EPISODE 7; THE FESTIVAL OF SANT JORDI

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In this episode we are going to talk about El día de Sant Jordi, which occurs this week, on the 23rd of April.     



This day is very linked to the history and culture of Catalonia – in Spanish, Cataluña – which is the north-eastern region in Spain that contains Barcelona and which in recent times has been the location of a strong independence movement.

Sant Jordi is actually the name, in Catalan, of Saint George, or in Spanish San Jorge, and he is the patron saint of England and Portugal and in Spain of Catalonia and Aragon. Patron saint is “patrón” or “santo patrón”. He is the saint that is said to have killed a dragon and it is his cross that is on the flag of England.

We are going to hear a short explanation about San Jordi and about what traditionally happens on this day.

First, as always, some vocabulary. (You can practice vocab from this podcast here.)

Fiesta – here, a celebration, a festivity
Engalanarse – to be decorated with, adorned with
La Senyera – Catalan flag – yellow and red horizontal stripes
Puestos – stall, kiosk

Question: Part 1 – Culture and Love are two central elements of the Sant Jordi festival. What two things represent culture and love on this day?








Vocab for the second part


El culto – the devotion to, the cult of…
Exposición Internacional – Expo, trade fair
Chiringuitos – puestos, market stalls, usually used to talk about beach bars.
Éxito – success – ojo! Falso amigo….
La lectura – reading as an activity
Librero - bookseller

Question Part 2:  April 23rd is Saint George’s Day. For what other reason is it important?


Both parts together....
Vocab

La edad media – the middle ages

Questions for Parts 1 and 2….

1.    What happens in La Rambla in Barcelona on this day?
2.    What happened in the Middle ages?
3.    What happened in 1456?
4.    For what other reason – besides being World Book Day and the Feast of Sant Jordi – is April 23rd famous?






Transcript

 El Día de Sant Jordi, patrón de Cataluña, es una fiesta que con los años ha llegado a ser una celebración de la cultura catalana. Por eso, muchos balcones de la ciudad se engalanan ese día con la senyera (la bandera de Cataluña).
 Los elementos centrales de la celebración son la cultura y el amor -representados con el libro y la rosa- y en Barcelona el punto de encuentro principal está situado en La Rambla, que se llena con puestos de libreros y floristas.
Por Sant Jordi es habitual encontrar libros en todas las lenguas que se hablan en Cataluña, pero hay muchos puestos especializadas en el libro en catalán, porque se considera un día de promoción y defensa de la cultura y la lengua catalanas.
En el pasado, el culto a Sant Jordi se extendió plenamente a las Islas Baleares y a Valencia durante la Edad Media, aunque en el siglo VIII ya existía esta devoción. Y desde el año 1456 es el patrón oficial de Cataluña.
En abril en el año 1929, durante la Exposición Internacional de Barcelona, los libreros decidieron organizarse y salieron a la calle a montar chiringuitos para presentar novedades y fomentar la lectura. La iniciativa tuvo tanto éxito que se decidió establecerse como Día del Libro el 23 de abril, día que coincide con la muerte de dos grandes autores de la historia de la literatura: Cervantes y Shakespeare.
Ha sido tan grande el éxito de la festividad catalana que en 1995 la Conferencia General de la UNESCO declaró el 23 de abril Día Mundial del Libro.

Adapted from….



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