CULTURE
The most important differences
stem from the fact that Arabic-speaking Muslims from the Middle
East and North Africa invaded Spain in AD 711 and dominated much
of the country during almost 800 years. The Muslim cultural influence
was very strong, especially in the area of language; the Spanish
language has taken more words from Arabic than from any other
source except Latin. Through contact with the Muslims, Christian
Europe was able to recover much of the cultural and intellectual
heritage of classical antiquity. It also gained access to many
scientific advances made by the Muslims. Spain's cultural mix
became even richer during the Middle Ages because of the presence
of a large and influential Jewish population. Medieval Spain witnessed
one of the periods of greatest cultural achievement in Jewish
history.
Spanish culture must stress
the tremendous importance of religion in the history of the country
and in the life of the individual. An index of the influence of
Roman Catholicism is provided by the fervent mystical element
in the art and literature of Spain, the impressive list of its
saints, and the large number of religious congregations and orders.
The Catholic marriage is the basis of the family, which in turn
is the foundation of Spanish society. Fiestas (festivals) are
an outstanding feature of Spanish life. They usually begin with
a high mass followed by a solemn procession in which venerated
images are carried on the shoulders of the participants. Music,
dancing, poetry, and singing often enliven these colorful occasions.
The fiesta at Valencia, the April fair in Seville, and the San
Fermín fiesta at Pamplona are several of the more important
ones. In contrast, the feast of Corpus Christi in Toledo and Granada
and the Holy Week observances in Valladolid, Zamora, and Cuenca
are solemn affairs. The bullfight, so important a part of Spanish
.
modern periods Spain's culture
was fairly homogeneous. The one significant exception was the
presence and persistence of languages other than Spanish in some
parts of the country. Two of these, Catalan and Gallego, have
been vehicles of significant literary traditions during the Middle
Ages. From the 16th century on they lost ground to Castilian and
increasingly became limited to everyday use, especially among
the peasantry. This had always been the case with the third language,
Euskera, which never had a literary tradition. Beginning in the
19th century, all three languages enjoyed a revival. In the 20th
century the Franco regime prohibited the public use of languages
other than Spanish; but this did not lead to their disappearance.
Indeed, the use of these languages, both in daily life and in
high culture, increased greatly when they became the official
languages in the autonomous regions established under the Constitution
of 1978. As noted above, they are now taught in the schools as
well as used in the press and on television and radio.
