How many public holidays does Spain have?

Today is a public holiday in Madrid. (Or as my British friends say, a 'bank' holiday.)

It's Father's Day and Saint Joseph's Day. (Or as my Spanish neighbors say, Día del Padre / Día de San Jose.)

This is a regional holiday, not a national one.

A family member back in Louisiana commented recently that Spain sure had a lot more holidays than the USA. It seemed that way to me, too, so I thought I'd tally them up and compare. Well, it turns out that this year there are 10 federal holidays in the USA, but only 8 national holidays in Spain.

Still, that doesn't quite tell the whole story.

First of all, here are the US federal holidays for 2015:

Thursday, January 1	New Year’s Day
Monday, January 19	Birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Monday, February 16	George Washington’s Birthday / Presidents' Day
Monday, May 25	Memorial Day
Saturday, July 4	Independence Day (Observed on Friday, July 3 this year)
Monday, September 7	Labor Day (Always on the first Monday in September)
Monday, October 12	Columbus Day
Wednesday, November 11	Veterans Day
Thursday, November 26	Thanksgiving Day (Always on the 4th Thursday of November)
Friday, December 25	Christmas Day

Now here is the list of national holidays in Spain for 2015:

Thursday, January 1	New Year’s Day
Tuesday, January 6	Kings Day / Epiphany
Friday, April 3	Good Friday
Friday, May1	Labor Day
Saturday, August 15	Assumption of Mother Mary
Monday, October 12	Spanish National Day
Tuesday, December 8	The Day of the Immaculate Conception
Friday, December 25	Christmas Day

Notice that because the USA's July 4th holiday falls on a Saturday this year, it will be observed on Friday July 3rd, but that in Spain there is no such compensation for the holiday that falls on Saturday August 15th. This is because Spain actually considers Saturday a work day. Thus, people like me who work Monday through Friday won't get that holiday off this year.

This year we in Spain are also missing a holiday that falls on a Sunday: Constitution Day, December 6th. When a holiday falls on a Sunday, the Spanish sometimes do what the Yanks do, and observe the holiday on the subsequent Monday. Although Spain is not doing that with this year's Constitution Day, some of the country's Regions have come to the rescue and christened the Monday a holiday. 

Therefore, it looks like the USA actually has more public holidays than Spain – especially when you consider that in the USA both Saturday and Sunday holidays are always compensated for.

Wait, though—there is another factor to consider. Each of Spain's 17 Regions have their own holidays. For example, there are four Regional holidays for the Community of Madrid this year:

Thursday March 19 - Saint Joseph's Day
Thursday April 2 - Holy Thursday
Saturday May 2 - Community of Madrid Day
Thursday June 4 - Corpus Christi Day

And the other Regions are just as  generous, with almost all having four other public holidays falling Monday through Friday. (Only the Canary Islands Region has fewer: three.) In fact, this year several of the Regions have elected to give their citizens back the Constitution Day some in Spain are missing by observing it on the Monday. (Scroll down below for a list of all the Regional holidays in Spain.)

Now back in the USSA, many states also observe their own holidays, but most have only one or two of these. Nevertheless, only two of the 50 states seem to have matched the Spanish regional norm of four: Indiana, which observes Good Friday, Primary Election Day, General Election Day and Lincoln's Birthday and North Carolina, with Good Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve and the day after Christmas.

So, if we consider the fact that added to the 8 (usually 9) national holidays there are four regional holidays almost everywhere in the country, it looks like overall Spain pulls ahead on the total number per year.

Then we can throw city and town holidays into the mix. In Spain most of these have multiple local holidays and even small towns and villages often have one or two. For example, in the City of Madrid there are 3 in 2015:

Friday, May 15 - Saint Isidro Day (Patron Saint of the City)
Wednesday, September 9 - Santa Maria de la Cabeza Day (Saint Isidro's wife)
Monday, November 9 - The Virgin of Almudena Day - (Patroness of the City)

Barcelona has two:

June 1 - Saint John's Night
September 24 - Día de la Merced

Valencia also has two:

January 22 - Saint Vincent The Martyr's Day
April 13 - Saint Vincent Ferrer's Day

And Seville has two, too:

Wednesday April 22- Wednesday of the Spring Fair (Replaces the usual May 30th Saint Fernando holiday, which falls on a Saturday this year)
Thursday June 4 - Corpus Christi Day

Now, I don't know of too many American cities that have two or three local public holidays.

Conclusion: I think we can safely say that, yes, Spain does have more public / bank holidays than the United States.

Or to put it in sports terms: Spain 14, USA 10.

Happy holidays!

Carlos

Here are the 2015 public holidays in Spain's Autonomous Regions.
Andalusia
February 28th: Andalusia Day
April 2nd: Holy Thursday
November 2nd: Monday after All Saints Day
December 7th: Monday after Constitution Day
Aragon
April 2nd: Holy Thursday
April 23rd: Saint George’s Day
November 2nd: Monday after All Saints Day
December 7th: Monday after Constitution Day
Asturias
April 2nd: Holy Thursday
September 8th: Asturian Regional Day
November 2nd: Monday after All Saints Day
December 7th: Monday after Constitution Day
Balearic Islands
April 2nd: Holy Thursday
April 6th: Easter Monday
November 2nd: Monday after All Saints Day
December 7th: Monday after Constitution Day
Basque Country
March 19th: Saint Joseph
April 2nd: Holy Thursday
April 6th: Easter Monday
July 25th: Saint James
Canary Islands (Only 3 holidays regional holidays in the Canaries!) 
April 2nd: Holy Thursday
May 30th: Canary Islands Day
November 2nd: Monday after All Saints Day
Cantabria
April 2nd: Holy Thursday
April 6th: Easter Monday
September 15th: Patron Saint of Cantabria (Virgen de la Bien Aparecida)
November 2nd: Monday after All Saints Day
Castilla-La Mancha
April 2nd: Holy Thursday
April 6th: Easter Monday
June 4th: Corpus Christi
December 7th: Monday after Constitution Day
Castilla y León
April 2nd: Holy Thursday
April 23rd: Castile and León Day
November 2nd: Monday after All Saints Day
December 7th: Monday after Constitution Day
Cataluña
April 6th: Easter Monday
June 24th: Saint John's Day
September 11th: The Diada, Catalonia Regional Day
December 26th: Saint Stephen's Day
Ceuta
April 2nd: Holy Thursday
September 25th: Festival of Abraham’s Sacrifice
November 2nd: Monday after All Saints Day
December 7th: Monday after Constitution Day
Extremadura
April 2nd: Holy Thursday
September 8th: Extremadura Regional Day
November 2nd: Monday after All Saints Day
December 7th: Monday after Constitution Day
Galicia
March 20th: Day after Saint Joseph's Day
April 2nd: Holy Thursday
July 25th: Saint James, Galician Regional Day
November 2nd: Monday after All Saints Day
La Rioja
April 2nd: Holy Thursday
April 6th: Easter Monday
June 9th: La Rioja Regional Day
December 7th: Monday after Constitution Day
Comunidad de Madrid
March 19th: Saint Joseph's Day
April 2nd: Holy Thursday
May 2nd: Community of Madrid Day
June 4th: Corpus Christi Day
Melilla
March 19th: Saint Joseph's Day
April 2nd: Holy Thursday
September 25th: Festival of Abraham’s Sacrifice
December 7th: Monday after Constitution Day
Murcia
March 19th: Saint Joseph's Day
April 2nd: Holy Thursday
June 9th: Murcia Regional Day
December 7th: Monday after Constitution Day
Navarre
March 19th: Saint Joseph's Day
April 2nd: Holy Thursday
April 6th: Easter Monday
July 25th: Saint James
Valencia
March 19th: Saint Joseph's Day
April 6th: Easter Monday
October 9th: Valencian Regional Day
December 7th: Monday after Constitution Day

Newsvine Articles & Posts re: Spain on Newsvine, April-June 2014

Two articles:
Spain's lonely King says: 'I don't want my son to wither away waiting like Prince Charles'

Dancing in the streets to celebrate Second Easter in Barcelona

Two posts:
Madrid college dorm bans men from using washing machines, expects females to do it for them

Group sues Spain over decision to give country's top policing award to a statue of Virgin Mary

The Spanish Constitution is 30 years old

It's a typical Constitution Day - Immaculate Conception "puente" (long weekend) here in Spain -- lovely weather, Christmas decorations everywhere, people milling about, restaurants packed with diners, politicians talking nonsense, etc.

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On this 30th anniversary of Spain's Constitution, opposition leader Mariano Rajoy has accused Prime Minister Jose Rodrigo Zapatero of destabilizing Spain. In case anyone might think he was mincing words, he threw in terms like irresponsible, frivolous and disturbing.

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Rajoy has assured everyone, however, that he did not want to cast a shadow over the country's celebrations. I suppose he simply wanted to get as much press coverage as possible -- which he seems to have done, as he's right up there on most front pages, along with reports on the Royal family's plans for today and Zapatero's revelation that in his opinion the Spanish Constitution, "has been, is and will be useful."

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I'm not sure if Z's remark was an example of faint praise or faint oratorical skill.

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We can only hope that no politicians will feel a need to comment on the Immaculate Conception.

Chao amig@s,

Carloz

Saints above, party in the street!

Today is a public holiday in Madrid, as well as a day of festivities in a few other places in Spain. What's it all about?
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Well, it's all supposed to be in honor of Saint Isidore the Laborer or San Isidro el Labrador. Saint Isidore (born in 1070, died on 15 May 1130) was a native of Madrid who became the patron saint of the peasants and laborers. According to legend, he was a poor peasant farmer, who along with his wife Maria (also a saint - Santa María de la Cabeza), was so generous that they shared the little they had with others. Today Saint Isidore is the patron saint of Madrid, as well as of other locations in Spain and around the world.
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Although the 15th is the official holiday, in Madrid the partying starts the Friday before that date and lasts until the the following Sunday when cookouts serving traditional Madrid stew (cocido Madrileño) are held around the region. While most events take place in or near downtown Madrid, all of the Autonomous Region known as The Community of Madrid ("Communidad de Madrid") observes the holiday. So, suburbs, neighboring towns and even small villages have their own special events.
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Back in the city, probably one of the most traditional parts of the of the observance is the pilgrimage to the hermitage erected in the saint's honor in Saint Isidore's Meadow (La pradera de San Isidro) on the banks of the Río Manzanares River. In Plaza de las Vistillas the saint's statue is paraded around while Madrileños wear traditional costumes, enjoy picnics and drink from the plaza's fountain. At night concerts are held there. Plaza Mayor in the city center probably sees the most action, with nightly concerts and one of the biggest cocido cookouts. Another big event is the series of bullfights held at Madrid's iconic Las Ventas bullring. Of course there are many other events all week long: parades, exhibitions, street fairs, and a wide variety of musical performances -- from opera to flamenco pop to Hip-Hop; from local bands to international stars.
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Although only an official holiday in Madrid sine 1947, a picture Goya painted in 1778, La pradera de San Isidro, attests to the importance of this event in the city's past.
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Places outside the Community of Madrid that have events honoring San Isidro as their Patron Saint include:
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Tenerife, Canary Islands
Yecla, Murcia Province
Castalla, Alicante Province
Dueñas, Palencia Province
Medina de Pomar, Burgos Province
Alameda, Estepona and Nerja, Málaga Province
Bujalance and Cañete de las Torres, Córdoba Province
Alcadozo, Cenizate and Zulema, Albacete Province
Mazcuerras, Cantabria
Paterna del Campo, Huelva Province
Cañada Juncosa, Cuenca Province
Santa María del Páramo, León Province
Huétor-Tájar , Granada Province
La Lastrilla, Segovia Province
Villasequilla, ToledoProvince
Torreorgaz, Cáceres Province
and, of course, in the town of San Isidro, Almería Province.
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Chao amig@s,
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Carloz

Dancing in the Street at Second Easter Time

Today is a public holiday in Barcelona – Lunes de Pascua Granada, which literally translates as something like, “Fructifying Easter Monday.” However, it is commonly called Lunes de Segunda Pascua, which is more easily translated into, "Second Easter Monday." In the English speaking world it's known as the day after Pentecost, or Whit Monday. Aside from Barcelona, this day is observed as a holiday in a few other parts of Spain, such as Valencia and the Basque Country, as well as in several European countries, including Belgium, Denmark, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland and parts of Austria, Germany, Hungary and Switzerland...

To read more, go to the updated post here. 

A one, two punch – May 1st and 2nd

May 1st is Labor Day in Spain and much of the world. May 2nd is the anniversary of the beginning of what Spaniards call the "Guerra de la Independencia española." (This translates as the "Spanish War of Independence" but in the English speaking world it is more commonly referred to as the Peninsular War.) While not an official national holiday, it is in certain communities (most significantly the Community of Madrid) and is an unofficial holiday everywhere else. While some people view these dates as simply another chance for a “puente” (literally, “bridge”; figuratively, “long weekend”), others take one or both of these days very seriously.

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First things first : May 1st is a bank holiday in Spain known as el Día del Trabador/a, or Workers Day. Here it is usually translated into English as Labour Day. (This is Europe, so British spelling is more commonly used.) Globally it is also known as International Workers' Day.

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Several times during my time in Spain I have used the history of this holiday, and the fact that "Labor Day" is not celebrated on the same date in the USA, as a basis for English lessons. (Lessons based on historical events provide opportunities for past tense usage, vocabulary building and conversation skills practice.) Students are usually surprised to learn that one of their country's holidays actually has its roots in events that took place in Chicago, Illinois -- and that this connection is not well known in the USA either. Below is a brief history:

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In 1886 the American Federation of Labor (AFL) called for a strike on May 1st to demand a limit to hours employees had to work each day. The proposal was for an 8 hour workday. So, on that date hundreds of thousands of workers across the USA walked off their jobs. In Chicago, perhaps as many as 80,000 workers struck that day. The strike continued and grew over the next few days and eventually unrest broke out.

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On May 3rd Chicago police killed 4 strikers outside a factory. During a rally in Haymarket Square on May 4th to protest the killings, someone threw a homemade bomb at the police, who then fired into the crowd. One policeman and seven civilians were killed. Although the bomber was never identified, the authorities arrested several of the city's labor leaders. Seven individuals were tried and found guilty, four of these were executed and a fifth killed himself in jail while awaiting execution. The trial was widely viewed as rigged and six years later the Governor of Illinois pardoned the two who were still in prison and declared that those who had been executed had not been guilty. Today this series of events is known by various names: the Haymarket Affair, the Haymarket Riot, and the Haymarket Tragedy.

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At the request of the AFL in 1889, the world labor movement's congress, which was being held in Paris that year, adopted May Day as an international day of action to call for the 8 hour workday as a norm and to commemorate the events in Chicago. May 1st has been known as International Workers Day / Labor Day ever since.

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Under Franco this holiday was not observed. Indeed, it wasn't until 1978, 3 years after Franco's death, that Labor Day gatherings were legalized. Despite this, events did take place in '76 and '77.

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These days the holiday is marked by rallies around the country, most of which are organized by two of the major Spanish labor unions, The CCOO (Comisiones Obreras = Workers' Commissions) and UGT (Unión General de Trabajadores = Workers' General Union). This year some 60 events are planned nationwide. Of course, the biggest rallies are usually in Madrid and Barcelona. The slogan the unions have selected for this year's celebration is, "This is the moment for equality, a decent salary and productive investment." (“Es el momento de la igualdad, el salario digno y la inversión productiva.”) The unions hope that year parliament will raise the minimum monthly salary from 600 euros to 800 a month -- to take effect in 2012!

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Let me explain here that Spain has a minimum monthly salary for full time workers, rather than a minimum hourly wage. (I believe this is the same in other EU countries that have a legal minimum. Denmark, Finland, Germany, Italy and Sweden do not set legal minimums.) For part time workers I suppose that amount is divided into fractions based on a 40 hour work week. Over the years I've asked may Spaniards about this, but no one I've ever asked has known.

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As a comparison, it's interesting to note that Spain's neighbors have wildly differing minimum monthly salaries: according to the Federation of European Employers, France's is currently 1,309 euros a month, while Portugal's is 426. Of course, in all three of these countries most residents earn more than the minimum.

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While lots of people will attend rallies today, many will be traveling, going to the beach, hiking in the mountains, eating out and such. Of course, in these uncertain economic times we live in, there may be many this year who will simply stay home.

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I'll write more about May 2nd, the unofficial holiday, in my next post.

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Chao amig@s,
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Carloz

It's another bank holiday in Spain! This one's Constitution Day...

...or el Día de la Constitución Española. That's right, only a few weeks before the Christmas, New Year and Reyes holiday season, Spain has yet another holiday.

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This is one of the few holidays in Spain with completely secular roots. It commemorates the anniversary of the national referendum held on 6 December 1978, in which 88% of Spanish voters approved the constitution which had been passed by parliament on 31 October of that same year. Although the constitution actually came into effect on 29 December 1978, the date of the referendum was established as a national holiday in 1983. Perhaps this was because it was one of the crowning moments in the period from 1975 to 1978, referred to as The Transition, during which Spain was converted from a fascist dictatorship to a parliamentary monarchy.
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This year's anniversary is the 29th. I don't know if there are any special plans for 2008's nice round 30th anniversary, but for the even-numbered 25th a special web site was designed that includes an official English translation of the constitution. Click here to read it.
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For a holiday that marks such a notable event in the country's history, it's not a something the Spanish people seem to celebrate very much. Sure, there are formal events participated in by politicians, royalty and celebrities. But on the street, there is not much that I can see to mark the occassion other than special little flags flying from city buses. (Except, here in Barcelona the little flags are Catalan and not Spanish. Go figure.) For most people, it's just a day off work.
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Well, perhaps I should say, a "few days" off work, because Constitution Day is followed by another national holiday on 8 December. That one is Immaculate Conception (La Inmaculada Concepción), which, of course, refers to the immaculate conception of the Virgin Mary. This particular representation of Mary was designated the "patron virgin" of Spain in 1760, so it's a holiday with a longer history than Constitution Day. However, from what I can tell, it doesn't seem to have much meaning to most Spaniards either. As a matter of fact, when I ask locals if they know what the holiday is, most say something equivalent to, "I think it's some religious holiday."
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In other words, "Who cares?! I'm just glad it's a long weekend!"

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Amen to that.
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Hasta luego amig@s,
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Carloz

Another public holiday in Spain -- the National Day of Spain -- Fiesta Nacional de España aka Día de la Hispanidad aka Día de la Raza

Yes, today, October 12th, is another public holiday here in Spain: Fiesta Nacional de España -- the National Day of Spain. Oh, yes, it is also the date Christopher Columbus (Cristobal Colon) first landed in the Americas.

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There is a militaristic aspect to some of the holiday observances. Indeed, the Spanish Civil Guard also observes September 12th as the day of its patron saint, la Virgen del Pilar. Then there is the annual military parade, which marches past special reviewing stands that are set up in Plaza del Colon to hold the Royal Family, the Prime Minister and other powerful people, including those leaders of Spain's Autonomous Regions who deign to attend. (There are usually at least one or two who refuse to do so, as an act of protest.)

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In the Autonomous Community of Aragon, the holiday is more popularly observed as el Día de la Virgen del Pilar (the Day of Our Lady of the Pillar), since she is regarded by Roman Catholics as the patron saint of Spain. The holiday is particularly festive in the region's capital, Zaragoza, where floral tributes are made to the Virgin, including a huge cloak of flowers stretched out around her statue.

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The official name of the holiday is Fiesta Nacional de España. However, Día de la Hispanidad is it's popular name. In other parts of the Spanish-speaking world the day is also known as el Día de la Raza -- the Day of the Race. (To me it seems to lose something in the translation.) In Costa Rica it is the more politically correct Día de las Culturas (Day of Cultures), in Uruguay it is the more hemispheric Día de las Americas (Day of the Americas) and in the Venezuela it is the more revolutionary Día de la Resistencia Indígena (Day of Indigenous Resistance). In the USA, where it is observed on the second Monday in October instead of the 12th, the holiday is known rather blandly as Columbus Day; although in the state of Hawaii it is called Discoverer's Day and in South Dakota it is Native American Day.

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Despite its 15th century roots, the holiday is a 20th century creation. In 1913 the Spanish politician Faustino Rodriguez-San Pedro proposed October 12th to the international organization known as the Ibero-American Union as a day to honor the ties between Spain and Latin America. In 1917 Argentina became the first nation to make it an official holiday. The following year it became a holiday in Spain, with other Spanish-speaking countries soon following suit.

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In 1926 Zacarías de Vizcarra, a Spanish priest living in Argentina, coined the word "Hispanidad," (which today can mean "Spanishness" , "Hispanic peoples" or "the Spanish speaking world,"). He proposed that it replace the use of the word "raza" (race, ancestry) in the name of the holiday.

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In 1958, following decades of debate, the Spanish dictator Francisco Franco officially re-designated the holiday as el Día de la Hispanidad. In 1981 the relatively new democratic government of Spain made it a binomial holiday -- "Fiesta Nacional de España y Día de la Hispanidad." The term must have have fallen out of political favor by 1987, as that was when the government deleted Día de la Hispanidad from the holiday's official name.

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So, that's a little bit about how the anniversary of a date in 1492 (the same year that Spain reconquered Andalusia from the Moors and ordered the expulsion of all unconverted Jews), on which an Italian immigrant (who had previously lived in Portugal and continuously referred to himself as a foreigner) leading three Spanish ships (because Portugal refused to provide them) landed on an island in the Western Hemisphere (although he believed he was in East Asia) creating a ripple that became a tidal wave of immigration, conflict, conquest, cultural annihilation, nation building and global transition, ended up as the National Day of Spain.

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Chao amig@s,

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Carloz