The Nation's Party Is Cancelled

Tomorrow is a national holiday. Take note. National. Whole of Spain. There is no national holiday more national than tomorrow as it is the Día de la Hispanidad - day of Spanishness, or Hispanicity if you prefer; the Spanish national day that coincides with (took its lead from in fact) the discovery of an island in the Bahamas by an Italian, though some would argue that Columbus wasn't Italian but was in fact Mallorcan. Or Ibizan. Or whatever.

In Catalonia they get a day off like the rest of the population. Will the two million or however many it was who demonstrated recently in favour of independence be putting their feet up? Possibly, though there will doubtless be some who are out on the streets to make their feelings known again. It won't be anything new. Five years ago there was a demonstration at which it was claimed that the Catalan lands (so not just Catalonia) were the last colony of the Spanish monarchy. Also five years ago a vox pop by "Ultima Hora" asked Mallorcans what the day meant to them. One chap said that it was of no consequence except for the fact that he didn't have to work. Chances are that he doesn't have any work to go to now anyway. 

This year's Spanishness day should really have been cancelled. It's not as if there is a great deal to celebrate, but the tourism industry would have been up in arms if it had been. Falling on a Friday, it makes a nice little "puente" for long weekends to be flogged, assuming anyone's buying. And of course there are other places that go in for Spanishness day; a total of 27 countries get in on the act, says one source. Being exact is slightly difficult, as the day goes under various titles. Even in Spain it has different meanings - the day of the armed forces, las fiestas del Pilar, and Fiesta Nacional de España. In fact this latter title is what the day officially is - a law of 1987 says so - but Hispanidad has not been forgotten.

It's a curious old thing when you think about it; the way that national days have come about. The Spanish have a day thanks to an Italian, while the Catalonians have a separate day as well, one which commemorates their being on the receiving end of a thorough hiding by nasty old Philip V. Even more curious is that there all these Hispanic sorts across the globe engaged in celebrating something connected with an old empire. The British would never get away with a Britishness day in far-flung former colonies. There is still Commonwealth Day which replaced Empire Day, itself a late Victorian invention by a Canadian, but no one takes any notice.

So, given the global reach of Spanishness, 12 October couldn't just be sidelined for a year, despite the motherland being in an almighty great pickle. In acts of historical fraternity, perhaps the old colonies should start sending food parcels. The Cruz Roja (Red Cross) would be only too happy to dole them out; it has launched, the first time it has ever done this, a campaign to help Spanish families in need. Yep, this year's national fiesta, this year's national party, will only be a party if Red Cross parcels are left on doorsteps.

I wonder what we Brits make of this Spanishness or Hispanicity. It is more than likely that we make precisely nothing of it, but if I were to ask for definitions, what would they be? Above all, one supposes, there is the language, but which one? The Catalonians wouldn't go along with Castellano and nor would those from various other regions. A one-time empire, the Armada and all that? It's probably best to gloss over the latter for fear of bringing up reminders of Drake cruising into Cádiz and giving the Armada a Philip V-sized hammering.

I suspect the answers would be less grand. Xavi would probably make a British list, except of course he is from Catalonia. Julio Iglesias and the boy Enrique? Maybe. Paella and tapas definitely. Bullfighting definitely but hardly popular with the average Brit, except those with their old El Cordobés posters. Miniature donkeys with straw hats? Sombreros? Sylvia and "Y Viva España"? (And Sylvia wasn't even Spanish and nor were the songwriters.)

Other than these cultural symbols, there are the daily bulletins from the Euroland intensive care unit. It is this, I'm sorry to have to say, which is how most Brits and the rest of the world will think of Spanishness in 2012. National fiesta, national party? I'm gonna party like it's ... If only it were still 1999.


Any comments to andrew@thealcudiaguide.com please.