The
Galicians are an
ethnic groupAn ethnic group is a group of humans whose members identify with each other, through a common heritage that is real or presumed.Ethnic identity is further marked by the researcher Seng Yang in the recognition from others of a group's distinctiveness and the recognition of common cultural,...
or
nationalityNationality is the relationship between a person and their state of origin, culture, association, affiliation and/or loyalty. Nationality affords the state jurisdiction over the person and affords the person the protection of the state....
whose homeland is Galicia, which is a
historical regionNationalities or historical nationalities , in Spain, is the term used to refer to specific regions that were granted by the 1978 Constitution a special status as Autonomous Communities....
in Southwestern
EuropeEurope is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally divided from Asia to its east by the water divide of the Ural Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian Sea, the Caucasus Mountains , and the Black Sea to the southeast...
, embracing a territory situated in the north-west of
SpainSpain , officially the Kingdom of Spain , is a country located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula.
[The Spanish constitution does not establish any official denomination of the country, even though España , Estado español and Nación española are used interchangeably...]
. The languages of Galicia are
GalicianGalician is a language of the Western Ibero-Romance branch, spoken in Galicia, an autonomous community located in northwestern Spain, as well as in small bordering zones in the neighbouring autonomous communities of Asturias and Castile and León and in Northern Portugal.Galician and Portuguese...
and
SpanishSpanish or Castilian is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that originated in northern Spain and gradually spread in the Kingdom of Castile, evolving into the principal language of government and trade in the Iberian peninsula...
.
Political and administrative divisions
The autonomous community (a concept established in the Spanish constitution of 1978) that is known as
(a) Comunidade Autónoma Galega in
GalicianGalician is a language of the Western Ibero-Romance branch, spoken in Galicia, an autonomous community located in northwestern Spain, as well as in small bordering zones in the neighbouring autonomous communities of Asturias and Castile and León and in Northern Portugal.Galician and Portuguese...
, and as
(la) Comunidad Autónoma Gallega in Spanish (in English:
Galician Autonomous Community), is composed of the four Spanish provinces of
A CoruñaA Coruña is the second largest city in Galicia in northwestern Spain, second only in size to the port of Vigo in Pontevedra Province. The city is the capital of A Coruña Province...
,
LugoLugo is a city in northwestern Spain, in the autonomous community of Galicia. It is the capital of the province of Lugo. The municipality had a population of 95,416 in 2008, becoming the fourth most populated city in Galiza-History:...
,
OurenseOurense is a city in northwestern Spain, the capital of the province of Ourense in Galicia. Its population of 107.186 accounts for 30% of the population of the province.-Location and Climate:...
, and
PontevedraPontevedra is a city in the north-west of the Iberian Peninsula. It is the capital of both the comarca and province of Pontevedra, in Galicia . It is also the capital of its own municipality which is, in fact, often considered as an extension of the actual city...
.
Other Galician-speaking areas are situated in the Spanish provinces of
LeónLeón is a province of northwestern Spain, in the northwestern part of the autonomous community of Castile and León.About one quarter of its population of 500,200 lives in the capital, León. The weather is cold and dry during the winter....
and
Zamora-Geography:Ecuador* Zamora, Ecuador* Zamora-Chinchipe Province** Zamora RiverMexico* Zamora, Michoacán* Gutiérrez Zamora, VeracruzSpain* Zamora, Spain* Zamora United States* Zamora, CaliforniaVenezuela...
in the Autonomous Community of
Castile and LeonCastile and León , known formally as the Community of Castile and León, is one of the 17 autonomous communities of Spain. It was constructed from Old Castile and León in 1983...
.
Population, main cities and languages
The official Statistical body of Galicia is the
Instituto Galego de Estatística (IGE). According to the IGE, Galicia's total population in 2008 was 2,783,100 (1,138,474 in
A CoruñaA Coruña is the most North-western Atlantic-facing province of Spain, and one of the four provinces which constitute the autonomous community of Galicia...
, 355.406 in
LugoLugo is a province of northwestern Spain, in the northeastern part of the autonomous community of Galicia. It is bordered by the provinces of Ourense, Pontevedra, and A Coruña, the principality of Asturias, the State of León, and in the North by the Cantabrian Sea .The population is 356.595 , of...
, 336.002 in
OurenseOurense is a province of northwestern Spain, in the southeastern part of the Autonomous Community of Galicia. It is bordered by the provinces of Pontevedra in the west, Lugo in the north, León and Zamora in the east, and by Portugal in the south...
, and 953.218 in
PontevedraPontevedra is a province of Spain along the country's Atlantic coast in southwestern Europe. The province forms the southwestern part of the autonomous community of Galicia...
). The most important cities in this region, which serve as the provinces' administrative centres, are
VigoVigo is the largest city in Galicia, Spain, located in the province of Pontevedra.It has a population of 295,703, with an extended metropolitan population of 468,654, making it the 14th-largest metropolitan area of Spain. Vigo is the largest city in Spain which is not a provincial...
,
PontevedraPontevedra is a city in the north-west of the Iberian Peninsula. It is the capital of both the comarca and province of Pontevedra, in Galicia . It is also the capital of its own municipality which is, in fact, often considered as an extension of the actual city...
(in Pontevedra),
Santiago de CompostelaSantiago de Compostela is the capital of the autonomous community of Galicia and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Located in the north west of Spain in the Province of A Coruña, it was a "European City of Culture" for the year 2000...
,
A CoruñaA Coruña is the second largest city in Galicia in northwestern Spain, second only in size to the port of Vigo in Pontevedra Province. The city is the capital of A Coruña Province...
, Ferrol (in A Coruña),
LugoLugo is a city in northwestern Spain, in the autonomous community of Galicia. It is the capital of the province of Lugo. The municipality had a population of 95,416 in 2008, becoming the fourth most populated city in Galiza-History:...
(in Lugo), and
OurenseOurense is a city in northwestern Spain, the capital of the province of Ourense in Galicia. Its population of 107.186 accounts for 30% of the population of the province.-Location and Climate:...
(in Ourense). The official languages are Galician and Spanish. Knowledge of Spanish is compulsory according to the Spanish constitution and virtually universal. Knowledge of Galician, after declining for many years owing to the pressure of Spanish and official persecution, is again on the rise due to favorable official language policies and popular support. Currently about 82% of Galicia's population can speak
GalicianGalician is a language of the Western Ibero-Romance branch, spoken in Galicia, an autonomous community located in northwestern Spain, as well as in small bordering zones in the neighbouring autonomous communities of Asturias and Castile and León and in Northern Portugal.Galician and Portuguese...
and about 61% has it as a mother tongue.
Population genetics
The most frequent Y-Dna haplogroups in Galicia is
R1bIn human genetics, Haplogroup R1b is the most frequently occurring Y-chromosome haplogroup in Western Europe.More specifically, R1b's frequency is highest in the populations of Atlantic Europe and, due to European emigration, in North America, South America, and Australia. In Ireland and the...
(particularly R1b3) covering about 57% of the Y chromosomal lineages. The high frequency of this haplogroup is typical in all West European populations, reflecting a cline and likely continuity of the Paleolithic gene pool in Europe. Haplogroups
IIn human genetics, Haplogroup I is a Y-chromosome DNA haplogroup, a subgroup of haplogroup IJ, itself a derivative of Haplogroup IJK.Y-DNA Haplogroup I represents nearly one-fifth of the population of Europe...
and
GIn human genetics, Haplogroup G is a Y-chromosome haplogroup. It is a branch of Haplogroup F . Haplogroup G has an overall low frequency in most populations but is widely distributed within many ethnic groups of the Old World in Europe, Western Asia, northern Africa, Central Asia, the Middle East,...
, also characteristic markers for many different West European populations, were found in Galicia at frequencies of respectively 10% and 6%. Together with R1b, I and G, E1b1b (17%) and
JIn human genetics, Haplogroup J is a Y-chromosome DNA haplogroup. It is defined by the 12f2.1 genetic marker, or the equivalent M304 marker.-Origins:...
(8%) haplogroups comprise about 98% of the Y-chromosomal gene pool of Galician individuals. Haplogroups J and E1b1b consist of lineages with differential distribution within
Middle EastThe Middle East is a region that spans southwestern Asia, southeastern Europe, and northeastern Africa. It has no clear boundaries, often used as a synonym to Near East, in opposition to Far East...
,
North AfricaNorth Africa or Northern Africa is the northernmost region of the African continent, linked by the Sahara to Sub-Saharan Africa.Geopolitically, the UN definition of Northern Africa includes the following seven countries or territories; Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, Sudan, Tunisia,Mauritania, and...
and
EuropeEurope is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally divided from Asia to its east by the water divide of the Ural Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian Sea, the Caucasus Mountains , and the Black Sea to the southeast...
.
Galician language
Galician is an
Iberian Romance languageThis article is about a subdivision of the Romance language family. For the broader group of languages spoken in the Iberian Peninsula, see Iberian languages.The formation of Iberian Romance languages followed, more or less, this process:...
belonging to the Western Ibero-Romance branch of the
Indo-European languagesThe Indo-European languages are a family of several hundred related languages and dialects, including most major languages of Europe, Iran, and northern India, and historically also predominant in Anatolia and Central Asia...
. It is spoken in
GaliciaGalicia is a historical autonomous community in northwest Spain, with the status of a historical nationality, and was one of the first kingdoms of Europe . Its component provinces are A Coruña, Lugo, Ourense and Pontevedra...
, an
autonomous communityThe Autonomous Community is the first-level political division of the Kingdom of Spain, established in accordance with the Spanish Constitution...
with the constitutional status of an "historic nationality" in northwestern
SpainSpain , officially the Kingdom of Spain , is a country located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula.
[The Spanish constitution does not establish any official denomination of the country, even though España , Estado español and Nación española are used interchangeably...]
. Galician is also spoken in the neighboring autonomous community of
Castile and LeónCastile and León , known formally as the Community of Castile and León, is one of the 17 autonomous communities of Spain. It was constructed from Old Castile and León in 1983...
, near its border with Galicia.
Galician and Portuguese were, during medieval times, a single language spoken in the
Kingdom of GaliciaKingdom of Galicia is the name of two distinct entities within the Iberian Peninsula. In the first period, it was a barbarian monarchy ruled by the Suebi, a Germanic-speaking people who entered the Western Roman Empire in 406. Their kingdom corresponded to the Roman province of Gallaecia in the...
and in
PortugalPortugal , officially the Portuguese Republic , is a country located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of mainland Europe and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the west and south and by Spain to the north and east...
. The language is variously called
Galician-PortugueseGalician-Portuguese was a West Iberian Romance language spoken in the Middle Ages, in the northwest area of the Iberian Peninsula...
, Medieval Galician, or Archaic Portuguese. The two modern languages continue to be linked by a
dialect continuumA dialect continuum is a range of dialects spoken across a large geographical area, differing only slightly between areas that are geographically close, and gradually decreasing in mutual intelligibility as the distances become greater. Dialects separated by great geographical distances may not be...
in the north of Portugal.
Despite the positive effects of official recognition of the
Galician languageGalician is a language of the Western Ibero-Romance branch, spoken in Galicia, an autonomous community located in northwestern Spain, as well as in small bordering zones in the neighbouring autonomous communities of Asturias and Castile and León and in Northern Portugal.Galician and Portuguese...
, Galicia's socio-linguistic development has suffered from the growing influence of
SpanishSpanish or Castilian is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that originated in northern Spain and gradually spread in the Kingdom of Castile, evolving into the principal language of government and trade in the Iberian peninsula...
, a world language. The drift toward Spanish is ascribed to the growth of urban centers, the emergence of a Galician middle class, and the worldly influences of education and the media.
Galicia also boasts a rich oral tradition, in the form of songs, tales, and sayings, which has made a vital contribution to the spread and development of the Galician language. Still flourishing today, this tradition constitutes a priceless cultural heritage, much of which is shared with its neighbor
PortugalPortugal , officially the Portuguese Republic , is a country located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of mainland Europe and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the west and south and by Spain to the north and east...
.
Culture and landscape
Galicia's cultural heritage is characterized by its extensive, abundant and varied geography. Indeed, the entire region could be considered as a sort of museum that never closes its doors to the public.
It boasts a wealth of
RomanAncient Rome was a civilization that grew out of a small agricultural community founded on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 10th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea, it became one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
remains, highlights of which include the Walls of Lugo, declared a
World Heritage SiteA UNESCO World Heritage Site is a site that is on the list that is maintained by the international World Heritage Programme administered by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, composed of 21 state parties which are elected by their General Assembly for a four-year term.A World Heritage Site is a...
, as well as the
Tower of HerculesThe Tower of Hercules is an ancient Roman lighthouse on a peninsula about 2.4 kilometers from the centre of A Coruña, Galicia, in north-western Spain. The name Corunna is said to be derived from the ancient columna, meaning column. The structure is tall and overlooks the North Atlantic coast of...
in
A CoruñaA Coruña is the second largest city in Galicia in northwestern Spain, second only in size to the port of Vigo in Pontevedra Province. The city is the capital of A Coruña Province...
. The Way of St James has also been acknowledged by
UNESCOThe United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations established on 16 November 1945...
, as has Galicia's capital,
Santiago de CompostelaSantiago de Compostela is the capital of the autonomous community of Galicia and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Located in the north west of Spain in the Province of A Coruña, it was a "European City of Culture" for the year 2000...
, declared a World Heritage City in 1985.
More than 30,000 centers of population make up a decidedly humanised land and landscape. These settlements are home to magnificent examples of the Galician people's architectural and ethnographic heritage. Stone crosses, raised granaries and shrines… are all fine examples of the traditional constructions to be found in this land.
Immigration
Like other Iberian regions, Galicia's history has been defined by mass
emigrationEmigration is the act of leaving one's native country or region to settle in another. It is the same as immigration but from the perspective of the country of origin. Human movement before the establishment of political boundaries or within one state, is termed migration. There are many reasons why...
. There was significant Galician emigration in the 19th and early 20th centuries to other parts of
SpainSpain , officially the Kingdom of Spain , is a country located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula.
[The Spanish constitution does not establish any official denomination of the country, even though España , Estado español and Nación española are used interchangeably...]
,
PortugalPortugal , officially the Portuguese Republic , is a country located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of mainland Europe and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the west and south and by Spain to the north and east...
, and to the Americas.
Unlike the Basque and the Catalan regions which were rich, urbanized, and industrialized, Galicia remained relatively poor, agricultural and dominated by rural and village society, as industry had yet to make its appearance there on a large scale. Moreover, its agricultural sector continued to be among the most backward in Spain, and farm productivity was severely hampered by the tiny size of the individual farmsteads known as minifundios. The minifundio was the product of an attempt to distribute land plots in a closed rural system to a growing population by requiring that equal shares be bequeathed to each heir. After just a few generations, the land had been subdivided so much that most of the plots were too small to support a family or to be economically viable.
For these reasons, Galicia was a net exporter of population to the rest of Spain. Between 1900 and 1981, the net outflow of people from Galicia was more than 825,000. In fact, the city with the second greatest number of Galician people is
Buenos AiresBuenos Aires is the capital, and largest city, of Argentina, currently the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the eastern shore of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...
,
ArgentinaArgentina, officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America, constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires. It is the eighth largest country in the world by land area and the largest among Spanish-speaking nations, though Mexico,...
, where immigration from Galicia was so massive that all Spaniards are now known as
gallegos (Galicians). During the
FrancoFrancisco Franco Bahamonde, commonly known as Francisco Franco , or simply Franco, was a military general and dictator of Spain from October 1936, and de facto regent of the nominally restored Kingdom of Spain from 1947 until his death in 1975...
years, there was a new wave of emigration out of Galicia to other European countries, most notably to
FranceFrance , officially the French Republic , is a country located in Western Europe, with several overseas islands and territories located on other continents. Metropolitan France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, and from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean...
,
SwitzerlandSwitzerland , officially the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 states named cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities...
, and the
United KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands...
.
Galician cuisine
Galician cuisine refers to the typical dishes and ingredients found in the cuisine of the Galicia region of Spain. These include
shellfishShellfish is a culinary and fisheries term for exoskeleton-bearing aquatic invertebrates used as food, including various species of molluscs, crustaceans, and echinoderms. Although most kinds of shellfish are harvested from saltwater environments, some kinds are found only in freshwater...
and
fishA fish is any aquatic vertebrate animal that is typically ectothermic , covered with scales, and equipped with two sets of paired fins and several unpaired fins...
, many pork-related dishes (chourizos, zorza, botelo, androlla),
empanadaAn empanada is a stuffed bread or pastry. The name comes from the Spanish and Portuguese verb empanar, meaning to wrap or coat in bread. Empanada is made by folding a dough or bread patty around the stuffing...
s,
torta de SantiagoTorta de Santiago is a famous type of almond pie from Galicia, literally meaning cake of St. James. The Galician name for cake is Torta whilst it is often referred to Tarta, which is the Spanish word. The filling principally consists of ground almonds, eggs and sugar...
(cake of Santiago),
polbo á feiraPolbo á feira alternatively known as polbo estilo feira and pulpo á galega is a traditional Galician dish....
(a dish made of octopus), the cheese
queixo de tetilla, the
ribeiroRibeiro is a surname common in Galicia, Portugal and Brazil. It is also a wine-making region of Southeast central Galicia.* Jose F Ribeiro Providence RI*Adriano Leite Ribeiro, Brazilian football striker born 1982*Alfonso Ribeiro, American actor...
and
albariñoAlbariño or Alvarinho is a variety of white wine grape grown in Galicia and Monção , where it is used to make varietal white wines....
wineWine is an alcoholic beverage typically made of fermented grape juice. The natural chemical balance of grapes is such that they can ferment without the addition of sugars, acids, enzymes or other nutrients. Wine is produced by fermenting crushed grapes using various types of yeast. Yeast consumes...
s, and orujo liquor.
Compared to the wide variety of foods in the cuisines of
FranceFrench cuisine is a style of cooking derived from the nation of France. It evolved from centuries of social and political change. The Middle Ages brought Guillaume Tirel, better known as Taillevent...
and
IndiaThe cuisine of India is characterized by sophisticated and subtle use of various spices, herbs and other vegetables grown in India and also for the widespread practice of vegetarianism across many sections of its society. Each family of Indian cuisine is characterized by a wide assortment of dishes...
, for example, Galician cuisine could be considered to be fairly simple. Galician recipes are in general less elaborate than in other cuisines. In Galician cuisine, the freshness and quality of the produce are paramount.
PotatoThe potato is a starchy, tuberous crop from the perennial Solanum tuberosum of the Solanaceae family . The word potato may refer to the plant itself as well. In the region of the Andes, there are some other closely related cultivated potato species. Potatoes are the world's fourth largest food...
es are nowadays a staple of Galician cooking; however potato crops only started to be widespread in Galicia as late as the 18th century. Potatoes supplanted the ancient use of
chestnutChestnut is a genus of eight or nine species of deciduous trees and shrubs in the beech family Fagaceae, native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. The name also refers to the edible nuts they produce.-Species:The Chestnut belongs to the same Fagaceae family as the Oak and Beech...
s in many Galician dishes such as the popular caldo galego (Galician vegetable soup). Another innovation was the widespread use of
olive oilOlive oil is a fruit oil obtained from the olive , a traditional tree crop of the Mediterranean Basin. The wild olive tree originated in Asia Minor and spread from there as far as southern Africa, Australia, Japan and China. It is commonly used in cooking, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, and soaps and...
from the 19th century on which replaced the older use of pork tallow.
Some taboos of Galician cooking, which are only disappearing in the globalization age, are the wide disregard for most
mushroomA mushroom is the fleshy, spore-bearing fruiting body of a fungus, typically produced above ground on soil or on its food source. The standard for the name "mushroom" is the cultivated white button mushroom, Agaricus bisporus, hence the word mushroom is most often applied to those fungi that have...
s (with some exceptions) and some mollusks such as
snailThe word snail is a common name for almost all members of the molluscan class Gastropoda that have coiled shells in the adult stage. When the word snail is used in a general sense, it includes sea snails, land snails and freshwater snails. Snails lacking a shell or having only a very small one are...
s.
In Galicia, a wide variety of sea produce can be found in traditional dishes due to the province's long shoreline and traditional fishing economy.
AgricultureAgriculture is the production of food and goods through farming and forestry. Agriculture was the key development that led to the rise of human civilization, with the husbandry of domesticated animals and plants creating food surpluses that enabled the development of more densely populated and...
products such as potatoes,
maizeMaize , is a herbaceous plant domesticated in Mesoamerica and subsequently spread throughout the American continents...
, and
wheatWheat is a worldwide cultivated grass from the Fertile Crescent region of the Near East. In 2007 world production of wheat was 607 million tons, making it the third most-produced cereal after maize and rice...
are also a staple in the Galician diet, along with dairy and meat products from animals such as cows, sheep, and
pigPigs are a genus of even-toed ungulates within the family Suidae. The name hog most commonly refers to the domestic pig in everyday parlance, but technically encompasses several distinct species, including the wild boar...
s; Galicia's grasses and shrubs are green year-round and are excellent for grazing. Historically,
ryeRye is a grass grown extensively as a grain and as a forage crop. It is a member of the wheat tribe and is closely related to barley and wheat. Rye grain is used for flour, rye bread, rye beer, some whiskies, some vodkas, and animal fodder...
was the most traditional cereal crop in Galicia.
Religion
The majority (about 80%) of Galicians are Roman Catholics with a small minority are Protestants and a substantial non-religious minority.
Nationalism and history
Galician nationalismGalician nationalism is a political movement claiming for the recognition of Galicia as a nation. The political movement referred to as modern Galician nationalism was born in the beginnings of the twentieth century from the idea of Galicianism....
- which appeared as early as the 1840s in the form of
GalicianismGalicianism is a political ideology of nationalist character which objective is the defence of Galicia and its culture by the means of the establishment and strengthening of its own institutions.-Origins:...
- recalled the "Golden Age" of the
Kingdom of GaliciaKingdom of Galicia is the name of two distinct entities within the Iberian Peninsula. In the first period, it was a barbarian monarchy ruled by the Suebi, a Germanic-speaking people who entered the Western Roman Empire in 406. Their kingdom corresponded to the Roman province of Gallaecia in the...
, when that kingdom played a major role in the politics of medieval
IberiaThe Iberian Peninsula, or Iberia, is located in the extreme southwest of Europe and includes modern-day Spain, Portugal, Andorra and Gibraltar and a very small area of France. It is the westernmost of the three major southern European peninsulas—the Iberian, Italian, and Balkan peninsulas...
. That was the time when the northern half of Galicia was hemmed in and isolated while the southern portion expanded southward in the wake of the
Moor'sThe description Moors has referred to several historic and modern populations of Muslim people of Berber, Black African and Arab descent from North Africa, some of whom came to conquer and occupy the Iberian Peninsula for nearly 800 years. The North Africans termed it Al Andalus, comprising most...
withdrawal. This southern part of the realm eventually became
PortugalPortugal , officially the Portuguese Republic , is a country located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of mainland Europe and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the west and south and by Spain to the north and east...
; the northern part fell into disorder.
A Revival and a sense of national willpower
Following the dynastic union of the kingdoms of
AragonAragon is an autonomous community of Spain. Located in northeastern Spain, the region comprises three provinces from north to south: Huesca, Zaragoza, and Teruel. Its capital is Zaragoza .Aragon's northern province of Huesca borders France and is positioned in the middle of the Pyrenees...
and
CastileA former kingdom, Castile gradually merged with its neighbors to become the Crown of Castile and later the Kingdom of Spain with the Crown of Aragon and the Crown of Navarre...
, namely after 1486, Galicia's political and cultural influence was severely diminished, a process that was later to continue with the establishment of the
BourbonThe House of Bourbon is an important European royal house, a branch of the Capetian dynasty. Bourbon kings first ruled Navarre and France in the 16th century. By the 18th century, members of the Bourbon dynasty also held thrones in Spain, Naples & Sicily, and Parma...
dynasty in Spain in the 18th century and the establishment of a liberal state in the 19th century. This would lead to the gradual centralization of the monarchic institutions and the total loss of Galicia's political rights and institutions.
With the spread of
RomanticismRomanticism is a complex artistic, literary, and intellectual movement that originated in the second half of the 18th century in Western Europe, and gained strength during the Industrial Revolution...
throughout Europe and its call for the acknowledgement of the cultures of
stateless nationA stateless nation is a political term used to imply that a group, usually a minority ethnic group, is a nation, and is entitled to its own state, specifically a nation-state for that nation. Since there are no objective criteria for whether a particular group is a nation, or which particular...
s, Galicia began to experience a Revival, characterised by a resurgence of national awareness. Nineteenth century political movements such as
provincialism and
regionalismRegionalism is a term used in international relations. Regionalism also constitutes one of the three constituents of the international commercial system...
, and the consolidation of the concept of
GalicianismGalicianism is a political ideology of nationalist character which objective is the defence of Galicia and its culture by the means of the establishment and strengthening of its own institutions.-Origins:...
, spur on the creation of alternatives designed to endorse the region with its own self-governing institutions and to embark upon a process aimed at promoting and standardizing both the
Galician languageGalician is a language of the Western Ibero-Romance branch, spoken in Galicia, an autonomous community located in northwestern Spain, as well as in small bordering zones in the neighbouring autonomous communities of Asturias and Castile and León and in Northern Portugal.Galician and Portuguese...
and culture.
Galicia during the time of exile and resistance
The process of setting up Galicia’s first government following the passing of the
Statute of AutonomyNominally, a Statute of Autonomy is a law hierarchically located under the constitution of a country, and over any other form of legislation...
in 1936 suffered a sharp setback following the military coup that took place that same year and marked the start of the
Spanish Civil WarThe Spanish Civil War was a major conflict that devastated Spain from 17 July 1936 to 1 April 1939. It began after an attempted coup d'état by a group of Spanish Army generals against the government of the Second Spanish Republic, then under the leadership of president Manuel Azaña...
.
During the forty years of
dictatorshipFrancisco Franco became the dictator of Spain when he defeated the Republican government in the Spanish Civil War. Franco declared an official end of hostilities on April 1, 1939, and reworked the name of the republic into the “Spanish State,” a new moniker attempting to distinguish the new regime...
, the
Galician nationalist movementGalician nationalism is a political movement claiming for the recognition of Galicia as a nation. The political movement referred to as modern Galician nationalism was born in the beginnings of the twentieth century from the idea of Galicianism....
was forced into exile, leading to its restructuring in order to be able to carry out the political and cultural projects that would have been practically infeasible in Galicia until the consolidation of democratic resistance groups that challenged the dictatorship.
Democratic self-government for the future
The final years of
FrancoFrancisco Franco Bahamonde, commonly known as Francisco Franco , or simply Franco, was a military general and dictator of Spain from October 1936, and de facto regent of the nominally restored Kingdom of Spain from 1947 until his death in 1975...
's regime saw the revival of the sense of national identity amongst the people of Galicia, starting off in the field of culture, and then gradually generating an extending towards political movement in favor of self-government and cultural standardization within the framework of the Spanish State, seen as a multinational and multilingual political entity.
Fraga's Galicia
In 1990, conservative politician Manuel Fraga took over as
President of GaliciaThe President of Galicia is the head of the government of the Spanish autonomous community of Galicia. Namely, he/she is the president of the executive body of the Galician government, the Xunta de Galicia....
. He believed that Galicia should try to modernise itself without losing its valuable traditions. Fraga's past as a Franco minister was put aside during this stage of his life, in which he assumed some of the claims of Galician nationalists such as the use of the Galician language. Fraga's rule over Galicia came to an end in April 2005.
Galicia today
Today Galician culture is slowly but gradually recovering. Firmly rooted in tradition, it has also incorporated more contemporary aspects. The fact that Galicia was home to the end of a
pilgrimageIn religion and spirituality, a pilgrimage is a long journey or search of great moral significance. Sometimes, it is a journey to a shrine of importance to a person's beliefs and faith. Members of many major religions participate in pilgrimages...
route that acted as the cultural backbone of Europe enabled it to soak up European thought and art forms from the Middle Ages until today.
A strong cultural fabric
The Galician City of Culture Modern Galician culture has been built on solid historical foundations, with a cultural industry currently under consolidation supported by a dynamic cultural framework. The principal cultural spaces include, within the field of art, the Centre for Galician Contemporary Art (CGAC) in Santiago de Compostela and
VigoVigo is the largest city in Galicia, Spain, located in the province of Pontevedra.It has a population of 295,703, with an extended metropolitan population of 468,654, making it the 14th-largest metropolitan area of Spain. Vigo is the largest city in Spain which is not a provincial...
’s Contemporary Art Museum (MARCO), without forgetting, in the area of dramatic art, the network of theatres and auditoriums. In addition, the Galician City of Culture, although currently undergoing the redefinition and reorganization of its contents and spaces, also constitutes a global cultural project. A description of Galicia’s cultural scene would not be complete without a mention of the many socio-cultural centers, networks of libraries, alternative exhibition centres and the multiple associations that organize, promote and support root cultural projects.
Cultural Institutions
The principal official institutions in terms of cultural affairs include the Galician Royal Academy, founded in Cuba in 1906, and the Galician Council for Culture, whose aim is to advise the Galician autonomous governments in all matters concerning culture. The region’s universities also play a major role in Galicia’s cultural development. This is particularly true of the
University of Santiago de CompostelaThe Royal University of Santiago de Compostela is a public university located in the city of Santiago de Compostela, Galicia, Spain. A second campus is located in Lugo, Galicia.The university traces its roots back to 1495, when a school was opened in Santiago...
, which first took on this task back in the 15th century. The Museum of the Galician people (Museo do Pobo Galego) also serves as an important cultural institution.
The major driving forces for culture in Galicia today are the publishing industry, which is producing a growing number of publications, and the audiovisual and art industries, in which private initiative is currently thriving.
Sportspeople
- Amancio
Amancio may mean:*Amancio Amaro, Spanish footballer*Amancio, Cuba, in Las Tunas province*See also: Special:Allpages/Amancio...
footballer
- Niki Lauda
Andreas Nikolaus "Niki" Lauda is an Austrian aviator, entrepreneur, former Formula One racing driver and three-time F1 World Champion. He has founded and run two airlines and was manager of the Jaguar Formula One racing team for two years.-Early years in racing:Born in Vienna, Austria, to a...
AustriaAustria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.3 million people in Central Europe. It borders both Germany and the Czech Republic to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the west...
n aviatorAn aviator is a person who flies aircraft for pleasure or as a profession. The first recorded use of the term was in 1887 as a variation of the French 'aviation', from the latin 'avis', coined 1863 by G. de la Landelle in "Aviation ou Navigation Aérienne"...
, entrepreneurAn entrepreneur is a person who has possession of an enterprise, or venture, and assumes significant accountability for the inherent risks and the outcome. It is an ambitious leader who combines land, labor, and capital to often create and market new goods or services. ... The term is a loanword...
, former Formula OneFormula One, also known as Formula 1 or F1, and currently officially referred to as the FIA Formula One World Championship, is the highest class of auto racing sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile . The "formula" in the name refers to a set of rules to which all participants...
(F1) racing driver and three-time F1 World Champion. (Galician grandparents from Nogueira de RamuínNogueira de Ramuín is a municipality in Ourense in the Galicia region of north-west Spain....
by his father's side)
- David Cal
David Cal Figueroa David Cal Figueroa David Cal Figueroa (born October 10, 1982 in Cangas do Morrazo, Galicia, Spain is a Galician sprint canoer who has competed since 1999...
flatwater canoerThis article discusses canoe sprint and canoe marathon, competitive forms of canoeing and kayaking on more or less flat water. Both sports are governed by the International Canoe Federation ....
- Carlos Pérez Rial flatwater canoer
This article discusses canoe sprint and canoe marathon, competitive forms of canoeing and kayaking on more or less flat water. Both sports are governed by the International Canoe Federation ....
- Pato Castro extreme games, Winter Olympics
- Fernando Torres
Fernando José Torres Sanz is a Spanish footballer who plays for Premier League club Liverpool and the Spanish national team as a striker.Torres started his career with Atlético Madrid, progressing through their youth ranks...
footballer (father from BoqueixónBoqueixón is a municipality of Spain in the Province of A Coruña, in the autonomous community of Galicia....
)
- Luis Suárez
Luis Suárez Miramontes is a Spanish former footballer and manager. He played as a midfielder for Deportivo de La Coruña, CD España Industrial, CF Barcelona, Inter Milan, Sampdoria and Spain. Suárez who usually played as an inside left, is regarded as one of Spain's greatest players...
footballer, winner of the L'ÉquipeL'Équipe is a French nationwide daily newspaper devoted to sports. The paper is noted for coverage of football , rugby, motorsports and cycling...
Ballon d'Or
- Óscar Pereiro professional road bicycle racer. Winner of the 2006 Tour de France
The Tour de France is an annual bicycle race that covers approximately throughout France and bordering countries. The race lasts three weeks and attracts cyclists from around the world. The race is broken into day-long segments, called stages. Individual times to finish each stage are totalled to...
.
- Nacho Novo
Ignacio Javier Gómez Novo , simply known as Nacho Novo, is a Spanish professional association football player who currently plays for Rangers....
footballer
- Míchel Salgado
Miguel Ángel "Míchel" Salgado Fernández is a Spanish footballer who is currently playing for English side Blackburn Rovers, as a right defender....
footballer
Writers
- Álvaro Cunqueiro
Álvaro Cunqueiro Mora was an Galician writer. He is the author of many works in both Galician and Spanish, including Merlín e familia . He was a cofounder of the Galician Writers Association.- Life :Cunqueiro was born to Joaquín Cunqueiro Montenegro, a pharmacist, and Pepita Mora Moirón of Mondoñedo...
writer and journalist
- Concepción Arenal
Concepción Arenal was a Spanish feminist writer and activist.Born in Ferrol, Galicia, she excelled in literature and was the first woman to attend university in Spain...
writer and feminist
- Castelao
There are two football stadiums nicknamed Castelão:*Estádio Governador João Castelo, located in São Luís, Maranhão state, Brazil.*Estádio Plácido Aderaldo Castelo, located in Fortaleza, Ceará state, Brazil....
writer, politician and painter
- Camilo José Cela
Don Camilo José Cela Trulock, Marquis of Iria Flavia was an influential Spanish writer and member of the Generation of 1950.-Biography:...
writer, Nobel Prize in LiteratureThe Nobel Prize in Literature is awarded annually, since 1901, to an author from any country who has, in the words from the will of Alfred Nobel, produced "in the field of literature the most outstanding work in an ideal direction"...
- Dani Garza
Don Daniel Patrick Garza III was born November 20, 1974 into an aristocratic ranching family with strong musical presence. Aside from family history, he also goes by the alias of Dani Garza. He has gone by two main dj names: Dani Garza and Dj Morbid....
writer and musician
- Emilia Pardo Bazán
Emilia Pardo Bazán was a Galician author and scholar....
writer and feminist
- Manuel Rivas
Manuel Rivas is a Galician writer, poet and journalist. He began his career in some Spanish newspapers like El Ideal Gallego, La Voz de Galicia, El Pais, and was the sub-editor of Diario 16 in Galicia...
writer
- Suso de Toro
Xesús Miguel de Toro Santos was born in Santiago de Compostela, Spain in 1965. Modern and Contemporary Arts graduate, he has published more than 20 narrative and theater books in Galician...
writer
- Bea Gonzalez
Béa Gonzalez is a novelist who was born in Vigo, Spain, and immigrated to Canada as a child.Following studies in Spain and Toronto, she pursued postgraduate studies in London, where she received an MA in Literary and Historical Studies from King's College London.Gonzalez is the author of many...
writer
- Vicente Risco
Vicente Martínez Risco Agüero was a Galician intellectual of the 20th Century. He was a founder member of Xeración Nós, and among the most important figures in the history of Galician literature. He is well-regarded for his writings on Galician nationalism, as well as a contributor to the Galician...
writer and politician
- Luis Seoane
Luis Seoane was a lithographer and an artist. Born in Buenos Aires, Argentina on June 1, 1910, of Galician immigrants, he spent much of his childhood and youth in Galicia. He was educated in A Coruña...
writer and painter
- Rosalía de Castro
Rosalía Castro de Murguía, better known as Rosalía de Castro , was a Galician romanticist writer and poet....
writer
- Gonzalo Torrente Ballester
Gonzalo Torrente Ballester was a Galician writer in Spanish language. He was born in Serantes, Ferrol, Galicia, and received his first education there, subsequently attending the universities of Santiago de Compostela and Oviedo.Although primarily a novelist, he also published journalism, essays,...
writer
- Ramón María del Valle Inclán writer
- Xosé Luís Méndez Ferrín
Xosé Luís Méndez Ferrín Galician writer and poet is widely considered the highest representative of contemporary Galician literature. Doctor in philology. Studied philosophy at the University of Santiago de Compostela and Romanic philology at the University of Madrid.He teaches literature at the...
writer, He was proposed to the Nobel PrizeThe Nobel Prize is a Sweden-based international monetary prize. The award was established by the 1895 will and estate of Swedish chemist and inventor Alfred Nobel. It was first awarded in Physics, Chemistry, Physiology or Medicine, Literature, and Peace in 1901...
in literature by the Galician Writers AssociationGalician Writers Association is an official entity depending on Xunta de Galicia formed by writers in galician language. It was founded in by a group of writers: Álvaro Cunqueiro, Rafael Dieste, Ánxel Fole, Ricardo Carballo Calero, Antón Avilés de Taramancos, and others...
in 1999
- Manuel Curros Enríquez
Manuel Curros Enríquez was a Galician writer and journalist in Galician language, being currently considered one of the leading figures of Galician culture and identity.-Early life:...
writer
Others
- Fernando Caldeiro
Fernando "Frank" Caldeiro was an American astronaut with a degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Arizona and the University of Central Florida....
astronaut
- Santiago Casares Quiroga
Santiago Casares y Quiroga was a Spanish politician who was Prime Minister of Spain from 13 May to 19 July 1936....
politician who was Prime Minister of Spain from May 13 to July 19, 1936
- Fidel Castro
Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz is a Cuban politician, one of the primary leaders of the Cuban Revolution, the Prime Minister of Cuba from February 1959 to December 1976, and then the President of the Council of State of Cuba until his resignation from the office in February 2008...
(both parents from Galicia) former president of CubaThe Republic of Cuba is an island country in the Caribbean. It consists of the island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city. Cuba is home to over 11 million people and is...
- Raúl Castro
Brigadier-General ' Raúl Modesto Castro Ruz is the President of the Cuban Council of State and the President of the Council of Ministers of Cuba...
(both parents from Galicia) president of CubaThe Republic of Cuba is an island country in the Caribbean. It consists of the island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city. Cuba is home to over 11 million people and is...
- Benito de Soto
Benito Soto Aboal was a Galician pirate, and captain of the Burla Negra ....
pirate from the 19th century.
- Manu Chao
Manu Chao is a French Latin folk singer of Basque and Galician origin. He sings in French, Spanish, English, Arabic, and Portuguese and occasionally in a number of other languages. Chao began his musical career with Hot Pants, a French band that combined several musical styles and languages...
(father from Vilalba- Journalistic Tradition :Villalba had during the 20th century a rich journalistic tradition that began in 1902 with the Ideal Villalbés, a newspaper handwritten by the poet and journalist Antonio García Hermida. This first episode will be continued, in a more professional form, by the El Eco de...
) singer
- Martin Codax
Martín Codax was a medieval jogral , probably Galician and possibly from Vigo, Galicia in present day Spain. He may have been active during the middle of the thirteenth century, judging from scriptological analysis...
medieval troubadourA troubadour was a composer and performer of Occitan lyric poetry during the High Middle Ages . Since the word "troubadour" is etymologically masculine, a female troubadour is usually called a trobairitz....
who lived between the 13th century and the beginning of the 14th century
- Perez Hilton
Mario Armando Lavandeira , better known as Perez Hilton, is an American blogger and television personality. His blog, Perezhilton.com , is known for posts covering gossip items about musicians, actors and celebrities...
internet gossip blogger.
- Enrique Iglesias
Enrique Miguel Iglesias Preysler , better known as Enrique Iglesias, is a Spanish singer, songwriter and actor....
(grandfather from OurenseOurense is a city in northwestern Spain, the capital of the province of Ourense in Galicia. Its population of 107.186 accounts for 30% of the population of the province.-Location and Climate:...
) singer
- Julio Iglesias
Julio Iglesias is a Spanish singer who has sold over 300 million copies in 14 languages and released 77 albums. According to Sony Music he is one of the top 10 best selling music artists ever...
(father from OurenseOurense is a city in northwestern Spain, the capital of the province of Ourense in Galicia. Its population of 107.186 accounts for 30% of the population of the province.-Location and Climate:...
) singer
- Pablo Iglesias
Pablo Iglesias Posse led the Spanish socialist movement. He founded the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party in 1879 and the Spanish General Workers' Union in 1888....
founder of the Socialist Workers' PartyThe Spanish Socialist Workers' Party , is the ruling party in Spain and the second oldest, exceeded only by the Partido Carlista, founded in 1833. It identifies itself as a centre-left, social-democratic, democratic socialist and progressivist party....
(PSOE) in 1879 and the Spanish General Workers' Union (UGT) in 1888
- Juan Niño de Tabora
Juan Niño de Tabora was the Spanish general and colonial official. From June 29, 1626 until his death on July 22, 1632, he was governor of the Philippines....
former governor of the PhilippinesThe Philippines officially known as the Republic of the Philippines, is a country in Southeast Asia with Manila as its capital city. It comprises 7,107 islands in the western Pacific Ocean....
.
- Ramón Franco
Ramón Franco y Bahamonde, Salgado y Pardo de Andrade , was a Galician pioneer of aviation, a political figure and brother of later dictator Francisco Franco...
pioneer of aviationAn aviator is a person who flies aircraft for pleasure or as a profession. The first recorded use of the term was in 1887 as a variation of the French 'aviation', from the latin 'avis', coined 1863 by G. de la Landelle in "Aviation ou Navigation Aérienne"...
, a political figure and brother of later dictator Francisco FrancoFrancisco Franco Bahamonde, commonly known as Francisco Franco , or simply Franco, was a military general and dictator of Spain from October 1936, and de facto regent of the nominally restored Kingdom of Spain from 1947 until his death in 1975...
.
- Jerry Garcia
Jerome John "Jerry" Garcia was an American musician best known for his work with the band the Grateful Dead...
(father born in A CoruñaA Coruña is the second largest city in Galicia in northwestern Spain, second only in size to the port of Vigo in Pontevedra Province. The city is the capital of A Coruña Province...
) lead guitarist and singer for the Grateful DeadThe Grateful Dead were an American rock band formed in 1965 in the San Francisco Bay Area. The band was known for its unique and eclectic style, which fused elements of rock, folk, bluegrass, blues, reggae, country, jazz, psychedelia, and space rock—and for live performances of long musical...
- Nancho Novo
Nancho Novo . Galician actor; He studied Medicine at Universidad de Santiago de Compostela, but stopped halfway, in order to move to Madrid where he studied acting at the Real Escuela de Arte Dramático y Danza...
actor
- Lou Piniella
Louis Victor Piniella is the current manager of the Chicago Cubs and a former Major League Baseball outfielder. He has been nicknamed "Sweet Lou," both for his swing as a major league hitter and, facetiously, to describe his demeanor as a player and manager...
(Galician grandparents) current manager of the Chicago CubsThe Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the Central Division of Major League Baseball's National League. They are one of two Major League clubs based in Chicago , the Cubs are also one of the two remaining charter members of the...
and former Major League BaseballMajor League Baseball is the highest level of play in North American professional baseball. Specifically, Major League Baseball refers to the organization that operates the National League and the American League, by means of a joint organizational structure that has developed gradually between...
outfielderOutfielder is a generic term applied to each of the people playing in the three defensive positions in baseball farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder...
- Francisco Franco
Francisco Franco Bahamonde, commonly known as Francisco Franco , or simply Franco, was a military general and dictator of Spain from October 1936, and de facto regent of the nominally restored Kingdom of Spain from 1947 until his death in 1975...
was the leader and later formal head of state of Spain from October 1936, and of all of Spain from 1939 until his death in 1975.
- Tabaré Vázquez
Tabaré Ramón Vázquez Rosas is the current President of Uruguay. A physician by training, he is a member of the centre-left Broad Front coalition...
(of Galician ancestry) president of UruguayUruguay , is a country located in the southeastern part of South America. It is home to 3.46 million people, of whom 1.1 million live in the capital Montevideo and its metropolitan area. An estimated 88–94% of the population are of mostly European and/or mixed descent.Uruguay's only land border is...
- Carlos Nuñez
Carlos Núñez is a Galician musician who plays the gaita, the traditional Galician bagpipe.Nuñez was born in 1971 in the city of Vigo and began playing the bagpipes when he was eight years old. In his early teens, he was invited to play with the Festival Orchestra of the Festival Interceltique de...
musician and bagpiper
- Luz Casal
Luz Casal Luz Casal Luz Casal (born November 11, 1958 at Boimorto, is a Spanish pop singer. She grew up in neighbouring Asturias, took singing, piano and ballet classes, and moved to Madrid to pursue a career as a musician....
singer
- Julio Alcazar Actor
- Iván Ferreiro
Iván Ferreiro is a Spanish singer-songwriter born in Vigo, Galicia. He was the voice, leader and composer of the popular pop-rock band Los Piratas....
singer
- Gonzalo de Vigo first European castaway
A castaway is a person who is cast adrift or ashore. While the situation usually happens after a shipwreck, some people voluntarily stay behind on a deserted island either to evade their captors or the world in general. Alternatively a person or item can be cast away, meaning rejected or discarded...
in the history of the Pacific OceanThe Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. Its name is derived from the Latin name Tepre Pacificum, "peaceful sea", bestowed upon it by the Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan. It extends from the Arctic in the north to Antarctica in the south, bounded by Asia and...
- Carlos Leal
Carlos Leal is a Swiss rapper and actor.Leal was born in Lausanne to Galician immigrants. In 1990, he co-founded Sens Unik. The group produced four gold records and contributed music to the films La Haine and Neutre ....
Swiss rapper and actor born to Galician immigrants
- Xoel López singer
- La Belle Otero
Carolina Otero, La Belle Otero born Agustina Otero Iglesias was a Spanish born dancer, actress and courtesan.- Early life and career :...
dancer, actress and courtesanA courtesan was originally a woman courtier, which means a person who attends the court of a monarch or other powerful person. In feudal society, the court was the centre of government as well as the residence of the monarch, and social and political life were often completely mixed together...
- Patricio Montojo
Admiral Patricio Montojo y Pasarón was a career Spanish naval officer most known for his defeat at the Battle of Manila Bay by Admiral George Dewey, a decisive battle of the Spanish-American War....
naval commander at the Battle of Manila Bay
- Mendinho
Mendinho, also Meendinho, Mendiño and Meendiño, was a medieval Iberian poet.Nothing is known about Mendinho except by inference. Scholars generally assume from the reference to the shrine of San Simión that he was Galician...
was a medieval troubadourA troubadour was a composer and performer of Occitan lyric poetry during the High Middle Ages . Since the word "troubadour" is etymologically masculine, a female troubadour is usually called a trobairitz....
from the 13th century
- Manuel Fraga Iribarne
Manuel Fraga e Iribarne is a Spanish politician from the northwest region of Galicia. Fraga's career as one of the key political figures in Spain straddles both General Francisco Franco's dictatorial regime and the subsequent democracy. He was the President of Galicia from 1990 to 2005 and is...
President of the Galician Parliament from 1990 until 2005
- Benito Jerónimo Feijoo e Montenegro
Benito Jerónimo Feijóo y Montenegro was a Spanish monk and scholar noted for encouraging scientific and empirical thought in an effort to debunk myths and superstitions....
neoclassical monkA monk is a person who practices religious asceticism, living either alone or with any number of monks, whilst always maintaining some degree of physical separation from those not sharing the same purpose...
and scholar noted for encouraging scientific thought in Galicia and Spain.
- Ines de Castro
Inês Pérez de Castro was a Galician noblewoman, daughter of Pedro Fernandez de Castro. She is best known as lover and posthumously declared lawful wife of King Peter I of Portugal, and therefore Queen of Portugal.Inês came to Portugal in 1340 as a maid of Infanta Constance of Castile, recently...
noble woman declared QueenA queen consort is the wife of a reigning king. A queen consort usually shares her husband's rank and holds the feminine equivalent of the king's monarchical titles...
of Portugal posthumously
- Adolfo Dominguez
Adolfo Domínguez is a Spanish fashion designer.- Early life and education :He was born May 14 1950 in Ourense, Galicia in northern Spain. He studied design and cinematography in Paris, with further studies in London, England.- Fashion business :...
fashion designer
- Kina Fernández fashion designer
- Rosalia Mera
Rosalía Mera Goyenechea, , is one of the richest people in the world. She began designing gowns and lingerie in her home with her then-husband, Amancio Ortega Gaona. The couple parlayed their work into a multi-billion-dollar corporation, Inditex, and the Zara line of clothing stores...
coofounder of the Inditex Group
- Natalia Oreiro
Natalia Marisa Oreiro Iglesias is a Latin Grammy-nominated Uruguayan singer and actress of Galician origin, who developed most of her career in Argentina.- Biography :...
singer
- Amancio Ortega fashion
Fashion is the style and custom prevalent at a given time. In its most common usage however, "fashion" describes the popular clothing style. Many fashions are popular in many cultures at any given time. Important is the idea that the course of design and fashion will change more rapidly than the...
entrepreneurAn entrepreneur is a person who has possession of an enterprise, or venture, and assumes significant accountability for the inherent risks and the outcome. It is an ambitious leader who combines land, labor, and capital to often create and market new goods or services. ... The term is a loanword...
, Spain's richest man and in 2007 the 8th richest man in the world (Forbes) and the founder, with his then-wife Rosalia MeraRosalía Mera Goyenechea, , is one of the richest people in the world. She began designing gowns and lingerie in her home with her then-husband, Amancio Ortega Gaona. The couple parlayed their work into a multi-billion-dollar corporation, Inditex, and the Zara line of clothing stores...
, and chairman of the Inditex Group
- Cristina Pato
Cristina Pato is a bagpiper and pianist.The first female Galician bagpiper who recorded a solo CD in Spain, she has released three CDs as a solo bagpiper and collaborated in international tours with bands such as The Chieftains, Hevia, Royal Pipe Band, Tenerife Symphony Orchestra, Galicia Symphony...
bagpiper
- Antonio Pernas fashion designer
- Anxo Quintana
Anxo Manuel Quintana González, commonly known as Anxo Quintana, is the current leader of the Galician Nationalist Bloc , the main nationalist party in Galicia. At present, he is a partner in the Galician Government, holding the positions of and Minister for Social Affairs.Quintana was born in...
politician, current leader of the Galician Nationalist Block (Bloque Nacionalista Galego), the main Galician Nationalist party
- Rodrigo de Quiroga
Rodrigo de Quiroga López de Ulloa was a Spanish conquistador of Galician origin. He was twice the Royal Governor of Chile.-Early life:...
conquistador, he was twice the Royal Governor of ChileThe Royal Governor of Chile ruled over the Spanish colonial administrative district known as the Kingdom of Chile. This district was also called the Captaincy General of Chile, and as a result the Royal Governor also held the title of a Captain General...
.
- Mariano Rajoy Brey politician
- Juan Camilo Mouriño
Juan Camilo Mouriño Terrazo was a Mexican politician affiliated to the National Action Party and the Secretary of the Interior in the cabinet of President Felipe Calderón...
politician
- Paulina Rubio
Paulina Rubio Dosamantes is a nominated Grammy and Latin Grammy and 6 time winner of Billboard Latin Music Awards Mexican singer and actress. Known as "The Golden Girl" and "Queen of Latin Pop"...
(father from A CoruñaA Coruña is the second largest city in Galicia in northwestern Spain, second only in size to the port of Vigo in Pontevedra Province. The city is the capital of A Coruña Province...
)
- Marta Sánchez
Marta Sánchez is a Spanish female vocalist. She was born on May 8, 1966 in Madrid. Her father, Antonio Sánchez Camporro, was a Galician opera singer.- Biography :...
(both parents from A CoruñaA Coruña is the second largest city in Galicia in northwestern Spain, second only in size to the port of Vigo in Pontevedra Province. The city is the capital of A Coruña Province...
) singer
- Pedro Sarmiento de Gamboa
Pedro Sarmiento de Gamboa was a Spanish explorer, author, historian, astronomer, scientist, and humanist. His birthplace is not certain and may have been Pontevedra, in Galicia, where his paternal family originated or Alcalá de Henares in Castile, where he later is known to have studied...
Explorer
- Susana Seivane
Susana Seivane is a Galician gaita player. She was born in Barcelona, Spain in 1976 in a family of well known Galician luthiers and musicians. Her father and grandfather, accomplished Galician bagpipers, taught her to play...
bagpiper
- Ramón Gerardo Antonio Estévez (mostly known as Martin Sheen
Ramón Estévez, better known by his stage name Martin Sheen, is an actor best known for his performances as Captain Willard in the film Apocalypse Now and President Josiah Bartlet on the television series The West Wing...
) (father from Parderrubias,Salceda de CaselasSalceda de Caselas is a municipality in Galicia, Spain in the province of Pontevedra. It is bordered to the north by the municipality of Ponteareas, to the west by the municipality of Salvatera de Miño, to the east by the municipality of Tui, and to the south by Porriño.Francisco Estévez, father...
) actor
And the four children of Martin Sheen:
- Carlos Irwin Estévez (mostly known as Charlie Sheen
Carlos Irwin Estévez , better known as Charlie Sheen, is an American actor. His character roles in films have included Chris Taylor in the 1986 Vietnam War Drama Platoon and Bud Fox in 1987 film Wall Street. His career also made room for more comedic roles, including Major League, the Hot Shots!...
) actor
- Emilio Estevez
Emilio Estevez is an American actor, film director, poet, and writer. He started his career as an actor and is famous for being a member of the acting Brat Pack of the 1980s, appearing in The Breakfast Club and St. Elmo's Fire...
actor
- Ramon Estevez
Ramón Luis "Ray" Estévez, Ramón Luis "Ray" Estévez, Ramón Luis "Ray" Estévez, (born August 7, 1963, New York City, sometimes billed as Ramón Estévez or Ramon Sheen is an American actor.-Career:...
actor
- Renée Estevez
-Early years:Estevez was born in New York City, New York, the daughter of artist Janet and actor Martin Sheen. Her three brothers are also actors: Emilio Estevez, Ramon Estevez, Jr and Charlie Sheen. Her husband, Jason Thomas Federico, is a professional golfer. They have been married since 1997...
actor
- Luis Tosar
Luis Tosar is a Galician actor, known internationally for his villain role in Miami Vice.-Selected Filmography:*2009 The Limits of Control by Jim Jarmusch*2008 La noche que dejó de llover by Alfonso Zarauza....
actor
- Luis Váez de Torres
Luis Váez de Torres , also Luís Vaz de Torres in the Portuguese spelling, was a 16th-17th century maritime explorer serving the Spanish Crown, noted for the first recorded navigation of the strait which separates the continent of Australia from the island of New Guinea, and which now bears his name...
Explorer
- Xoán Vázquez Del Pozo Businessman
- Paula Vázquez actress
- Jesús Vázquez actor
- Roberto Verino fashion designer
- Adolfo Suárez González (his father an grandfather are from A Coruña) Spain's first democratically elected prime minister after the dictatorship of Francisco Franco
- Maria Pita
María Mayor Fernández de Cámara y Pita , known as María Pita, was a heroine of the defense of A Coruña in 1589 against the English Armada....
soldier
- Jose Ortega y Gasset (part Galician, part Castilian) philosopher
See also
- Galician language
Galician is a language of the Western Ibero-Romance branch, spoken in Galicia, an autonomous community located in northwestern Spain, as well as in small bordering zones in the neighbouring autonomous communities of Asturias and Castile and León and in Northern Portugal.Galician and Portuguese...
- Galicia (Spain)
- Celtic Gallaecia
- The Gaedels arrive in Iberia :Following the Leabhar Gabhala, from Egypt and after a brief scale again in Scythia, the Gaedels reached Iberia which they took by “force of the arms”...
- Celtic Nations
Celtic nations is a term used to describe territories in North-West Europe in which that area's own Celtic languages and cultural traits have largely survived...
- History of Galicia
The Iberian Peninsula has been inhabited for at least 500,000 years, first by Neanderthals and then by modern humans.-Megalithic culture:Galicia, northern Portugal, Asturias, western León, and Zamora formed a single megalithic area since the Neolithic and Chalcolithic Ages, around 4500 - 1500...
- Timeline of Galician History
-Paleolithic:*200th millennium BC – In the Paleolithic period the Neanderthal Man enters the Iberian peninsula.*70th millennium BC**Neanderthal Mousterian culture.**Beginning of the Last Ice Age.*40th millennium BC**Beginning of the Upper Paleolithic....
- Galician nationalism
Galician nationalism is a political movement claiming for the recognition of Galicia as a nation. The political movement referred to as modern Galician nationalism was born in the beginnings of the twentieth century from the idea of Galicianism....
- The Way of St James
- Santiago de Compostela
Santiago de Compostela is the capital of the autonomous community of Galicia and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Located in the north west of Spain in the Province of A Coruña, it was a "European City of Culture" for the year 2000...
- Fillos de Galicia
Fillos de Galicia is a web portal and virtual community which focuses on Galician culture and diaspora. The site focuses on promoting unity between Galicians and descendants of Galicians around the world. The community is a hub where many objectives can be accomplished, such as learning more...
- Nationalities of Spain
Nationalities of Spain can refer to:*A Spanish constitutional designation of certain subnational political entities *Some of the spaniards, who can be said to be of various nationalities...
- Spanish people
Spanish people or Spaniards constitute the nationality and ethnic group of natives of Spain, a European country in the Iberian Peninsula, in southwestern Europe. The Spanish nationality is in essence made up of regional nationalities, reflecting the complex history of Spain...
- Wikipedia:WikiProject Galicia
External links
Online references