The ''Renaixença'' (; also written ''Renaixensa'' before
spelling standardisation), or Catalan Renaissance, was a
romantic
Romantic may refer to:
Genres and eras
* The Romantic era, an artistic, literary, musical and intellectual movement of the 18th and 19th centuries
** Romantic music, of that era
** Romantic poetry, of that era
** Romanticism in science, of that e ...
revivalist movement in
Catalan language
Catalan (; autonym: , ), known in the Valencian Community and Carche as '' Valencian'' ( autonym: ), is a Western Romance language. It is the official language of Andorra, and an official language of three autonomous communities in eas ...
and culture through the mid 19th century, akin to the
Galician ''
Rexurdimento
The ''Rexurdimento'' ( Galician for Resurgence) was a period in the History of Galicia 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-call ...
'' or the
Occitan Occitan may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to the Occitania territory in parts of France, Italy, Monaco and Spain.
* Something of, from, or related to the Occitania administrative region of France.
* Occitan language
Occitan (; ...
''
Félibrige
The ''Félibrige'' (; in classical Occitan, in Mistralian spelling, ) is a literary and cultural association founded in 1854 by Frédéric Mistral and other Provençal writers to defend and promote the Occitan language (also called the ) and ...
'' movements. The movement began in the 1830s and lasted until the 1880s, when it branched out into other cultural movements. Even though it primarily followed a romantic impulse, it incorporated stylistic and philosophical elements of other 19th century movements such as
Naturalism or
Symbolism
Symbolism or symbolist may refer to:
Arts
* Symbolism (arts), a 19th-century movement rejecting Realism
** Symbolist movement in Romania, symbolist literature and visual arts in Romania during the late 19th and early 20th centuries
** Russian sym ...
. The name does not indicate a particular style, but rather the cultural circumstances in which it bloomed.
Overview
Along with the later ''
modernisme
''Modernisme'' (, Catalan for "modernism"), also known as Catalan modernism and Catalan art nouveau, is the historiographic denomination given to an art and literature movement associated with the search of a new entitlement of Catalan cultur ...
'', this movement ended a period of Catalan cultural decline commonly known as
Decadència, that dated back at least to defeat in the
War of the Spanish Succession
The War of the Spanish Succession was a European great power conflict that took place from 1701 to 1714. The death of childless Charles II of Spain in November 1700 led to a struggle for control of the Spanish Empire between his heirs, Phili ...
(1701–1714)
[Art Nouveau in Catalonia](_blank)
on GaudiAllGaudi.com. Accessed 26 March 2006. and the subsequent
Nueva Planta decrees
The Nueva Planta decrees ( es, link=no, Decretos de Nueva Planta, ca, Decrets de Nova Planta, en, link=no, "Decrees of the New Plant") were a number of decrees signed between 1707 and 1716 by Philip V, the first Bourbon King of Spain, during ...
, which suppressed
Catalonia
Catalonia (; ca, Catalunya ; Aranese Occitan: ''Catalonha'' ; es, Cataluña ) is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a '' nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy.
Most of the territory (except the Val d'Aran) lies on the no ...
's traditional institutions, privileges, and ''
fuero
(), (), () or () is a Spanish legal term and concept. The word comes from Latin , an open space used as a market, tribunal and meeting place. The same Latin root is the origin of the French terms and , and the Portuguese terms and ; all ...
s'' beginning January 16, 1716. Thus, the aim of this movement was the full restoration of Catalan as a language of culture, not only through the promotion of various forms of
art
Art is a diverse range of human activity, and resulting product, that involves creative or imaginative talent expressive of technical proficiency, beauty, emotional power, or conceptual ideas.
There is no generally agreed definition of wha ...
,
theatre
Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perfor ...
and
literature
Literature is any collection of written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially prose fiction, drama, and poetry. In recent centuries, the definition has expanded to inclu ...
in this language, but also attempting to establish a normative standard for the language, something however not fully accomplished until the first quarter of the 20th century.
As with most of the other Romantic movements, it was noted for its admiration of the
Middle Ages
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...
, which was often reflected in art, and in
Barcelona
Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ...
, the literary contest known as
Jocs Florals
Floral Games were any of a series of historically related poetry contests with floral prizes. In Occitan, their original language, and Catalan they are known as '' Jocs florals'' (; modern Occitan: ''Jòcs florals'' , or ''floraus'' ). In French th ...
or ''Jocs de la Gaia Ciència'' was revived.
The Renaixença occurred not only in Catalonia proper, but also in other Catalan-speaking regions such as the
Balearic Islands.
A journal particularly associated with the movement was the magazine ''
La Renaixença'', from which the name was taken- originally spelt ''Renaixensa'' before the
Fabrian spelling reform
A spelling reform is a deliberate, often authoritatively sanctioned or mandated change to spelling rules. Proposals for such reform are fairly common, and over the years, many languages have undergone such reforms. Recent high-profile examples ar ...
.
Absolutism will have the last of its episodes during the reign of Elizabeth II. Conflicts continue throughout the nineteenth century. The three Carlist wars, the events of 1835 with the first massive burning of convents and the Barcelona insurrection against Espartero in 1843 are the most tragic episodes. It was the prelude to Catalan nationalism that became visible at the end of the 19th century.
Notable individuals related to Renaixença
*
Bonaventura Carles Aribau
Buenaventura Carlos Aribau (1798–1862) was a Spanish economist, stenographer, writer and politician who wrote in Spanish, Catalan, Latin, and Italian
Italian(s) may refer to:
* Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the cen ...
, writer. His poem ''
Oda a la pàtria'' is usually acknowledged to have kick-started the movement.
*
Manuel Milà i Fontanals
Manuel Milà i Fontanals (; May 4, 1818 – July 16, 1884) was a Spanish scholar. He was born at Vilafranca del Penedès, near Barcelona, and was educated first in Barcelona, and afterwards at the University of Cervera.
In 1845, he became profe ...
, linguist, philologist and
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 '' trobai ...
literature scholar, of great influence and one of the main initiators of the ''Renaixença''.
*
Joan Maragall, poet, translator from Greek and German, journalist and essayist.
*
Jacint Verdarguer, poet, penned
L'Atlàntida
''L'Atlàntida'' () is an 1877 poem in Catalan by Jacint Verdaguer. It consists of an introduction, ten books, and a conclusion, dealing with the wanderings of Heracles in the Iberian Peninsula, the sinking of the continent of Atlantis, the creatio ...
and the Catalan national epic, ''
Canigó
The Canigó ( ca, Canigó, french: Canigou ; la, mons Canigosus or Canigonis) is a mountain located in the Pyrenees of southern France.
The Canigó is located less than from the sea and has an elevation of . Due to its sharp flanks and its dra ...
''.
*
Àngel Guimerà
Àngel Guimerà y Jorge (6 May 1845 or 6 May 1847 or 1849 – 18 July 1924), known also as Ángel Guimerá, was a Spanish Nobel-nominated writer in the Catalan language. His work is known for bringing together under romantic aspects the main el ...
, playwright.
*
Narcís Oller
Narcís Oller i de Moragas (; 10 August 1846, in Valls – 26 July 1930, in Barcelona) was a Catalan writer, most noted for the novels ''La papallona'' (The Butterfly) which appeared with a foreword by Émile Zola in the French translation; his m ...
, novelist influenced by
Émile Zola
Émile Édouard Charles Antoine Zola (, also , ; 2 April 184029 September 1902) was a French novelist, journalist, playwright, the best-known practitioner of the literary school of naturalism, and an important contributor to the development of ...
's
naturalism, chronicled the
Industrial Revolution
The Industrial Revolution was the transition to new manufacturing processes in Great Britain, continental Europe, and the United States, that occurred during the period from around 1760 to about 1820–1840. This transition included going f ...
, society and changing mindsets in his novels.
*
Frederic Soler Frederic may refer to:
Places United States
* Frederic, Wisconsin, a village in Polk County
* Frederic Township, Michigan, a township in Crawford County
** Frederic, Michigan, an unincorporated community
Other uses
* Frederic (band), a Japanes ...
, known as ''Pitarra'', playwright using colloquial Catalan.
*
Joaquim Rubió i Ors, poet, known variously as ''Lo Gayté del Llobregat'', ''El Gaiter del Llobregat'', among others
*
Víctor Català
Caterina Albert i Paradís ( L'Escala, Spain, 11 September 1869 — 27 January 1966), better known by her pen name Víctor Català, was a Catalan writer in Catalan and Spanish who participated in the Modernisme movement and was the author of o ...
(real name
Caterina Albert i Paradís
Caterina Albert i Paradís (L'Escala, Spain, 11 September 1869 — 27 January 1966), better known by her pen name Víctor Català, was a Catalan writer in Catalan and Spanish who participated in the Modernisme movement and was the author of on ...
),
symbolist
Symbolism was a late 19th-century art movement of French and Belgian origin in poetry and other arts seeking to represent absolute truths symbolically through language and metaphorical images, mainly as a reaction against naturalism and real ...
writer.
*
Martí Genís i Aguilar
Martí is a Catalan name and may refer to:
People Surname
*Cristóbal Martí (born 1903), Spanish footballer
*David Martí (born 1971), Spanish Oscar winner for best makeup
*Enriqueta Martí (1868–1913), Spanish "witch"
*Farabundo Martí (1893� ...
, writer.
*
Antoni Puig i Blanch
Antoni Puig i Blanch (, also known as Antoni Puigblanch) (1755, Mataró, Spain – 1840, Somers Town, London) was a Spanish philologist and politician. He was living in London during 1815–1820 and 1823–1840. There he published ''The Inquisition ...
, poet.
*
Francesc Camprodon, poet.
*
Víctor Balaguer Víctor is a Spanish masculine given name, equivalent to Victor in English and Vítor in Portuguese. Notable people with the given name include:
* Víctor Cabrera (Argentine footballer)
*Víctor Cabrera (Chilean footballer)
* Víctor Hugo Cabrer ...
, writer. Used the pseudonym ''Lo trovador de Montserrat''.
*
Antoni Gaudi Antoni is a Catalan, Polish, and Slovene given name and a surname used in the eastern part of Spain, Poland and Slovenia. As a Catalan given name it is a variant of the male names Anton and Antonio. As a Polish given name it is a variant of the f ...
, architect. Greatest exponent of
Catalan Modernism
''Modernisme'' (, Catalan for "modernism"), also known as Catalan modernism and Catalan art nouveau, is the historiographic denomination given to an art and literature movement associated with the search of a new entitlement of Catalan culture ...
.
*
Maria Antònia Salvà i Ripoll
Maria Antònia Salvà i Ripoll (1869 – 1958) was a Mallorcan poet and translator, and the sister of the politician and the painter . She was the first female poet in the Catalan language.
Considered the first modern poet in the Catalan langua ...
, poet.
Notes
Further reading
* Joan Badia i d'altres, ''Llengua Catalana Cou'', Ed.Teide, Barcelona, 1988,
* Enciclopèdia catalana de l'estudiant ''Llengua i literatura catalanes'' núm. 5
External links
Renaixença from the ''Nou diccionari 62 de la literatura catalana'' (2000). Page also contains extensive links to other reference-quality material. In Catalan.
Renaixença, civisme i nacionalismeon the site of the
Museu d'Història de Catalunya. In Catalan.
La Renaixença
{{DEFAULTSORT:Renaixenca
19th century in Catalonia
Catalan culture
Catalan-language literature
Catalan symbols
Catalan words and phrases
Romanticism
ca:Renaixença#Renaixença a Catalunya