 Traditional 9 d'Octubre flag lowering of the Senyera Coronada in Valencia | |
| Date | 9 October |
|---|---|
| Location | Valencian Community, Spain |
9 d'Octubre (English: October 9th) is a historical celebration in the Land of Valencia, the official day of the Valencian Community since its recogntion as an Autonomus Community of Spain. [1] [2] It commemorates the conquest of the city of Balansiya (modern Valencia) by the troops of James I of Aragon and the creation of the Kingdom of Valencia in 1238.
The celebration was created by James II of Aragon in the XIV century, mainly inside of the city of Valencia. Due its antiquity and popular tradition, the date was considered as the Valencian National Day by the Board of Trade Unions and Political Forces of Valencia in 1976, and by the Plenary of members of the parliament of Valencia in 1977. Finally, with the creation of the Valencian Community in 1982, it was made a Public holiday as the Valencian Community Day and is celebrated in the entire Valencian Community. [3] [4] [5]
Celebrations on October 9th offer many activities such as an international fireworks contest, popular medieval markets, traditional Moors and Christians parades, band concerts and prize awards to relevant celebrities. A formal institutional ceremony with all local authorities is the so called civilian procession held to honour the old royal flag Senyera Coronada towards the Cathedral from the Town City Hall, where it descends through the balcony and not through the main door as a proud sign of not bowing in front of anyone but God. This parade takes place since 1338 when Peter IV of Aragon intended to celebrate the centenary of the Kingdom of Valencia and to demand protection to Saint Denis in the middle of a famine caused by poor rains. [5] Sant Donis, as it is called in the local language, is also the Lovers' Day on October 9th in the Valencian Community similar to St.Valentine's, and it is customary to give marzipans shaped as fruits and horticultural products as a present to a beloved person. These sweet gifts are known as La Mocadorà , being mocador the Valencian word for a silk handkerchief, where the marzipan vegetables and fruits are gift-wrapped. All bakeries along the city and the old kingdom of Valencia hold nowadays beautiful handycrafted and sweet shop window and product contests with this theme Mocadorà and its orchard marzipans. [6] [7] [8]
Valencia is the capital of the province and autonomous community of the same name in Spain. It is the third-most populated municipality in the country, with 807,693 inhabitants within commune, 1,582,387 inhabitants within the urban area and 2,522,383 inhabitants within the metropolitan region. It is located on the banks of the Turia, on the east coast of the Iberian Peninsula on the Mediterranean Sea.
The Catalan Countries are those territories where the Catalan language is spoken. They include the Spanish regions of Catalonia, the Balearic Islands, Valencian Community, and parts of Aragon and Murcia (Carche), as well as the Principality of Andorra, the department of Pyrénées-Orientales in France, and the city of Alghero in Sardinia (Italy). It is often used as a sociolinguistic term to describe the cultural-linguistic area where Catalan is spoken. In the context of Catalan nationalism, the term is sometimes used in a more restricted way to refer to just Catalonia, Valencia and the Balearic Islands. The Catalan Countries do not correspond to any present or past political or administrative unit, though most of the area belonged to the Crown of Aragon in the Middle Ages. Parts of Valencia (Spanish) and Catalonia (Occitan) are not Catalan-speaking.
The Senyera is a vexillological symbol based on the coat of arms of the Crown of Aragon, which consists of four red stripes on a yellow field. This coat of arms, often called bars of Aragon, or simply "the four bars", historically represented the King of the Crown of Aragon.
Villarreal is a city and municipality in the province of Castellón which is part of the Valencian Community in the east of Spain.
Orihuela is a city and municipality located at the foot of the Sierra de Orihuela mountains in the province of Alicante, Valencian Community, Spain. The city is in one of the only Spanish-speaking areas of the Valencian Community.
The Valencian Nationalist Bloc was a Valencian nationalist party in the Valencian Country, Spain. It was the largest party in the Coalició Compromís until 2021, when it was replaced in a refoundation process by Més–Compromís.
Arroz a la valenciana or Valencian rice is a name for a multitude of rice dishes from diverse cuisines of the world, which originate from the rice-cooking tradition of the Valencian Community, in eastern Spain.
The names of the Valencian Community are diverse, even though Comunitat Valenciana is the only denomination with official status in its Statute of Autonomy. Nonetheless, this legal document includes in its Preamble other legal denominations that portray the history and nature of the territory: Regne de València and País Valencià.
Blaverism is a Valencian regionalist ideology in the Valencian Community (Spain) that emerged with the Spanish transition to democracy characterised by strong anti-Catalanism, born out of its opposition to Joan Fuster's book Nosaltres, els valencians (1962), which promoted the concept of the Catalan Countries which includes Valencia. They consider Fuster's ideas as an imperialist Catalan nationalist movement that tries to impose Catalan domination upon Valencia. Blaverism takes its name from the blue fringe which distinguishes the Valencian flag from other flags with a common origin, particularly from the Catalan.
The Valencian Community is an autonomous community of Spain. It is the fourth most populous Spanish autonomous community after Andalusia, Catalonia and the Community of Madrid with more than five million inhabitants. Its homonymous capital Valencia is the third largest city and metropolitan area in Spain. It is located along the Mediterranean coast on the east side of the Iberian Peninsula. It borders Catalonia to the north, Aragon and Castilla–La Mancha to the west, and Murcia to the south, and the Balearic Islands are to its east. The Valencian Community is divided into three provinces: Castellón, Valencia and Alicante.
Alcoy is an industrial and university city, region and municipality located in the Valencian Community, Spain. The Serpis river crosses the municipal boundary of Alcoy. The local authority reported a population of 61,135 residents in 2018.
Valencians are the native people of the Valencian Community, in eastern Spain. Legally, Valencians are the inhabitants of the community. Since 2006, the Valencian people are officially recognised in the Valencian Statute of Autonomy as a nationality "within the unity of the Spanish nation". The official languages of Valencia are Valencian and Spanish.
The 2011 Valencian regional election was held on Sunday, 22 May 2011, to elect the 8th Corts of the Valencian Community. All 99 seats in the Corts were up for election. The election was held simultaneously with regional elections in twelve other autonomous communities and local elections all throughout Spain.
The president of the Valencian Government is the head of the Generalitat Valenciana, the government of the Spanish autonomous community of Valencia. The president is chosen by the Valencian parliament, the Corts Valencianes.
The 2015 Valencian regional election was held on Sunday, 24 May 2015, to elect the 9th Corts of the Valencian Community. All 99 seats in the Corts were up for election. The election was held simultaneously with regional elections in twelve other autonomous communities and local elections all throughout Spain.
The 2019 Valencian regional election was held on Sunday, 28 April 2019, to elect the 10th Corts of the Valencian Community. All 99 seats in the Corts were up for election. The election was held simultaneously with the April 2019 Spanish general election. This was the first early regional election ever held in the Valencian Community, as well as the first Valencian election to not be held concurrently with other regional elections.
The Battle of Valencia was an identity conflict held in the Valencian society during the Spanish transition to democracy. It involved the progressive valencianism known as Fusterianism and the conservative anticatalanist regionalism known as blaverism.
Saint George's Day is celebrated annually on April 23.
Valencian Art Nouveau is the historiographic denomination given to an art and literature movement associated with the Art Nouveau in the Valencian Community, in Spain.
Mocadorada, is a tradition from the Valencian Community celebrated each October 9, concurring with the National Day of Valencia. It consists of a collection of frutta martorana where the marzipan fruits are held inside of a handkerchief.