Wikipedia

Catalans: Difference between revisions

Browse history interactively
[pending revision][accepted revision]
← Previous edit
Content deleted Content added
VisualWikitext
Undid revision 1304580139 by Charliesito22 (talk)
 
Line 1:
{{Other uses|Catalan (disambiguation)}}
:''This article refers to both the Catalans as an ethnic group and to those speakers of the [[Catalan language]] who may not be identified as being Catalan.''
{{pp-pc|small=yes}}
{{ethnic group|
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2016}}
|group=Catalans
{{Infobox ethnic group
|image=[[Image:Catalan people.jpg|center|300px|Catalan people]]
| group = Catalans{{efn|name="IPA"|Pronunciation:
|poptime=over 7 Million
* English {{IPAc-en|ˈ|k|æ|t|ə|l|ə|n|z|,_|-|æ|n|z}} {{respell|KAT|ə|lənz|,_|-|lanz}} or {{IPAc-en|ˌ|k|æ|t|ə|ˈ|l|æ|n|z}} {{respell|KAT|ə|LANZ}} (Catalans)
|popplace=[[Spain]]: 6,858,000 [https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/sp.html#People] <br>
* Catalan {{IPA|ca|kətəˈlans|}} or {{IPA|ca|kataˈlans|}} (''catalans'')
[[France]]: 100,000 [http://www.ethnologue.com/show_language.asp?code=cat] <br>
* French {{IPA|fr|kataˈlɑ̃|}} (''catalans'')
[[Andorra]]: 31,000 [http://www.ethnologue.com/show_language.asp?code=cat] <br>
* Occitan {{IPA|oc|kataˈlans|}} (''catalans'')
[[Italy]]: 20,000 [http://www.ethnologue.com/show_language.asp?code=cat] <br>
* Spanish {{IPA|es|kataˈlanes|}} (''catalanes'')
[[Cuba]], [[Puerto Rico]], other parts of [[Latin America]]
* Italian {{IPA|it|kataˈlaːni|}} (''catalani'')
|rels=[[Roman Catholic Church|Roman Catholicism]], [[Atheism]], [[Agnosticism]]
* Sardinian {{IPA|sc|kaðɛˈlanɔzɔ|}} (''cadelanos'') or {{IPA|sc|kataˈlanɔzɔ|}} (''catalanos'')}}
|langs=[[Catalan language|Catalan]]; [[Spanish language|Castilian]], [[French language|French]], [[Italian language|Italian]]
| flag =
|related= other [[Spanish people]]s, other [[Latin peoples]]
| flag_caption =
| image =
| population = c. 9 million
[[File:Map of the Catalan Diaspora in the World.svg|center|frameless]]
| region1 = {{flag|Spain}} <br />{{spaces|9}}(people born in {{flag|Catalonia}} of any ethnicity; excludes ethnic Catalans in other regions in Spain)
| pop1 = 8,005,784 (2023)
| ref1 = <ref>[https://www.idescat.cat/pub/?id=ep|title=Estimacions de població] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240000000000*/https://www.idescat.cat/pub/?id=ep|date=23 March 2024}}, Statistical Institute of Catalonia, 19 February 2024.</ref>
| region2 = {{flag|France}}<br />{{spaces|9}}(people born in [[Pyrénées-Orientales]])
| pop2 = 491,000 (2023)<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.insee.fr/fr/statistiques/7657257|title=Les Pyrénées-Orientales : un département toujours attractif malgré les difficultés sociales|access-date=13 March 2024}}</ref>
| region3 = {{flag|Argentina}}<br />{{spaces|9}}(estimates vary)
| pop3 = 188,000{{cn|date=September 2023}}
| region4 = {{flag|Mexico}}
| pop4 = 63,000{{cn|date=September 2023}}
| region5 = {{flag|Germany}}
| pop5 = 43,000 (2020)<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.mdpi.com/2226-471X/7/1/43|title=Catalan as a Heritage Language in Germany|access-date=7 July 2025}}</ref>
| region6 = {{flag|Peru}}
| pop6 = 39,000{{cn|date=September 2023}}
| region7 = {{flag|Italy}}
| pop7 =
| region8 = {{flag|Andorra}}
| pop8 = 16,555 (2024)<ref>{{cite journal |last1=del Castillo |first1=Gerard |title=Andorra és el vuitè país del món amb més residents vinguts de Catalunya |journal=Diari d'Andorra |date=28 April 2024 |url=https://www.diariandorra.ad/nacional/240428/andorra-vuite-pais-mon-amb-mes-residents-vinguts-catalunya_149961.html |access-date=27 March 2025}}</ref>
| region9 = {{flag|Chile}}
| pop9 = 16,000{{cn|date=September 2023}}
| region10 = {{flag|Brazil}}
| pop10 = 11,787{{cn|date=September 2023}}
| region11 = {{flag|Venezuela}}
| pop11 = 6,200{{cn|date=September 2023}}
| region12 = {{flag|Colombia}}
| pop12 = 6,100<ref>{{Cite web|url = https://www.eltiempo.com/mundo/europa/que-piensan-los-catalanes-radicados-en-colombia-sobre-la-crisis-en-espana-139086|title = ¿Qué piensan los catalanes en Colombia sobre la crisis en España?|date = 8 October 2017|access-date = 7 October 2018|archive-date = 8 October 2018|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20181008022658/https://www.eltiempo.com/mundo/europa/que-piensan-los-catalanes-radicados-en-colombia-sobre-la-crisis-en-espana-139086|url-status = live}}</ref>
| region13 = {{flag|Cuba}}
| pop13 = 3,600{{cn|date=September 2023}}
| region14 = {{flag|Ecuador}}
| pop14 = 3,500
| ref14 = <ref>{{Cite web|last=de 2016|first=9 de Octubre |title=Guayaquil, una ciudad que creció con aporte extranjero
|url=https://www.eltelegrafo.com.ec/noticias/septimo/1/guayaquil-una-ciudad-que-crecio-con-aporte-extranjero|access-date=2022-05-23|website=El Telégrafo|date=9 October 2016 }}</ref>
| region15 = {{flag|United States}}<br />{{spaces|9}}(estimates vary)
| pop15 = 700-1,750
| ref15 = <ref name="Catalans">{{cite web|url=http://www.idescat.cat/pub/?id=aec&n=257&lang=en|title=Idescat. Statistical Yearbook of Catalonia. Population. By place of birth. Counties, areas and provinces|access-date=29 March 2015|archive-date=26 April 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200426055440/https://www.idescat.cat/pub/?id=aec|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>[https://www.census.gov/population/socdemo/ancestry/ancestry_q_by_DAC_2000.xls Ancestry and Ethnic Origin] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170723090719/https://www.census.gov/population/socdemo/ancestry/ancestry_q_by_DAC_2000.xls |date=23 July 2017 }}, US Census</ref>
| region16 = {{flag|Canada}}
| pop16 = 1,283
| ref16 = <ref>{{cite web|url=https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2016/dp-pd/prof/details/page.cfm?Lang=E&Geo1=PR&Code1=01&Geo2=PR&Code2=01&Data=Count&SearchText=Canada&SearchType=Begins&SearchPR=01&B1=Ethnic+origin&TABID=1|title=Census Profile, 2016 Census - Canada [Country] and Canada [Country]|first=Statistics Canada|last=Government of Canada|date=8 February 2017|website=www12.statcan.gc.ca|access-date=24 January 2023|archive-date=17 March 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170317054352/https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2016/dp-pd/prof/details/page.cfm?Lang=E&Geo1=PR&Code1=01&Geo2=PR&Code2=01&Data=Count&SearchText=Canada&SearchType=Begins&SearchPR=01&B1=Ethnic+origin&TABID=1|url-status=live}}</ref>
| region17 = {{flag|Finland}}
| pop17 = 103
| ref17 = <ref>{{cite web|url=http://pxnet2.stat.fi/PXWeb/pxweb/fi/StatFin/StatFin__vrm__vaerak/statfin_vaerak_pxt_031.px/?rxid=726cd24d-d0f1-416a-8eec-7ce9b82fd5a4|title=031 -- Language by sex, by region and municipality in 1990 to 2017|work=Statistics Finland|access-date=21 October 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180626001544/http://pxnet2.stat.fi/PXWeb/pxweb/fi/StatFin/StatFin__vrm__vaerak/statfin_vaerak_pxt_031.px/?rxid=726cd24d-d0f1-416a-8eec-7ce9b82fd5a4|archive-date=26 June 2018|url-status=dead}}</ref>
| langs = [[Catalan language|Catalan]], [[Catalan Sign Language|Catalan Sign]] <br /> [[Occitan language|Occitan]] (In [[Aran Valley]]) <br> [[Spanish language|Spanish]], [[French language|French]], [[Italian language|Italian]] (as a result of immigration or [[language shift]])
| native_name =
| native_name_lang =
| religions = [[Catholic Church|Catholicism]]<br />[[Irreligion]]<br />Other minority groups
| related_groups = [[Occitans]], [[Spaniards]] ([[Aragonese people|Aragonese]], [[Castilians]]), [[Valencians]], [[Northern Italy|Northern Italians]], [[Sardinians]]
}}
{{Catalan-speaking world|image=[[File:Flag of Catalonia.svg{{!}}border|120px]]|caption=|expanded=People}}
 
'''Catalans''' ([[Catalan language|Catalan]], [[French language|French]] and [[Occitan language|Occitan]]: ''catalans''; {{langx|es|catalanes}}; {{langx|it|catalani}}; {{langx|sc|cadelanos}} or {{lang|sc|catalanos}}){{efn|name="IPA"}} are a [[Romance languages|Romance]] [[ethnic group]]<ref>{{cite book |last1=Guelke |first1=Adrian |last2=Tournon |first2=Jean |title=The Study of Ethnicity and Politics: Recent Analytical Developments |date=2012 |publisher=Barbara Budrich Publishers |page=23 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ISBN9783866495876 |quote=To make things as concrete as possible, let us consider a well recognized ethnic group, say: the Catalan one.}}</ref><ref name="Cole">{{cite book |last=Cole |first=Jeffrey |author-link=Jeffrey Cole |title=Ethnic Groups of Europe: An Encyclopedia |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Wlth0GRi0N0C&pg=PA67 |date=2011 |publisher=ABC-CLIO |page=67 |isbn=978-0313309847 |quote=As a relatively wealthy, peaceful and generally successful ethnic-national unit, Catalans have often sought to be a model for conflictive zones in Europe}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Miller |first1=Henry |last2=Miller |first2=Kate |title=Language Policy and Identity: the case of Catalonia |journal=International Studies in Sociology of Education |volume=6 |pages=113–128 |doi=10.1080/0962021960060106 |year=1996 |doi-access=free }}</ref> native to [[Catalonia]], who speak [[Catalan language|Catalan]].<ref name="Minahan">{{cite book |last=Minahan |first=James |title=One Europe, Many Nations: A Historical Dictionary of European National Groups |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NwvoM-ZFoAgC |date=2000 |publisher=[[Greenwood Publishing Group]] |page=156 |isbn=0313309841 |quote=The Catalans are a Romance people |access-date=10 July 2018 |archive-date=16 January 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230116024421/https://books.google.com/books?id=NwvoM-ZFoAgC |url-status=live }}</ref> The current official category of "Catalans" is that of the citizens of [[Catalonia]], a [[Nationalities and regions of Spain|nationality]] and [[autonomous communities of Spain|autonomous community]] in Spain<ref>Article 7 of Catalonia's Statute of Autonomy of 2006: "Gaudeixen de la condició política de catalans o ciutadans de Catalunya els ciutadans espanyols que tenen veïnatge administratiu a Catalunya."</ref> and the inhabitants of the [[Roussillon]] historical region in southern France, today the [[Pyrénées Orientales]] department,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2017/09/frances-catalans-regional-autonomy-170930111246123.html|title=France's Catalans want more regional autonomy|website=www.aljazeera.com|access-date=2018-10-26|archive-date=26 October 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181026064632/https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2017/09/frances-catalans-regional-autonomy-170930111246123.html|url-status=live}}</ref> also called [[Northern Catalonia]]<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/europe/france/8659380/Catalan-culture-in-France-and-Spain-Homage-to-both-Catalonias.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/europe/france/8659380/Catalan-culture-in-France-and-Spain-Homage-to-both-Catalonias.html |archive-date=12 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|title=Catalan culture in France and Spain: Homage to both Catalonias|journal=Daily Telegraph|last=Arfin|first=Ferne|date=2011-07-26|access-date=2018-10-26|issn=0307-1235}}{{cbignore}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-border-sign-between-france-and-spain-36535356.html?pv=1&stamp=2&imageid=7AE822FF-8E28-431B-8C3A-FE972562266E&p=61567&n=0&orientation=0&pn=1&searchtype=0&IsFromSearch=1&srch=foo=bar&pn=1&ps=100&sortby=2&resultview=sortbyPopular&npgs=0&qt=road%2520sign%2520border%2520spain&qt_raw=road%2520sign%2520border%2520spain&lic=3&mr=0&pr=0&ot=0&creative=&ag=0&hc=0&pc=&blackwhite=&cutout=&tbar=1&et=0x000000000000000000000&vp=0&loc=0&imgt=0&dtfr=&dtto=&size=0xFF&archive=1&groupid=&pseudoid=&a=&cdid=&cdsrt=&name=&qn=&apalib=&apalic=&lightbox=&gname=&gtype=&xstx=0&simid=&saveQry=&editorial=1&nu=&t=&edoptin=&customgeoip=&cap=1&cbstore=1&vd=0&lb=&fi=2&edrf=&ispremium=1&flip=0|title=Stock Photo - Border sign between France and Spain|website=Alamy|access-date=2018-10-26|archive-date=6 December 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181206102454/https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-border-sign-between-france-and-spain-36535356.html?pv=1&stamp=2&imageid=7AE822FF-8E28-431B-8C3A-FE972562266E&p=61567&n=0&orientation=0&pn=1&searchtype=0&IsFromSearch=1&srch=foo=bar&pn=1&ps=100&sortby=2&resultview=sortbyPopular&npgs=0&qt=road%2520sign%2520border%2520spain&qt_raw=road%2520sign%2520border%2520spain&lic=3&mr=0&pr=0&ot=0&creative=&ag=0&hc=0&pc=&blackwhite=&cutout=&tbar=1&et=0x000000000000000000000&vp=0&loc=0&imgt=0&dtfr=&dtto=&size=0xFF&archive=1&groupid=&pseudoid=&a=&cdid=&cdsrt=&name=&qn=&apalib=&apalic=&lightbox=&gname=&gtype=&xstx=0&simid=&saveQry=&editorial=1&nu=&t=&edoptin=&customgeoip=&cap=1&cbstore=1&vd=0&lb=&fi=2&edrf=&ispremium=1&flip=0|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last=Sauvy|first=Alfred|date=July 1980|title=Les pays catalans. La population de Catalunya nord|url=https://www.persee.fr/doc/pop_0032-4663_1980_num_35_4_18359|journal=Population (French Edition)|language=fr-FR|volume=35|issue=4/5|pages=972–973|doi=10.2307/1532373|issn=0032-4663|jstor=1532373|access-date=26 October 2018|archive-date=20 February 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210220125338/https://www.persee.fr/doc/pop_0032-4663_1980_num_35_4_18359|url-status=live}}</ref> and ''[[Pays Catalan]]'' in French.<ref>"[http://www.mairie-perpignan.fr/index.php?np=1&cd=1660] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080913042116/http://www.mairie-perpignan.fr/index.php?np=1&cd=1660|date=13 September 2008}} Présentation Perpinyà 2008" {{in lang|fr|ca}}</ref><ref>[http://www.cg66.fr/culture/patrimoine_catalanite/catalanite/catalanitat.html#llocs Culture et catalanité] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090430173637/http://www.cg66.fr/culture/patrimoine_catalanite/catalanite/catalanitat.html#llocs |date=30 April 2009}} Conseil Général des Pyrénées-Orientales {{in lang|fr|ca}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-20444110|title=The French who see Barcelona as their capital|last=Trelawny|first=Petroc|date=2012-11-24|work=BBC News|access-date=2018-08-14|archive-date=29 June 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180629120729/https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-20444110|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name=":0">{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/09/world/europe/occitanie-france-catalans.html |title='Don't Erase Us': French Catalans Fear Losing More Than a Region's Name |work=The New York Times |date=8 September 2016 |access-date=2018-08-14 |last1=Minder |first1=Raphael |archive-date=8 February 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170208212519/https://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/09/world/europe/occitanie-france-catalans.html |url-status=live }}</ref>
The '''Catalans''' are an [[ethnic group]] or [[nation]] concentrated within [[Spain]]'s [[autonomous communities of Spain|autonomous community]] of [[Catalonia]], as well as other adjacent and nearby [[Mediterranean Sea|Mediterranean]] areas including [[Andorra]], [[Valencia]], the [[Balearic Islands]], and ''[[Northern Catalonia|Catalunya Nord]]'' in [[France]]. Most are speakers of the [[Catalan language]]; today, virtually all of them also speak the official language of their respective states.
 
Some authors also extend the word "Catalans" to include all people from [[Catalan Countries|areas in which Catalan is spoken]], namely those from [[Andorra]], [[Valencian Community|Valencia]], the [[Balearic Islands]], [[la Franja|eastern Aragon]], [[Roussillon]], and the city of [[Alghero]] in [[Sardinia]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Catalan |url=https://dlc.iec.cat/results.asp?txtEntrada=catal%E0&operEntrada=0 |publisher=[[Institut d'Estudis Catalans]] dictionary |access-date=17 August 2019 |language=ca |quote=Relative to or belonging to the [[Catalan Countries]] or their inhabitants |archive-date=26 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210126000034/https://dlc.iec.cat/results.asp?txtEntrada=catal%E0&operEntrada=0 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Catalan |url=https://www.enciclopedia.cat/EC-GEC-0167847.xml |publisher=[[Gran Enciclopèdia Catalana]] |access-date=17 August 2019 |language=ca |quote=Inhabitant or natural of Catalonia or the Catalan Countries. |archive-date=8 August 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190808235319/https://www.enciclopedia.cat/EC-GEC-0167847.xml |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Danver |first=Steven L. |date=2013 |title=Native Peoples of the World: An Encyclopedia of Groups, Cultures and Contemporary Issues |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vf4TBwAAQBAJ |publisher=[[Routledge]] |page=278 |isbn=978-1317464006 |quote=The majority of Catalans (5.9 million) live in the northeast of Spain in the administrative regions of Catalonia and Valencia. |access-date=16 October 2020 |archive-date=11 March 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230311102542/https://books.google.com/books?id=vf4TBwAAQBAJ |url-status=live }}</ref>
==Historical background==
The [[history of Catalonia]] entails major events that have shaped the western Mediterranean and local histories that often overlap with those of modern Spain and France. The area that is now Catalonia was inhabited by early [[Iberians|Iberian]] peoples and later [[Celt]]s who morphed into a localized variant known as [[Celtiberians]] by the 8th century [[Common Era|BCE]]. These groups came under the rule of various invading groups starting with the [[Phoenicia]]ns and [[Carthage|Carthaginians]] who set-up colonies along the coast including [[Barcelona|Barcino]] (present-day Barcelona) itself. Following the [[Punic Wars]], the Romans replaced the Carthaginians as the dominant power in Catalonia by 206 BCE and established [[Latin]] as the official language and imparted a distinctly [[Ancient Rome|Roman]] culture upon the local population that merged with Roman colonists from the [[Italy|Italian]] [[peninsula]]. An early precursor to the Catalan language began to develop from a local vulgarized form of Latin before and during the collapse of the Roman Empire. Various [[Germanic peoples|Germanic]] tribes arrived following nearly six centuries of Roman rule which had completely transformed the area into the Roman [[province]] of [[Tarraconensis]]. The [[Visigoth]]s established themselves in the 5th century CE and would rule the area until 718 when Muslim [[Arab]]-[[Berber people|Berbers]] conquered the region and held it for close to a century. The [[Franks]] held back small Muslim raiding parties which had penetrated virtually unchallenged as far as central France and Frankish [[suzerainty]] became established over much of present-day Catalonia. Larger wars with the Muslims began with the [[Marca Hispanica|Spanish March]] which led to the beginnings of the ''[[reconquista]]'' (reconquest) by Catalonian forces of most of Catalonia by the year [[801]]. It was during this period that a Catalan national identity fully emerged as Barcelona became an important center for [[Christian]] forces in the Iberian peninsula.
 
The Catalan government regularly surveys its population regarding its "sentiment of belonging". As of July 2019, the results point out that 46.7% of the Catalans and other people living in Catalonia would like independence from Spain, 1.3% less than the year before.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.europapress.es/nacional/noticia-467-catalanes-quiere-cataluna-sea-independiente-13-menos-sondeo-anterior-ceo-20180720134921.html|title=El 46,7% de catalanes quiere que Cataluña sea independiente, un 1,3% menos que en un sondeo anterior, según el CEO|date=2018-07-20|website=www.europapress.es|access-date=2019-07-30|archive-date=30 July 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190730124753/https://www.europapress.es/nacional/noticia-467-catalanes-quiere-cataluna-sea-independiente-13-menos-sondeo-anterior-ceo-20180720134921.html|url-status=live}}</ref>
Catalonia emerged from the conflicts in [[Al-Andalus|Muslim Spain]] as a regional power as Christian rulers entrenched themselves in the region during the [[Carolingian]] period. Rulers such as [[Wilfred the Hairy]] became masters of a larger territory encompassing Catalonia. The [[Crown of Aragon]] included Catalonia, [[Aragon]], [[Kingdom of Valencia|Valencia]] and the [[Balearic Islands]]. The marriage of [[Isabella of Castile]] and [[Ferdinand II of Aragon]] and the conquest of the last Muslim kingdom of [[Granada]] in [[1492]], tied Catalonia politically to the fate of the new Spanish kingdom, while a regional culture continued to survive and thrive.
 
== Historical background ==
Some sporadic regional unrest led to conflicts as with the 1640 revolt by the Catalans known as the [[Reapers' War]]. This conflict embroiled Spain in a larger war with France as many Catalan nobles allied themselves with [[Louis XIII of France|Louis XIII]]. The war continued until 1659 and ended with the [[Treaty of the Pyrenees|Peace of the Pyrenees]] which effectively partitioned Catalonia as the northern tip of the March came under French rule, while the rest remained under Spanish [[hegemony]]. Still restive under Spanish rule, the Catalans again sought to break-away from Spain during the [[War of the Spanish Succession]] that started in 1705 and ended in 1714 and left Catalonia solidly under Spain. The Catalan failure to secede from Philip V's monarchy culminated in the surrender of Barcelona on [[September 11]], [[1714]], which came to be commemorated as [[National Day of Catalonia|Catalonia's National day]].
{{See also|History of Catalonia}}
 
In 1500 BCE the area that is now known primarily as Catalonia was, along with the rest of the [[Iberian Peninsula]], inhabited by [[Proto-Celtic]] [[Urnfield Culture|Urnfield people]] who brought with them the rite of burning the dead. Much of the [[Pyrenees]] mountains was inhabited at the time by peoples related to modern [[Basques]], and today many town names in the western Catalan Pyrenees can be linked to Basque etymologies. These groups came under the rule of various invading groups starting with the [[Ancient Greece|Greeks]] that founded [[Empúries]] and the [[Phoenicia]]ns and [[Carthage|Carthaginians]], who set up colonies along the coast, including [[Barcelona|Barcino]] (present-day Barcelona). Following the [[Punic Wars]], the Romans replaced the Carthaginians as the dominant power in the Iberian eastern coast, including parts of Catalonia, by 206 BCE. [[Rome]] established [[Latin]] as the official language and imparted a distinctly [[Ancient Rome|Roman]] culture upon the local population, which merged with Roman colonists from the [[Italian peninsula]]. An early precursor to the Catalan language began to develop from a local form of popular [[Latin]] before and during the collapse of the [[Roman Empire]]. Various [[Germanic peoples|Germanic]] tribes arrived following nearly six centuries of Roman rule, which had completely transformed the area into the Roman [[province]] of [[Tarraconensis]]. The German [[Visigoth]]s established themselves in the fifth century, making their first capital in the Iberian peninsula Barcelona, and they later would move to Toledo.
During the [[Napoleonic Wars]], much of Catalonia was seized by French forces by 1813 as France ruled the entire region briefly until driven out by British and Spanish armies in 1814. Catalan uprisings continued throughout the 19th century to no avail. In France, strong assimilationist policies integrated many Catalans into French society, while in Spain a Catalan identity was increasingly suppressed in favor of a national identity. The Catalans regained autonomy during the [[Spanish Civil War]] from 1932 until [[Francisco Franco]]'s nationalist forces retook Catalonia by 1939. It was not until 1975 and the death of Franco that the Catalans began to fully regain their right to a national identity, which was established by the [[Spanish Constitution of 1978]]. Since this period, [[Catalan nationalism]] has emerged as a political force mainly in Spain that seeks to attain ever greater autonomy and/or independence for Catalans in Spain and France and total political control of the [[principality]] of [[Andorra]].
 
This continued until 718 when [[Muslim]] [[Arab]]s took control of the region in order to pass through the Pyrenees into French territory. The [[Franks]] on the other side of the Pyrenees held back the main Muslim raiding army which had penetrated virtually unchallenged as far as central France at the [[Battle of Tours]] in 732. Frankish [[suzerainty]] was then extended over much of present-day northern half of Catalonia. With the help of the Franks, a land border was created commonly known nowadays as ''Old Catalonia'' (which would consist of the counties [[County of Barcelona]], [[Ausona]], [[County of Pallars]], [[County of Rosselló]], [[County of Empúries]], [[County of Cerdanya]] and [[County of Urgell]]) which faced Muslim raids but resisted any kind of settlement from them. The southern ''New Catalonia'' was under Arab/Muslim rule for about 4-5 centuries. As the border between Muslim and Frankish realms stabilized, Barcelona would become an important center for [[Christians|Christian]] forces in the [[Iberian Peninsula]]. In the 10th century, the County of Barcelona and the other neighboring counties became independent from West Francia. {{Cn|date=July 2025}}
 
[[File:Batalla del Puig por Marzal de Sas (1410-20).jpg|upright|thumb|left|[[Battle of the Puig]] by Andreu Marçal de Sax, depicting the Christian victory with the aid of [[Saint George]]]]
 
In 1137, the County of Barcelona entered a [[dynastic union]] with the [[Kingdom of Aragon]] to form what modern historians call the [[Crown of Aragon]] in the so-called "[[Reconquista]]". This allowed the conquest of Muslim-dominated lands, eventually establishing the kingdoms of [[Kingdom of Valencia|Valencia]] and [[Kingdom of Majorca|Majorca]] (the [[Balearic Islands]]). From the late 12th century onwards, the territory of the County of Barcelona and the other [[Catalan counties]] progressively began to be identified as a single political entity and, from the mid-14th century, that state began to be known as the [[Principality of Catalonia]]. The [[crisis of the late Middle Ages]], the loss of hegemony within the Crown, as well as urban and feudal internal conflicts led to the [[Catalan Civil War]] in 1462. In the last quarter of the 15th century, the marriage of [[Isabella I of Castile]] and [[Ferdinand II of Aragon]] led to the dynastic union of the Crown of Aragon with the [[Crown of Castile|Crown of Castille]], in which each of the constitutive realm kept its own laws, policies, power structures, borders and monetary systems.<ref>{{cite book|title=Imperial Spain 1469-1716|last=Elliott|first=J. H.|date=2002|publisher=Penguin|isbn=0141007036|___location=London|oclc=49691947}}</ref>
 
Continuous unrest led to conflicts on the states of the Crown of Aragon, such as the [[Revolt of the Germanies]] in Valencia and Majorca, and the 1640 revolt in Catalonia known as the [[Reapers' War]]. This latter conflict embroiled Spain in a larger war with France as the Catalan institutions allied themselves with [[Louis XIII of France|Louis XIII]]. The war continued until 1659 and ended with the [[Treaty of the Pyrenees|Peace of the Pyrenees]], which effectively partitioned the Principality of Catalonia as its northern strip came under French rule, while the rest remained under Spanish Crown. The Catalan government took sides with the [[Habsburg]] pretender against the [[House of Bourbon|Bourbon]] one during the [[War of the Spanish Succession]] that started in 1705 and ended in 1714. The Catalan failure to defend the continuation of Habsburg rule in Spain despite [[War of the Catalans|unilaterally prolonging the war]] against the Bourbons culminated in the capitulation of Barcelona on 11 September 1714 which came to be commemorated as [[National Day of Catalonia|Catalonia's National Day]]. The surrender led to the imposition of absolutism and the abolition of Catalan political institutions and [[legal system]], thus ending the status of Catalonia as a separate state within a personal union.
 
[[File:Eroberung von Barcelona 1714.jpg|thumb|After the Catalan defeat during the [[War of Spanish Succession]], [[Philip V of Spain]] ordered the burning of all the Catalan flags and banners.]]
 
During the [[Napoleonic Wars]], much of Catalonia was seized by French forces by 1808, as France ruled the entire country of Spain briefly until [[Napoleon]]'s surrender to Allied Armies. In France, strong assimilationist policies integrated many Catalans into French society, while in Spain a Catalan identity was increasingly suppressed in favor of a Spanish national identity. The Catalans [[Autonomous Region of Catalonia (1931-1939)|regained autonomy]] during the [[Spanish Second Republic]] from 1932 until [[Francisco Franco]]'s nationalist forces occupied Catalonia by 1939. It was not until 1975 and the death of Franco that the Catalans as well as other [[Spaniards]] began to regain their right to cultural expression, which was restarted by the [[Spanish Constitution of 1978]]. Since this period, a balance between a sense of Catalan national identity versus the broader Spanish one has emerged as the dominant [[political]] force in Catalonia. The former tends to advocate for even greater autonomy, national recognition and, part of it, independence; the latter tends to argue for maintaining either a status quo or removal of autonomy and cultural identity, depending on the leanings of the current government. As a result, there tends to be much fluctuation depending on regional and national politics during a given election cycle. Given the stronger centralist tendencies in France, however, French Catalans display a much less dynamic sense of uniqueness, having been integrated more consistently into the unitary French national identity.<ref name=":0"/>
 
==Geography==
The vast majority of Catalans reside in Spainthe whereautonomous theycommunity number overof 6Catalonia,500,000 in the northeast part of Spain. At least 100,000 Catalan speakers live in France,the while''Pays over 31,000 liveCatalan'' in Andorra and 20,000 in [[Italy]] (principally in [[Sardinia]])France. An indeterminate number of Catalans emigrated to the Americas during the height of the [[Spanish Empire|Spanish colonial period]] withand importantto coloniesFrance establishingin themselvesthe inyears following the [[CostaSpanish Civil RicaWar]].<ref>{{cite book|title=El exilio cultural de la Guerra Civil, [[Cuba]]1936-1939|date=2001|publisher=Ediciones Universidad Salamanca|others=Abellán, José Luis., [[PuertoJosé Rico]]María Balcells|Balcells, theJosé [[Dominican RepublicMaría]]., asPérez wellBowie, asJosé throughoutAntonio., mainlandUniversidad [[Latinde America]]Salamanca., [httpUniversidad de León.|isbn=8478009604|edition=1st|___location=Salamanca, España|oclc=48474208|url-access=registration|url=https://archiverarchive.rootsweb.comorg/thdetails/readelexiliocultural0000unse}}</CUBA/2003-04/1050282950]ref>
 
== Culture and society ==
[[File:Igualada 2013 - Colla Joves de Valls 3de9f.JPG|upright|thumb|right|The [[castell]]s, [[Human tower (gymnastic formation)|human tower]]s, are part of the Catalan culture since 1712 and were declared by [[UNESCO]] to be amongst the [[Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity]].<ref>BBC, [https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-11742399 Close-Up: Catalonia's human towers] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161108083601/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-11742399 |date=8 November 2016 }}</ref>]]
The Catalans continue to exhibit a distinct culture shaped by a history often set apart from their neighbors and due to their interaction with both France and the rest of Spain. Described by author Walter Starkie in ''The Road to Santiago'' as a subtle people, he sums up their national character with a local term ''seny'' (pronounced ''senh'') meaning common sense or a pragmatic attitude towards life. The ''masia'' or ''mas'' is a defining characteristic of the Catalonian countryside and includes a large house, land, cattle, and an extended family, but this tradition is in decline as the nuclear family has begun to replace the old ways. While Catalans in Spain have attained the right to speak their ancestral language and declare themselves a distinct people, the situation in France has been drastically different as French policies have favored assimilating the Catalans which has reduced the number of citizens who still identify themselves as such within the French Republic. The tiny state of [[Andorra]] is the only country where Catalan is the only official language (although Spanish and/or French is also universally spoken).
Described by author [[Walter Starkie]] in ''The Road to Santiago'' as a subtle people, he sums up their national character with a local term ''[[seny]]'' meaning "common sense" or a pragmatic attitude toward life. The counterpart of Catalan "seny" is "rauxa" or madness, epitomized by "crazy", eccentric and creative Catalan artists like [[Antoni Gaudí]], [[Salvador Dalí]], [[Joan Miró]] or [[Antoni Tàpies]].<ref>{{cite book|title=Barcelona|last=Hughes|first=Robert|date=1993|publisher=Vintage Books|isbn=0679743839|edition= First Vintage books |___location=New York|oclc=26502930}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/art/3651105/From-earth-to-eternity.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/art/3651105/From-earth-to-eternity.html |archive-date=12 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|title=From earth to eternity|journal=Daily Telegraph|last=Gayford|first=Martin|date=2006-03-25|access-date=2018-08-14|issn=0307-1235}}{{cbignore}}</ref> The ''masia'' or ''mas'' is a defining characteristic of the Catalan countryside and includes a large house, land, cattle, and an extended family, but this tradition is in decline as the nuclear family has largely replaced the extended family, as in the rest of western Europe. Catalonia in Spain is officially recognised as a "[[nationality]]" and enjoy a high degree of political autonomy,<ref name="Statute">{{cite web |url=http://www.gencat.cat/generalitat/eng/estatut/titol_preliminar.htm |title=First article of the Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia. "''Catalonia, as a nationality, exercises its self-government constituted as an autonomous community..."'' |publisher=Gencat.cat |access-date=13 September 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080528011550/http://www.gencat.cat/generalitat/eng/estatut/titol_preliminar.htm |archive-date=28 May 2008 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> which has led to reinforcement of a Catalan identity.
 
=== Language ===
{{Main|Languages of Catalonia}}
The [[Catalan language]] is a [[Romance language]] of the Iberian group. It shares many features with other Iberian languages such as [[Spanish language|Castillian]] and [[Portuguese language|Portuguese]] and some with [[French language|French]] and [[Italian language|Italian]], and is the language nearest to [[Occitan language|Occitan]]. Various dialects (which some, controversialy, consider separate languages) include [[Valencian language|Valencian]] (considered by most of its native speakers to be a separate language) and the Catalan spoken on the [[Balearic Islands]]. The number of Catalan speakers counted by including Valencian and Balear is well over 7 million, but exact figures are difficult to obtain - especially for those in France who speak Catalan only as their second language.
[[File:WIKITONGUES- Ona speaking Catalan.webm|thumb|A Catalan speaker from [[Mallorca]]]]
Catalan is the official language of [[Andorra]]. It is co-official in the Spanish Autonomous Communities of [[Catalonia]] and the [[Balearic Islands]]. In [[Land of Valencia|Valencia]] the slightly different [[Valencian language]] is official. It has no official status in [[Northern Catalonia]] (a part of France) and some other places where it is spoken.
 
The [[Catalan language]] is a [[Romance language]]. It is the language closest to [[Occitan language|Occitan]], and it also shares many features with other Romance languages such as Spanish, French, Portuguese, [[Aragonese language|Aragonese]], and [[Italian language|Italian]]. There are a number of linguistic varieties that are considered [[Catalan language#Dialects|dialects of Catalan]], among them, the [[dialect]] group with the most speakers, [[Central Catalan]].
===Traditional clothes===
The traditional clothes (now, practically only used in folkloric celebrations) included the [[barretina]] and the "faixa" among men and "ret" among women. The traditional footwear was the [[espardenya]].
fart fart pumb fart
 
The total number of Catalan speakers is over 9.8 million (2011), with 5.9 million residing in Catalonia. More than half of them speak Catalan as a second language, with native speakers being about 4.4 million of those (more than 2.8 in Catalonia).<ref>[http://www.demolinguistica.cat/arxiu/web/informe/informe2011.pdf Informe sobre la situació de la llengua catalana (2011)] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130123162105/http://www.demolinguistica.cat/arxiu/web/informe/informe2011.pdf |date=23 January 2013 }} Report on the situation of the Catalan language (2011) {{in lang|ca}}</ref> Very few Catalan [[monoglot]]s exist; basically, virtually all of the Catalan speakers in Spain are [[bilingual]] speakers of Catalan and Spanish, with a sizable population of Spanish-only speakers of immigrant origin (typically born outside Catalonia or with both parents born outside Catalonia){{Citation needed|date=September 2012}} existing in the major Catalan urban areas as well. In [[Roussillon]], only a minority of French Catalans speak Catalan nowadays, with French being the majority language for the inhabitants after a continued process of [[language shift]]. According to a 2019 survey by the Catalan government, 31.5% of the inhabitants of Catalonia have Catalan as first language at home whereas 52.7% have Spanish, 2.8% both Catalan and Spanish and 10.8% other languages.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://elpais.com/ccaa/2019/07/08/catalunya/1562592970_754956.html|title=El uso del catalán crece: lo entiende el 94,4% y lo habla el 81,2%|last=Geli|first=Carles|date=2019-07-08|work=El País|access-date=2019-07-08|language=es|issn=1134-6582|archive-date=8 July 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190708163015/https://elpais.com/ccaa/2019/07/08/catalunya/1562592970_754956.html|url-status=live}}</ref>
===Traditional diet===
 
The Catalan diet is part of the [[Mediterranean diet]]. They fry with [[olive oil]]. Milk is widely consumed, especially cows' milk. Catalan people eat fowl more than the red meat of the English diet, and like to eat young cows (''vedella''), sheep (''xai'') and no bulls. The digestion of the English diet used to be considered hard by the Catalan people.
The inhabitants of the [[Aran valley]] count [[Aranese]]–an [[Occitan language|Occitan]] dialect–rather than Catalan as their own language. These Catalans are also bilingual in Spanish.
 
In September 2005, the [[.cat]] TLD, the first [[Internet]] language-based top-level ___domain, was approved for all web pages intending to serve the needs of the Catalan [[linguistic]] and cultural community on the Internet. This community is made up of those who use the Catalan language for their online communication or promote the different aspects of Catalan culture online.
 
=== Traditional clothes ===
The traditional dress (now practically only used in [[folkloric]] celebrations) included the ''[[barretina]]'' (a sort of woollen, long cap usually red or purple) and the ''faixa'' (a sort of wide belt) among men, and ''ret'' (a fine net bag to contain hair) among women. The traditional footwear was the ''espardenya'' or [[espadrille]].
 
Other items of clothing typical of Catalan female folk costume include the 'pubilla' dress; the 'catalana' also known as the 'payesa' and the 'gandalla' as headwear.<ref>{{Cite web |title=17 Spanish Traditional Dresses that Represent Our Culture |url=https://sensationalspain.com/spanish-traditional-dress/}}</ref>
 
[[File:Catalan folk costume.jpg|upright|thumb|right|Catalan children wearing the traditional outfit, including the [[barretina]]]]
 
=== Cuisine ===
{{Main|Catalan cuisine}}
 
==== Traditional diet ====
The Catalan diet is part of the [[Mediterranean diet]] and includes the use of [[olive oil]]. Catalan people like to eat veal (''vedella'') and lamb (''xai'').
 
There are three main daily meals:
* AtIn the morning: a very light breakfast, consisting of fruit or fruit juice, milk, coffee, or ''[[pa amb tomàquet]]'' "bread with tomato". Although it's considered less consistent than the British breakfast, Catalan breakfast are also important; peopleCatalans tend to divide itstheir breakfast into two parts: one early in the mornig,morning before going to work or study (first breakfast), and the other one between 10:00 and 12:00 (second breakfast).
* AfterIn noonthe afternoon (roughly from 13:00 to 14:30): the main meal of the day., Usuallyusually comprising three dishes:. theThe first consists of pasta or vegetables, the second of meat or fish, and the third fruitsof fruit or yogurt. It is usual to drink moderate quantities of wine.
* AtIn the evening (roughly from 2120:00 to 22:30): more food than in the morning, but less than at lunch.; Veryvery often only a single bigmain dish and fruit; it is common to drink moderate quantities of wine.
 
In the Catalan gastronomy the, ''embotits'' (a wide variety of Catalan sausages and cold meats) are very important; these are pork sausages such as ''[[botifarra]]'' or ''[[fuet]]''. In the past, bread (similar to French bread) figured heavily in the Catalan diet; now it is used mainly in the morning (second breakfast, especially among young students and some workers) and supplementingsupplements the noon meal, at home and in restaurants. Bread is still popular among Catalans; some Catalan fast-food restaurants don't serve hamburgers, but offer a wide variety of sandwiches.
 
In the past, the poor ate [[soup]] eachevery day and [[rice]] on Thursday and Sunday.
 
[[File:Xuixo obert.jpg|thumbnail|Catalans have a rich cuisine, including traditional [[dessert]]s like the [[xuixo]]. Also, Catalan chefs like [[Ferran Adrià|Ferran Adrià i Acosta]] or [[Jordi Roca i Fontané]] are widely renowned.]]
The taboo of not eating [[meat]] during the [[Lent]] was once very strong but has practically disappeared in the 20th century.
 
The discipline of abstinence, not eating [[meat]] during [[Lent]], once was very strong, but today it is only practiced in the rural areas. Spicy food is rare in the Catalan diet but there are quite spicygarlicky sauces such as ''[[aioli|allioli]]'' or ''[[romesco]]''.
 
==== Traditional dishes ====
{{Main|Catalan cuisine}}
One of the Catalan dishes is the ''[[escudella]]'' soup, which contains chick peas, potatoes, and vegetables such as green cabbage, celery, carrot and turnip, and meats like ''botifarra'' (a Catalan sausage), pork feet, salted ham, chicken and veal, among others. In Northern Catalonia it's sometimes called ''ollada''.
One type of Catalan dish is ''[[escudella]]'', a soup which contains chick peas, potatoes, and vegetables such as green cabbage, celery, carrots, turnips, and meats such as ''botifarra'' (a Catalan sausage), pork feet, salted ham, chicken, and veal. In Northern Catalonia, it is sometimes called ''ollada''.
 
Other Catalan dishes are:include ''[[calçots]]'' (a type of [[onion]]s that are similar in shape to [[leek]]s, and often grilled and eaten with a [[romesco sauce]]), and ''[[escalivada]]''.
 
===Religion Music ===
{{Main|Catalan music}}
The majority of Catalans are of [[Roman Catholic Church|Roman Catholic]] tradition, while significant numbers of Catalans profess either no religion or appear to be atheists and agnostics.
Catalan music has one of the oldest documented musical traditions in Europe.<ref>{{cite book|title=Els manuscrits musicals a Catalunya fins al segle XIII : l'evolució de la notació musical|first=Joaquim|last=Garrigosa i Massana|date=2003|publisher=Institut d'Estudis Ilerdencs|isbn=8489943745|edition= 1st|___location=Lleida|oclc=60328821}}</ref>
 
[[File:Beget.jpg|upright|thumb|right|Catalans, traditionally devoted Catholics, during its recent history had become much less religious. Even so, the presence of religion is maintained through the traditions, values and monuments, like the Church of Sant Cristòfol de Beget.]]
===Social conditions===
Catalonia has traditionally been one of the richest and most well developed regions of Spain. [[Barcelona]] is the most industrialized metropolis and is both a regional capital and a magnet for various migrants from other regions in Spain as well as foreign immigrants.
Catalan people have made numerous contributions from art and architecture to film and science.
 
===Identity andReligion nationalism===
{{Main|Religion in Catalonia}}
Due to the continued identification with a distinct national identity, many support [[Catalan nationalism]] or [[Catalan independentism]] in Spain and, to a lesser extent, in France.
The traditional religion in Catalonia is [[Roman Catholic Church|Roman Catholicism]]. However, in the course of recent [[History of Catalonia|history]], Catalonia has undergone several waves of secularization.
 
The first wave of [[secularization]] happened during the eighteenth century as a result of the [[Enlightenment in Spain|enlightenment]] influence to the [[bourgeoisie]]. The second one happened during the nineteenth century, that had a huge impact on the [[Working class|lower]] and [[middle class]], but was interrupted by the outbreak of the [[Spanish Civil War]] (1936–1939).{{sfn|Capdevila|2013|p= 9}}
==See also==
*[[List of Catalans]]
*[[History of Catalonia]]
*[[Catalonia]]
*[[Catalan Countries]]
*[[Catalan independentism]]
*[[Andorra]]
*[[Spain]]
*[[France]]
*[[Spanish people]]
*[[Catalan myths and legends]]
 
The end of the [[Francoist regime]] led to a loss of power by the Catholic Church and to another wave of secularization that extends since the 1980s. During the 1990s most of the population of Catalonia was non-practising Catholic.{{sfn|Capdevila|2013|p= 10}} Nowadays 52.4% of Catalans declare themselves Catholic, practising or not, 30.2% of Catalans are [[agnostic]] or [[atheist]], and there is also a considerable share of other religions, often connected to recent immigration: 7.3% [[Muslim]], 2.5% [[Evangelical]], 1.3% [[Buddhism]], and 1.2% [[Eastern Orthodox Church|Orthodox Christians]].<ref>{{cite news |date= 8 April 2015 |title= El 45% dels catalans afirma que no té creences religioses |trans-title= 45% of the Catalans claims to have no beliefs |url= http://www.ara.cat/societat/poblacio-catalana-declara-seguidora-religio_0_1335466612.html |language= ca |newspaper= [[Ara (newspaper)|Ara]] |___location= Barcelona |access-date= 5 July 2015 |archive-date= 8 November 2020 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20201108135703/https://www.ara.cat/societat/poblacio-catalana-declara-seguidora-religio_0_1335466612.html |url-status= live }}</ref> According to the most recent study sponsored by the [[Generalitat de Catalunya|government of Catalonia]], as of 2016, 61.9% of the Catalans identify as [[Christians]], up from 56.5% in 2014.<ref name="Barometer20142">{{cite web|url=http://governacio.gencat.cat/web/.content/afers_religiosos/documents/Mapa_2014/Barometre2014_resultats.pdf|title=Baròmetre sobre la religiositat i sobre la gestió de la seva diversitat|date=2014|publisher=Institut Opiniòmetre, Generalitat de Catalunya|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170926184822/http://governacio.gencat.cat/web/.content/afers_religiosos/documents/Mapa_2014/Barometre2014_resultats.pdf|archive-date=26 September 2017}} p. 30. [http://web.gencat.cat/es/actualitat/detall/Barometre-sobre-la-religiositat-i-Mapa-religios-de-Catalunya Quick data from the 2014 barometer of Catalonia] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170927155818/http://web.gencat.cat/es/actualitat/detall/Barometre-sobre-la-religiositat-i-Mapa-religios-de-Catalunya |date=27 September 2017 }}.</ref> At the same time, 16.0% of the population identify as [[atheism|atheists]], 11.9% as [[agnosticism|agnostics]], 4.8% as [[Muslims]], 1.3% as [[Buddhism|Buddhists]], and a further 2.4% as being of other religions.<ref name="Barometer2016">{{cite web|url=http://premsa.gencat.cat/pres_fsvp/docs/2017/07/03/10/56/eee690bf-45d9-4db2-b84f-2c31bfab72ff.pdf|title=Baròmetre sobre la religiositat i sobre la gestió de la seva diversitat 2016|date=2016|publisher=Institut Opiniòmetre, Generalitat de Catalunya|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181020120353/http://premsa.gencat.cat/pres_fsvp/docs/2017/07/03/10/56/eee690bf-45d9-4db2-b84f-2c31bfab72ff.pdf|archive-date=20 October 2018}} p. 30. [http://es.opinometre.com/2016/11/03/barometre-religiositat-2016/ Quick data from the 2016 barometer of Catalonia] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181020182104/http://es.opinometre.com/2016/11/03/barometre-religiositat-2016/ |date=20 October 2018 }}.</ref>
==References==
 
*Balcells, Albert et. al. ''Catalan Nationalism : Past and Present'' (Palgrave Macmillan, 1995).
=== Social conditions ===
*Collier, Basil. ''Catalan France'' (J.M. Dent and Sons Ltd., 1939).
Catalonia is one of the richest and most developed regions in [[Southern Europe]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ara.cat/economia/kenneth-rogoff-FMI-Catalunya-paisos-rics-mon_0_456555186.html|title=L'execonomista en cap de l'FMI: "Catalunya, aïllada, seria un dels països més rics del món"|work=Ara.cat|date=4 April 2011|access-date=29 March 2015|archive-date=2 April 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150402141320/http://www.ara.cat/economia/kenneth-rogoff-FMI-Catalunya-paisos-rics-mon_0_456555186.html|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Barcelona]] is among the most industrialized metropolises. A regional capital, it is a magnet for domestic and foreign migrants.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://citiesofrefuge.eu/news/barcelona-secrets-intercultural-approach-migration-governance|title=Barcelona secrets: the intercultural approach to migration governance|website=Cities of Refuge|access-date=2018-08-14|archive-date=14 August 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180814103701/http://citiesofrefuge.eu/news/barcelona-secrets-intercultural-approach-migration-governance|url-status=live}}</ref>
*Conversi, Daniele. ''The Basques, the Catalans and Spain: Alternative Routes to Nationalist Mobilization'' (University of Nevada Press, 1997).
 
=== Celebrations ===
{{See also|Traditions of Catalonia}}
Fire is the element used in most important traditional festivals, which are derived from pagan roots. These celebrations have a high acceptance of fire between the Catalans, like the Flame of Canigó to the [[Bonfires of Saint John]].
 
An important and well-known celebration is [[Saint George's Day (Spain)#Catalonia|La Diada de Sant Jordi]], held on 23 April, in which men give women roses, and women give men a book.
[[File:122 Palau de la Generalitat, pl. Sant Jaume (Barcelona), el dia de Sant Jordi.jpg|thumb|Saint George's Day In Barcelona]]
Historical memory is the second axis of celebrations in Catalonia, where the Catalan people reunite with their date of birth as a people.
 
Among the religious celebrations, there are [[St. George's Day]] and the celebrations of [[Vincent of Saragossa|Saint Vincent Martyr]] and [[Anthony the Great|Saint Anthony Abbot]]. The maximum expressions of this element are the [[Easter]] processions and performances of [[Passion Play]]s. Some festivals have a complicated relationship with religion, such as [[Carnival]] and the [[Danse Macabre|''Dances of Death'']], or specific aspects of [[Christmas]] such as the [[Tió de Nadal]] or the ''[[caganer]]'' in [[Nativity scene]]s.
 
Other key elements of a Catalan celebration are: food, central to every party and especially to the pig slaughter and harvest festivals; contests such as the ''[[castell]]s'' (human towers), choice of major and festive floats; music, songs and bands; processions; dances; and animals, especially bulls and representations of mythological creatures. The [[Patum]] of Berga has been declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.
 
=== Symbolism ===
{{Main|National symbols of Catalonia}}
[[File:191026 60278 dc (48979567256).jpg|thumb|Catalan protesters in Barcelona in 2019]]
Because of their intertwining history, many of the traditional symbols of Catalonia coincide with Aragon, Valencia and the Balearic Islands. The oldest known Catalan symbol is the coat of arms of the King of Aragon and Count of Barcelona, or ''bars of Aragon'', one of Europe's oldest heraldic emblems; in modern times, Catalan nationalists have made it the main symbol of Catalan identity and it is even associated with the Catalan language.
 
As for anthems, "The Reapers" (''[[Els Segadors]]'') is the official national anthem of Catalonia and is also used in the other lands of the Principality; the [[Balanguera]] represents the people from the Balearic Islands and, in the case of Valencia, the official "Anthem of the Exhibition" (''[[Himne de l'Exposició]]'') alongside [[Muixeranga]] as symbols of the country.
 
== See also ==
{{Portal|Spain|France|Italy}}
* [[List of Catalans]]
* [[History of Catalonia]]
* [[Catalan myths and legends]]
* [[Valencian people]]
* [[Aragonese people]]
* [[Andorran people]]
* [[Catalan Americans]]
* [[History of political Catalanism]]
{{Clear}}
 
== Notes ==
{{Notelist}}
 
== References ==
{{Reflist}}
 
== Sources ==
{{Refbegin}}
*Balcells, Albert et al. ''Catalan Nationalism : Past and Present'' (Palgrave Macmillan, 1995).
*{{cite journal |last1= Capdevila |first1= Alexandra |title= Entre el catolicisme, l'agnosticisme i l'ateisme. Una aproximació al perfil religiós dels catalans. |trans-title= Between catholicism, agnosticism and atheism. An approach to the Catalan religious profile. |url= http://ceo.gencat.cat/ceop/AppJava/export/sites/CEOPortal/estudis/apunts/contingut/Apunt_religio_BOP.pdf |year= 2013 |language= ca |publisher= Centre d'Estudis d'Opinió (CEO) |publication-date= 2013 |pages= 86 |id= B.17768-2013 |access-date= 5 July 2015 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20130819053118/http://www.ceo.gencat.cat/ceop/AppJava/export/sites/CEOPortal/estudis/apunts/contingut/Apunt_religio_BOP.pdf |archive-date= 19 August 2013 |url-status= dead |df= dmy-all }}
*[[Basil Collier|Collier, Basil]]. ''Catalan France'' (J.M. Dent and Sons Ltd., 1939).
*Conversi, Daniele. ''The Basques, the Catalans and Spain: Alternative Routes to Nationalist Mobilization'' (University of Nevada Press, 1997). {{ISBN|1-85065-268-6}}.
*Guibernau, Montserrat. ''Catalan Nationalism: Francoism, Transition and Democracy'' (Routledge, 2004).
*Hargreaves, John. ''Freedom for Catalonia?: Catalan Nationalism, Spanish Identity and the Barcelona Olympic Games'' (Cambridge University Press, 2000).
*Simonis, Damien. ''Lonely Planet Catalunya & the Costa Brava'' (Lonely Planet Publications, 2003).
*Starkie, Walter. ''The Road to Santiago'' (John Murray, 2003).
*''Michelin THE GREEN GUIDE France'' (Michelin Travel Publications, 2000).
{{Refend}}
 
== External links ==
==Online references==
*[http://lcweb2.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?frd/cstdy:@field(DOCID+es0055) US Library of Congress Country Studies: Spain, The Catalans]
*[http://www.everyculture.com/Europe/Catalans-Pa-sos-Catalans.html Catalans], World Culture Encyclopedia
*[http://www.ethnologue.com/show_language.asp?code=cat Ethnologue for Catalan language]
*[http://www.lletra.net Lletra. Catalan Literature Online ]
*[http://www.uoc.edu/euromosaic/web/document/catala/an/i5/i5.html Catalans in France]
*[http://www.catalunya-lliure.com/recursos.html Catalan Resources]
*[http://www.barcelona.com/barcelona_city_guide/references_marks/traditions/catalan_identity Catalan Identity]
*[http://www.en.mhcat.net/ Museum of the History of Catalonia]
*[https://archive.today/20121220061755/http://www.grec.net/cgibin/hecangcl.pgm?&USUARI=&SESSIO=&NDCHEC=0224838&PGMORI=E Catalanism]
*[http://www.barcelona-tourist-guide.com/specialist/catalan-dancing-sardana.html Catalan Dancing]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20140220183514/http://10anys.vilaweb.com/trueta/index.html The Spirit of Catalonia]. 1946 book by Oxford Professor Dr. [[Josep Trueta]]
*[http://www.anglophone-direct.com/-Festivals-events-and-traditions- Catalan Festivals and Traditions]
 
 
{{Navboxes
|title = Articles related to Catalans
|list =
{{Catalonia topics}}
{{Catalan diaspora}}
}}
{{Ethnic groups of Spain}}
{{Authority control}}
 
{{DEFAULTSORT:Catalan People}}
[[Category:Catalan people|Catalan people]]
[[Category:EthnicPeople groupsfrom inCatalonia| Europe]]
[[Category:Catalonia]]
[[Category:Society of Andorra]]
[[Category:Romance peoples]]
[[Category:Ethnic groups divided by international borders]]
[[Category:Ethnic groups in France]]
[[Category:Ethnic groups in Spain]]
[[Category:SpanishEthnic societygroups in Andorra]]
[[Category:Ethnic groups in Italy]]
[[de:Katalanen]]
[[ka:კატალონიელები]]
[[pl:Katalończycy]]
[[ru:Каталонцы]]
[[sr:Каталонци]]
[[sh:Katalonci]]
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catalans"