Rexurdimento
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The ''Rexurdimento'' ( Galician for Resurgence) was a period in the
History of Galicia The Iberian Peninsula has been inhabited for at least 500,000 years, first by Neanderthals and then by modern humans. Prehistory Megalithic culture Galicia, northern Portugal, Asturias, western León, and Zamora formed a single megalit ...
during the 19th century. Its central feature was the revitalization of the Galician language as a vehicle of social and cultural expression after the so-called ''séculos escuros'' ("dark centuries") in which the dominance of
Castilian Spanish In English, Castilian Spanish can mean the variety of Peninsular Spanish spoken in northern and central Spain, the standard form of Spanish, or Spanish from Spain in general. In Spanish, the term (Castilian) can either refer to the Spanish langua ...
was nearly complete. The Galician ''Rexurdimento'' coincides with the
Catalan Catalan may refer to: Catalonia From, or related to Catalonia: * Catalan language, a Romance language * Catalans, an ethnic group formed by the people from, or with origins in, Northern or southern Catalonia Places * 13178 Catalan, asteroid #1 ...
''
Renaixença The ''Renaixença'' (; also written ''Renaixensa'' before spelling standardisation), or Catalan Renaissance, was a romantic revivalist movement in Catalan language and culture through the mid 19th century, akin to the Galician ''Rexurdimento ...
''.
Romanticism Romanticism (also known as the Romantic movement or Romantic era) was an artistic, literary, musical, and intellectual movement that originated in Europe towards the end of the 18th century, and in most areas was at its peak in the approximate ...
led to a revival of regionalism in the
Iberian Peninsula The Iberian Peninsula (), ** * Aragonese and Occitan: ''Peninsula Iberica'' ** ** * french: Péninsule Ibérique * mwl, Península Eibérica * eu, Iberiar penintsula also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in southwestern Europe, defi ...
. Languages besides the official Castilian Spanish were reevaluated. In contrast to the universalizing
Age of Enlightenment The Age of Enlightenment or the Enlightenment; german: Aufklärung, "Enlightenment"; it, L'Illuminismo, "Enlightenment"; pl, Oświecenie, "Enlightenment"; pt, Iluminismo, "Enlightenment"; es, La Ilustración, "Enlightenment" was an intel ...
, a positive value was placed on regional traditions, languages, and dialects. In Galicia, Castilian Spanish had become the language of the cities and of the
bourgeoisie The bourgeoisie ( , ) is a social class, equivalent to the middle or upper middle class. They are distinguished from, and traditionally contrasted with, the proletariat by their affluence, and their great cultural and financial capital. They ...
, while Galician had become a largely rural language without a live literary tradition. This created some degree of
diglossia In linguistics, diglossia () is a situation in which two dialects or languages are used (in fairly strict compartmentalization) by a single language community. In addition to the community's everyday or vernacular language variety (labeled " ...
, with Castilian Spanish dominating literary and business use, and Galician being strictly a language of daily life.


Road to the ''Rexurdimento''

The transitional phase from the ' to the ''Rexurdimento'' is referred to by literary historians as the ''Prerrexurdimento''. Within the ''Prerrexurdimento'', two phases can be roughly distinguished, before and after the unsuccessful Solís Uprising of 1846. The first phase involved a rather diffuse revival of the Galician language; the second is more concentrated, including the first new Galician-language works in centuries to gain acclaim. From 1840 onward, groups of intellectuals saw Galicia as a backward region whose advancement was dependent on the formation of a regional or national identity. This provincialist movement centered at the
University of Santiago de Compostela , established = , type = Public , budget = €228 million (2011) , rector = Prof. Dr. Antonio López Díaz , city = Santiago de Compostela , state = Galicia , country = Spain , undergrad = 23,835 , postgrad = 1,716 , doctoral = 2,697 ...
; its most prominent figure was Antolín Faraldo Asorey. The failed Solís Uprising of 1846, an uprising against centralism, ended with the summary execution of the so-called ''Martyrs of Carral''. This political and military defeat nonetheless awoke Galician literary consciousness. Authors who shared the idea of Galicia as their fatherland published in magazines such as ''El Centinela de Galicia'' ("The Galician Sentinel") and ''La Aurora de Galicia''. Benito Viceto published a ''History of Galicia'' (1865–1866) a heroic narrative of Galician history in six volumes. Important works from this period include the ''Proezas de Galicia'' ("Prowess of Galicia") by Fernández Neira, '' A gaita gallega'' ("The Galician Bagpipes") by Juan Manuel Pintos (1853), the founding of the Juegos Florales de Galicia ("Floral Games of Galicia") in
A Coruña A Coruña (; es, La Coruña ; historical English: Corunna or The Groyne) is a city and municipality of Galicia, Spain. A Coruña is the most populated city in Galicia and the second most populated municipality in the autonomous community and s ...
(1861), as well as publications such as ''El álbum de la caridad'' ("The Charity Album") and newspapers that published fragments of Galician-language novels and plays. The two foremost Galician-language genres from this time were political writings and the revival of Galician as a literary language. The first of the political writings were linked to the
Peninsular War The Peninsular War (1807–1814) was the military conflict fought in the Iberian Peninsula by Spain, Portugal, and the United Kingdom against the invading and occupying forces of the First French Empire during the Napoleonic Wars. In Spain ...
, viewed throughout Spain as a war of independence against
Napoleonic Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...
France: ''Un labrador que foi sarxento'' ("A farmer who was a sergeant", 1808) and several dialogues, the first of them being ''Proezas de Galicia explicadas baxo la conversación rústica de los dos compadres Chinto y Mingote'' ("Prowess of Galicia explained through the rustic conversation of two comrades Chinto and Mingote") by
José Fernández de Neira José is a predominantly Spanish and Portuguese form of the given name Joseph. While spelled alike, this name is pronounced differently in each language: Spanish ; Portuguese (or ). In French, the name ''José'', pronounced , is an old vernacul ...
(1812). Later, pamphlets and newspapers published polemics on both sides in the struggle between absolutism and
liberalism Liberalism is a political and moral philosophy based on the rights of the individual, liberty, consent of the governed, political equality and equality before the law."political rationalism, hostility to autocracy, cultural distaste for c ...
, and other polemics critical of the administrative situation of the region. On the literary front were
villancico The ''villancico'' (Spanish, ) or vilancete (Portuguese, ) was a common poetic and musical form of the Iberian Peninsula and Latin America popular from the late 15th to 18th centuries. Important composers of villancicos were Juan del Encina, Pedro ...
s (intended to be sung), one play (''A casamenteira'' by
Antonio Benito Fandiño Antonio is a masculine given name of Etruscan origin deriving from the root name Antonius. It is a common name among Romance language-speaking populations as well as the Balkans and Lusophone Africa. It has been among the top 400 most popular male ...
, published in 1849 and centered on
arranged marriage Arranged marriage is a type of marital union where the bride and groom are primarily selected by individuals other than the couple themselves, particularly by family members such as the parents. In some cultures a professional matchmaker may be us ...
), satirical
sonnet A sonnet is a poetic form that originated in the poetry composed at the Court of the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II in the Sicilian city of Palermo. The 13th-century poet and notary Giacomo da Lentini is credited with the sonnet's invention, ...
s, two books of poetry by
Nicomedes Pastor Díaz Nicomedes may refer to: *Nicomedes (mathematician), ancient Greek mathematician who discovered the conchoid *Nicomedes of Sparta, regent during the youth of King Pleistoanax, commanded the Spartan army at the Battle of Tanagra (457 BC) *Saint Nicom ...
, and various other works.
Francisco Añón Francisco is the Spanish and Portuguese form of the masculine given name ''Franciscus''. Nicknames In Spanish, people with the name Francisco are sometimes nicknamed "Paco". San Francisco de Asís was known as ''Pater Comunitatis'' (father of ...
was another author relevant in this period. Professor Dolores Vilavedra, while cautious in drawing conclusions, sees this phase of the ''Prerrexurdimento'' as basically a Galician form of artistic and political Romanticism. Some institutions developed during this period, such as an Academia Literaria de Santiago with its official organ ''El Idólatra de Galicia'', and magazines such as ''Revista de Galicia''. However, many of these institutions were repressed after the 1846 Solís Uprising. The intellectual heirs of this thwarted movement were a group of young people, among them
Manuel Murguía Manuel Antonio Martínez Murguía (17 May 1833 – 2 February 1923) was a Galician journalist and historian who created the Real Academia Galega. He was one of the main figures in Galician ''Rexurdimento'' movement. He is also remembered as R ...
,
Eduardo Pondal Eduardo María González-Pondal Abente (February 8, 1835 – March 8, 1917) was a Galician (Spain) poet, who wrote in both Galician and Spanish. Of Hidalgo origin, Pondal was the youngest of a family of seven. From 1844 onwards he studied Lat ...
, and
Rosalía de Castro María Rosalía Rita de Castro (; 23 February 1837 – 15 July 1885), was a Galician poet and novelist, considered one of the most important figures of the 19th-century Spanish literature and modern lyricism. Widely regarded as the greatest Galic ...
. Their gathering in 1856 at the '' Banquete de Conxo'' ("Banquet of ''Conxo''") marks the founding of the Liceo de la Juventud as a gathering place and a base for cultural activism.


The ''Rexurdimento'' proper

The ''Rexurdimento'' is conventionally considered to begin with the publication of
Rosalía de Castro María Rosalía Rita de Castro (; 23 February 1837 – 15 July 1885), was a Galician poet and novelist, considered one of the most important figures of the 19th-century Spanish literature and modern lyricism. Widely regarded as the greatest Galic ...
's book of poems '' Cantares Gallegos'' in 1863. Nonetheless, there is no sharp break from the ''Prerrexurdimento'' to the ''Rexurdimento'', and there were no other significant publications in Galician for over a decade after the ''Cantares Gallegos'', a period that includes Spain's
Glorious Revolution The Glorious Revolution; gd, Rèabhlaid Ghlòrmhor; cy, Chwyldro Gogoneddus , also known as the ''Glorieuze Overtocht'' or ''Glorious Crossing'' in the Netherlands, is the sequence of events leading to the deposition of King James II and ...
and the subsequent liberal era. However, beginning in 1875 more works were published in Galician, including, again, newspapers, the most famous of which was ''O Tío Marcos da Portela'' ("Uncle Marcos from Portela", 1876–1889). The ''Biblioteca Gallega'' ("Galician Library") published 52 works beginning in 1885, including such prominent works as ''Aires da miña terra'' ("Airs of My Land") by
Manuel Curros Enríquez Manuel Curros Enríquez (September 15, 1851 - February 7, 1908) was a Galician writer and journalist in the Galician language, and is considered to be one of the leading figures of Galician culture and identity. Early life Manuel Curros Enrí ...
and ''Queixumes dos Pinos'' ("Moans of the Pines") by Eduardo Pondal. 1880 was a particularly outstanding year, with the publication of '' Follas Novas'' ("New Leaves") by Rosalía de Castro, ''Aires da miña terra'' by Curros Enríquez, and ''Espiñas, follas e frores. Ramiño primeiro'' ("Spines, Leaves, and Fronds. First Sprigs") by Valentín Lamas Carvajal. In 1886, for the first time, a literary contest was held, confined to Galician-language works. Poetry was particularly prominent, and anthologies of Galician poetry began to appear. In a more political vein, that year saw the publication of ''Los precursores'' ("The Precursors") by Manuel Murguía. These years also saw the publication of many grammar books, dictionaries, and critical literary studies, and further history books, including another ''History of Galicia'' by Manuel Murguía. Furthermore, there was a recovery of the splendid works in Galician by medieval
troubadour A troubadour (, ; oc, trobador ) was a composer and performer of Old Occitan lyric poetry during the High Middle Ages (1100–1350). Since the word ''troubadour'' is etymologically masculine, a female troubadour is usually called a ''trobairit ...
s ), the ''
Cantigas A ''cantiga'' (''cantica'', ''cantar'') is a medieval monophonic song, characteristic of the Galician-Portuguese lyric. Over 400 extant ''cantigas'' come from the ''Cantigas de Santa Maria'', narrative songs about miracles or hymns in praise of th ...
''. The first such work to be published was the ''Cancionero de la Vaticana'' (1875), followed by ''Colocci Brancuti'' (1889), ''Cantigas de Alfonso X El Sabio'' (1889), and ''Cancionero de Ajuda'' (1904). The first significant published prose fiction in Galician was by Marcial Valladares Núñez. His '' Maxina ou a filla espúrea'' ("Maxina or A Spurious Daughter") appeared in the 1880s in a series of inserts in a magazine; the manuscript dates from 1870). The book is particularly unusual in its mix of Galician and Castilian Spanish to suggest the bifurcated lives of its characters. The first drama in Galician was ''Rentar de Castromil'' (1904) by
Evaristo Martelo Paumán Evaristo Martelo y Paumán del Nero Nuñez y Zuazo-Mondragón, 6th Marquess of Almeiras (1850–1928), was a Spanish aristocrat, writer and politician. He is known chiefly as a poet who contributed to emergence of the literary Galician and who i ...
.Laura Suárez Llano, ''Vida y obra de Evaristo Martelo Paumán'', n:''Adra. Revista dos socios e socias do Museo do Pobo Galego'' 8 (2013), pp. 104-105 The
canon Canon or Canons may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Canon (fiction), the conceptual material accepted as official in a fictional universe by its fan base * Literary canon, an accepted body of works considered as high culture ** Western ca ...
Antonio López Ferreiro is considered the true father of the Galician novel. He wrote three novels, the best known of which is ''A tecedeira de Bonabal'' ("The Weaver of Bonabal"), published in installments in Galician newspapers. These realistic works with aspects of the
historical novel Historical fiction is a literary genre in which the plot takes place in a setting related to the past events, but is fictional. Although the term is commonly used as a synonym for historical fiction literature, it can also be applied to other ty ...
are set at different points in Galician history.
Costumbrismo ''Costumbrismo'' (sometimes anglicized as costumbrism, with the adjectival form costumbrist) is the literary or pictorial interpretation of local everyday life, mannerisms, and customs, primarily in the Hispanic scene, and particularly in the 19t ...
, the literary or pictorial interpretation of local everyday life, mannerisms, and customs, was also active in Galicia, as it was elsewhere in Spain. However, in Galicia it focused almost entirely on rural life. Urban narratives in Galician began to appear only toward the end of the 19th century, as in the work of Francisco Álvarez de Novoa, urban, bourgeois, and psychological. This was a prelude to the innovative writers of the ''
Irmandades da fala The Irmandades da Fala (English: "Brotherhood of the Language") was a Galician nationalist organization active between 1916 and 1936. It was the first political organization of Galicia that used only the Galician language. Origin Aurelio Ribalt ...
''. There were very few theatrical works associated with the ''Rexurdimento''.


Notes

{{National revivals History of Galicia (Spain) National revivals 19th century in Spain