MetaFilter posts tagged with Catalan

The Apple of Discord

the man of twists and turns — Sat, 29 Dec 2012 15:02:08 -0800

The Manzana de la Discordia is a block in Barcelona's Eixample district on Passeig de Gracia, between d'Arago and Consell de Cent. It is home to four buildings of the Modernisme style by four very different architects: (some pages in Spanish or Catalan) The Block (or Apple) of Discord, as it is known in Spanish, starts at 35 Passeig de Gracia, with the Casa Lleo Morera. Built by Lluis Domenich i Montaner as a private residence for the Morera family. As was usual at the time, the stained glass, cabinetry, sculpture and other ornamentation was done by renonwed local Catalan craftsmen. Casa Mulleras, at 37 Passeig de Gracia, was renovated in 1906 by Enric Sagnier and is a much more classical building than its neighbors. Sagnier is most famous for his work on Tibidabo and the Palace of Justice. Casa Mulleras provides a counterpoint to the Modernisme that follows at ... Casa Amataller, at 41 Passeig de Gracia. Built by Josep Puig i Cadafalch for the Amataller family, it now houses the Amataller Institute of Hispanic Art. Cadfalach was a prolific architect and historian, most famous for his design of and salon at the Casa Marti, or the Four Cats. Finally and possibly most famous, the Casa Batllo, at 43 Passeig de la Gracia, was designed by Antoni Gaudi. It was renovated between 1904 and 1906 by Gaudi as a residence for the Batllo family and also apartments. With its iconic exterior, characteristic trencadis mosaic, and draconian roofline, it is one of the most photographed buildings (and a UNESCO World Heritage Site) in Barcelona.

1.5 million protestors demand Catalan autonomy

Westringia F. — Wed, 12 Sep 2012 11:32:34 -0800

Huge crowds gathered yesterday on the streets of Barcelona to demand autonomy for Catalonia. Police estimated that 1.5 million people protested. The Catalan separatist movement is motivated by the idea that Catalonia's rich culture, history, and language is distinct from Spain's. The movement has historical roots and gained steam in modern times in response to Franco's oppression of Catalonia. September 11, the National Day of Catalonia (which commemorates and honors the defenders of Barcelona defeated in the 1714 Seige of Barcelona by the troops of Philip V of Spain -- a remembrance that was also not observed under Franco's rule), is today an occasion of annual protests calling for Catalonia's independence. The enormous turnout this year is attributable in part to Spain's economic crisis, fueling demands for fiscal autonomy.

"I would soon learn that the laughter of the Son of God was no ordinary thing."

filthy light thief — Sat, 24 Dec 2011 15:17:28 -0800

Christmas is a time for traditions. For some, it's all about stringing up lights on a Christmas tree and wrapping up presents to put beneath it. For others, it's spending singing carols door to door to spread holiday cheer. And for still others, it's a time to beat a log with a stick until it poops out candy. If you're not familiar with that last one, don't worry: ComicsAlliance favorites Benito Cereno and Anthony Clark have stepped up to explain it all in an original comic featuring an Untold Tale of St. Nicholas! Previously: caganer, and specifically, Caga Tío More fun from Benito: Santa Claus vs The Martians, the comic.

Your No. 2 favorite Christmas tradition

The demon that lives in the air — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 19:35:49 -0800

No Nativity scene is complete without the caganer - a figure caught in the act of taking a dump near the manger. (NSFW tag, ahoy!) The figurine (whose name translates as "the shitter") is an addition to the Nativity tableaus in the Catalonia region of Spain. Some interpret the caganer as a reminder that God can arrive on earth at any moment - and he doesn't care if he catches you with your britches down. The caganer figure is deeply rooted in the national identity of many Catalan people. Journalist Josep Pernau suggested the caganer should replace Cobi as the mascot for the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona. He declared: "better a plump caganer with full thighs than a 'designer dog,'" which earned him special recognition by the the Friends of the Caganer, an association (ass-ociation?) dedicated to keeping the tradition alive. In 2005, Barcelona administrators banned the figure from that year's Nativity display, to encourage compliance with a recent city-wide law against public defecation. Massive protests forced the city to restore the caganer for the 2006 season. Traditional caganer figures are dressed in the garb of a Catalan peasant, but you can collect any number of personas: Santa Claus; Papa Smurf; a wide variety of politicians, including Barack Obama, George W. Bush, Sarah Palin and Silvio Berlusconi; Darth Vader; or a Playmobil-styled caganer to match the Playmobil Nativity playset. [Caganers previously on metafilter, and previouslier.]

A traditional Nativity scene, Catalan-style

empath — Thu, 23 Dec 2010 07:03:02 -0800

Mary, Joseph and the shepherds are all gathered around the baby Jesus in his manger, as loudspeakers emit the occasional animal sound for extra, rustic effect. But this is Catalonia, and no crib is complete without one additional figure. He is known in Catalan as the caganer.

Got a push broom? Here's some Beethoven.

jeanmari — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 13:33:39 -0800

Atrapa-sons, an amusing and educational television show from TV3 Catalonia in Spain, entertains you with musical numbers creatively composed using ordinary household objects, including rakes, potatoes, surgical gloves, forearm crutches, and brooms. Grab some pots and spoons and join in!

Keeping Celtic languages alive on TV and the Web

joeclark — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 11:21:14 -0800

Since 1980, the Celtic Media Festival has brought together people who broadcast, and now Webcast, in Celtic languages. Videoblog Gwagenn.TV provides a report (with autoplaying video) from the 2009 festival whose clips and interviews are spoken and subtitled variously in Breton, French, English, Welsh, Scots Gaelic and Irish, Catalan, and Basque, not all of which are actually Celtic. Special feature: Man-on-man kiss during Catalan soap opera. (Poke around at Gwagenn.TV and you’ll find such amusements as a rocket launch carried out entirely in Breton with Beastie Boys soundtrack, an interview with an Occitan-language reggae band subtitled in Breton [Flickr snippet], and a report from a Manx-language workshop.)

The Immaculate Tirant

Iridic — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 15:18:12 -0800

"God save me!" quoth the priest, with a loud voice, "is Tirante the White there? Give me him here, neighbour; for I make account I have found in him a treasure of delight, and a mine of entertainment. Here we have Don Kyrieleison of Montalvan, a valorous knight, and his brother Thomas of Montalvan, and the knight Fonseca, and the combat in which the valiant Tirante fought with the mastiff, and the smart conceits of the damsel Plazerdemivida, with the amours and artifices of the widow Reposada; and madam the empress in love with her squire Hypolito. Verily, gossip, in its way, it is the best book in the world..."

-Don Quixote de la Mancha, Part I, Chapter 6 Tirant Lo Blanc, written in the late fifteenth century by the Valencians Martorell and Joan de Galba, combines a fictionalized history of the two-fisted mercenary general Roger de Flor with elements of The Decameron, The Travels of Sir John Mandeville, and Ramon Llull's Book of the Order of Chivalry. A sense of life lifts the work above both its influences and the third-hand tropes of its contemporaries; as Cervantes writes, "here the knights eat and sleep, and die in their beds, and make their wills before their deaths; with several things which are wanting in other books of this kind." This realism was a revelation to Cervantes, whose own exploration of the border between high duty and base necessity inaugurated the Western novel. As such, Tirant the White is perhaps the most quietly influential book in all of literature. Bonus Cervantes Inspiration: Amadis of Gaul - in blog form!

Caga Tio: The World's Misunderstood Yule Log

Stewriffic — Tue, 09 Dec 2008 17:49:48 -0800

Caga Tio: The World's Misunderstood Yule Log (NSFW) El Tío de Nadal, better known as Caga Tío, is a Catalan Christmas tradition. On Christmas day or, depending on the particular household, on Christmas eve, you put the ‘tió’ partly into the fireplace and order it to “poo”. To make him “poo”, you beat him with sticks, while singing various songs of Tió de Nadal. caga tió, caga torró, avellanes i mató, si no cagues bé et daré un cop de bastó. caga tió!" (poop log, poop turrón, hazelnuts and cottage cheese, if you don't poop well, I'll hit you with a stick, poop log!) Videos of Caga Tio in action. Also, don't forget the other fecally festive Catalan holiday tradition, the Caganer.

One Minute Languages

sveskemus — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 03:34:32 -0800

At One Minute Languages you can learn greetings, talking about names, counting, and more in Catalan, Danish, French, German, Irish, Japanese, Luxembourgish, Mandarin, Norwegian, Polish, Romanian, and Russian.