General Info Catalonia, Spain

(Spanish Cataluña), autonomous region in northeastern Spain, comprising the provinces of Barcelona, Gerona, Lérida, and Tarragona. The shape of an inverted triangle, Catalonia is bounded on the north by the Pyrenees Mountains, on the west by the region of Aragón, and on the east by the Mediterranean Sea. It is bisected by the Sierra de la Llena mountain range, which extends from the southwest to the northeast. Most of the territory is wooded and contains few meadows and little pastureland. Among the principal rivers are the Ebro, the Llobregat, and the Ter, which drain into the Mediterranean. Major cities include the ports of Tarragona and Barcelona, the region's capital.

Catalonia is one of the most prosperous regions of Spain. Corn, wheat, rye, flax, and licorice are cultivated; pigs, goats, and sheep are raised; and almonds, chestnuts, walnuts, figs, oranges, and grapes are grown in Catalonia. Among the main industries are fishing, wine making, the manufacture of cotton textiles, and potash mining.

Catalonia was an early possession of the Romans, who lost it to the Goths and Alans about 470 BC. The Moors conquered the region in AD 712, but were expelled 76 years later by Spaniards allied with Charlemagne. Frankish counts subsequently ruled Catalonia and made it an independent domain. In 1137 it was united with the kingdom of Aragón and later was included in the kingdom of Spain. The French held it as a possession from 1640 to 1659, from 1694 to 1697, and again from 1808 to 1813.

French influence in Catalonia contributed to the development of a distinct Catalan culture. In the 19th century a movement for cultural and governmental autonomy developed in Catalonia. In 1932, following the overthrow of King Alfonso XIII in the Spanish revolution of 1930 and 1931, Catalonia was granted the right to have its own president and parliament, within the framework of the Spanish republic. In the Spanish Civil War (1936-1939), Catalonia supported the Republican cause against the counterrevolution led by General Francisco Franco. Franco was victorious, and under his regime (1939-1975) the autonomy of Catalonia was ended. In 1977, however, the Spanish government granted the Catalan provinces limited autonomy and permitted the reestablishment of the Generalitat, Catalonia's historical governing body, both legislature and executive council; its members are elected for four-year terms.

Area, 31,930 sq km (12,328 sq mi); population (1991) 6,059,454.[1]

Barcelona

Barcelona is a northern city of the South - that is to say, it is progressive, industrial, middle-class and European, while at the same time being traditionalist, popular, typically Mediterranean and having a pleasant climate. This dichotomy between tradition and progress is a characteristic of both the city and it's nearly two million inhabitants.

B arcelona stands on a plain that slopes gently down from the Sierra de Collserola (with it highest mountain, Mount Tibidabo,at 512m) to the sea. The City's civic and political centre is situated in the square known as Plaça de Sant Jaume, where the palaces of the Generalitat and the Town Hall stand. The management of the city is under the control of this latter, all-powerful institution.

The other palace, ie. of the Generalitat, is the seat of the government of the Catalan Autonomous Community. At present, Catalonia has about 6 million inhabitants. It started life as a ´march´ at the time of Charlemagne (9C), when this area came out of its long prehistoric past of Iberian tribes, colonisation by the Phoenicians and Greek, Roman domination, the invasion of the Goths, and finally the Arabs, who were the reason why the Franks decided to set up a border-defence area. As a result, a new country was born on both sides of the eastern sector of the Pyrenees. With the passing of time, and thanks to Barcelona, this country, composed of different counties, became first independent and then, following the union of Catalonia and Aragon, became a kingdom with Barcelona as its capital. Towards the end of the 15C, Catalonia and Aragon joined up with the kingdom of Castile and, at the beginning of the 18C, were absorbed under the Spain of the bourbons, thus losing their independence. It was at this time when Barcelona, thanks to its commercial and manufacturing drive, became the most modern city in the country. Its independent past and modernity were to determine, from that moment onwards, the ambiguous character of this Mediterranean city.

B arcelona contains monuments and remains from all the different stages in its history, and therefore is a very old city with a rich and varied past. All this comes to light in many ways. For example, in its traditionalism. This is expressed in religion - Christian in character but with strong pagan overtones; in society, with very deep-rooted direct relationships, great importance given to the family and with some imaginative and clever individuals; in the economy, with small and efficient companies; in popular festivities that are maintained with both naturalness and fervour; in the Catalan language, which has still been conserved despite constant pressure from the Spanish language; and in the gastronomy, as well as other areas of popular or minority culture. Nevertheless, Barcelona has almost always held its modern image, mainly because it has kept its traditions. This could be seen in the Middle Ages with French-Style feudalism in Catalonia and a very strong feeling of a free city in Barcelona; in the early dedication to commerce and the manufacture of textiles in the 14C; in the industrialisation at the beginning of the 19C; in the great movement dedicated to cultural and political recovery in the latter part of the last century (the so-called Renaixença), which was then followed by the equally important and powerful "modernisme" or Modernism period in Catalonia, along with several other ultra-modern movements in the 20C. The writer Vargas Llosa said that there was no other city in the world as "snobbish" as Barcelona, except for Milan. The search for and capture of what is "new" is characteristic of one sector of the population and slowly spreads to the rest. It is no wonder, therefore, that some people have spoken of "schizophrenia" caused by the dichotomy between what is traditional and what is new.

A t the moment, Barcelona is a "closed" city. That is, it cannot and does not want to grow any more, and so, as result, its streets and buildings are now undergoing a restoration period, and it is trying to improve its services and living conditions in an attempt to substitute quantity for quality. Its newly restored squares are already drawing the attention of the rest of the world, and during the summer months there are all kinds of sporting, commercial and cultural event being held in ever-increasing numbers where previously there was nothing.