spanish FESTIVALS | FIESTAS IN SPAIN
Why so many fiestas in Spain?
Spanish fiestas symbolise the very essence of Spain and the Spanish people.
They’re colourful, vibrant, usually extremely noisy, often chaotic
and always great fun.
The origins of many of the country’s countless fiestas lie in
religious feasts, often honouring a patron saint. It’s the same
in northern Europe where many public holidays were born out of religious “holy
days”.
But northern Europe simply can’t compete with Spain when it comes
to turning a religious celebration into a riotous round-the-clock knees
up. Perhaps it’s the warm weather or maybe it’s the exuberant,
uninhibited nature of the Spaniards who just love to party. One thing’s
for certain: when it’s fiesta time, no-one does it better than
the Spanish!
When are the Spanish Fiestas?
Every day throughout the year there are fiestas taking place somewhere
in Spain, either at a local, regional or national level. These may revolve
around the major religious festivals such as Christmas, Easter and All
Saints (Halloween) or they may be highly localised events, with their
origins in obscure local folklore. For a short summary of fiestas in Spain please vist our Calendar of Fiestas in Spain.
The nature of each fiesta depends on its origin. Some involve serious,
even mournful religious processions but most are accompanied by street
parties with marching bands, firework displays and much general merrymaking.
The Moors and Christians fiestas which take place all over Spain hark
back to the centuries of Moorish domination which made a major impact
on the country’s culture, cuisine, language and traditions.
The bigger towns and cities often organise a series of bullfights in
the local “plaza de toros” at fiesta time while smaller villages
without a bull ring opt for bull running in the streets. One of Spain’s
most famous (and most dangerous) fiestas is the San Fermin festival in
Pamplona which brings thousands of daredevils from all over the world
to run with the bulls through the cobbled streets of the old town. The
week-long fiesta, which takes place from July 7th-14th, dates back to
1591 and has been attracting world attention since Ernest Hemingway wrote
about it in his 1926 novel “The Sun Also Rises”.
Where are the Fiestas?
Even the tiniest and most remote mountain villages organise their own
bull running as part of their annual celebrations in honour of their
patron saint. Participants are killed and injured every year but despite
protests by safety campaigners and animal rights activists, the Spanish
show no signs of abandoning this age-old fiesta tradition.
Fire, fireworks and fire crackers feature strongly in many festivals
and there’s no fierier fiesta than the famous Fallas of Valencia.
This is one of the biggest and most spectacular street festivals in Europe – one
of those extraordinary and unique events that everyone should experience
at least once in a lifetime. Fallas means “fires” in the
local Valencian language and on the night of March 19th each year the
whole city appears to be ablaze when more than 350 beautifully made statues
are burnt to the ground. The world-renowned five-day fiesta has its origins
in pagan rituals which over the centuries have become integrated into
the religious festival honouring St Joseph.
Many towns and cities hold their own versions of the Fallas but nowhere
can hold a candle to Valencia which is without doubt the home of Spain’s
hottest party!
Other famous fiestas include the mad, messy Tomatina which takes place
in the village of Buñol, about 30 miles west of Valencia. It’s
the world’s biggest tomato fight involving tens of thousands of
people being pelted with several truck loads of tomatoes.
And if you think that’s a bit weird, wait till you hear about
the “Burial of the Sardine” fiesta held in Madrid and various
other locations each year. It takes place on Ash Wednesday, at the beginning
of Lent, and involves revellers in fancy dress costumes attending the
funeral of a sardine! The sardine in question may be a real one in a
coffin though sometimes a plastic or cardboard effigy is used. The origins
of this somewhat freaky fiesta are in dispute but one theory suggests
that it dates back to the 18th century when rotten sardines were delivered
to King Carlos III who promptly ordered their destruction.
One of Spain’s most impressive fiestas is the April Seville Fair (Feria de Abril) when the achingly romantic capital of Andalucia is transformed
into a fairytale world of tented pavilions, costumed equestrian riders
and flamboyant flamenco dancing. The elaborate week-long event started
as a humble livestock market in the mid 19th century and now attracts
more than one million visitors a year from all over the world.
For a summarized Calendar of Fiestas in Spain click here.
To find out more about other spanish festivals and entertainment in
Spain please choose one of the links or regions below.
