23/04/2018
On April 23rd we celebrate Sant Jordi’s Day. But what is the legend and why is it such an important day for Catalonia?
Let’s look at the legend and some vocabulary related to it. There was a dragon living in a cave near the village of Montblanc who was always hungry. So, the people of the village gave him an animal to eat every day so that he wouldn’t attack them. However, the day arrived when the dragon had eaten all the animals of the village so now, in order to satisfy his hunger, he started to eat the people of the village. Every day the village people chose someone randomly to be sacrificed. One day, the name of the princess was chosen and although the King tried to oppose it, he had to agree and sent her to the dragon dressed as a bride. The dragon was on the point of eating the princess when a brave knight, called Sant Jordi, rode into the village, killed the dragon and saved her life. From the dragon’s blood, a rose tree grew and Sant Jordi took one and gave it to the princess as a symbol of his love. That is why the tradition is for the men to give a rose to their loved one and the women in their family.
The tradition extended to become the Day of the Book too. During the Great Exhibition in 1929 in Barcelona the book shops decided to set up stalls in the streets and sell books. It was so successful that they changed the date to coincide with the death of Cervantes (and Shakespeare). And so, the tradition has evolved for women to give a book to men in return. So let’s see how much you remember and if you know any other facts about this day?