes are
likely to be flavoured with such spices as tarragon and saffron. The most widely eaten
meats are pork, chicken, and beef, but in much of the country lamb is eaten on special
occasions. Very fond of both fish and shellfish, Spaniards are among the world’s largest
consumers of seafood. Legumes, especially lentils and chickpeas, also form an important
part of the Spanish diet.

Spaniards frequently drink wine and beer with their meals. They also commonly drink
bottled mineral water, even though in most parts of the country the tap water is
perfectly safe. At breakfast and after meals, strong coffee is the almost universal drink.
Few people drink tea, but herbal infusions such as chamomile are popular. Soft drinks,
both domestic and imported, are widely available.
Internationalization of culture
The Franco regime sought to preserve what it understood as Spain’s long-standing
traditions and to impose a strict Roman Catholic morality on the country. However, the
economic policies of the 1960s that opened Spain up to foreign investment and tourism
and encouraged Spaniards to work in other European countries also invited foreign
influences, which undermined the government’s desire to protect or isolate
Spanish culture. Since the 1960s Spanish culture, particularly the youth culture, has
increasingly become part of a homogeneous, heavily American-influenced international
culture.

For young people the most significant aspects of international culture are rock and
contemporary dance music, both of which make up a considerable portion of the music
played on Spain’s radio stations. Beginning with the Beatles in the 1960s, many leading
foreign rock groups have given concerts in Spain’s major cities. In the 1990s dance clubs
on the island of Ibiza frequented by young British vacationers became a hotbed
for techno music, first called Balearic Beat by some (see Sidebar: Balearic Beat). There
are also a large number of Spanish rock musicians, but few of these have achieved much
recognition outside the country. The most successful of Spain’s popular singers is
undoubtedly Julio Iglesias, whose music appealed to an older audience.

The internationalization of culture also can be seen in a variety of other ways. American
fast-food chains have franchises in all the major cities, and much of the
television programming and many of the popular films are foreign, the bulk of the
programs and films being from the United States.
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