Recent political developments in Spain regarding Catalonia have prompted scholars from several disciplines to research the singularity of this region and of the territories of the old Crown of Aragon. Against the backdrop of the pro-independence movement, those in favor and against have insisted on the particularity or commonality of Catalonia and the Països Catalans (Catalan-speaking areas) within the Spanish State. From the Catalan point of view, their singularity is not sufficiently recognized, and respect for their institutions and their autonomy is at stake to the point that many prefer to secede from Spain. Singularity or its absence play a relevant role in the construction of identity, which seems to be key in understanding many Catalans' attitudes towards the central government, a fluid concept that allows for a variety of interpretations. History of Catalonia and Its Implications for Contemporary Nationalism and Cultural Conflict is a critical reference book that centers around the topic of Catalan cultural and linguistic identity. With input from renowned scholars in several fields, the chapters explore the issue of Catalan identity from a variety of perspectives. While highlighting the legal and historical component to identity and also sociolinguistics and political linguistics, this book is ideally intended for scholars in the fields of Hispanic studies, history, linguistics, political science, and literary studies as well as practitioners, stakeholders, researchers, academicians, and students interested in contemporary politics and the political developments in Spain regarding Catalonia.

This book, the first study of Catalan nationalism to appear in English, outlines the history of Catalonia, showing how the national and cultural identity of the region persisted despite persecution. This provides the necessary background for the analysis of the contemporary political and cultural situation in Catalonia in the wider context of the European Union.

This volume helps us to understand that the current political disorders in Catalonia have deep cultural roots. It focuses on the rise of Catalan cultural, national and linguistic identity in the 20th century. What is happening in Catalonia? What lies behind its political conflicts? Catalan identity has been evolving for centuries, starting in early medieval ages (11th and 12lve centuries). It is not a modern phenomenon. The emergence of imperial Spain in the 16 c. and the French Ancien Régime in the 17 c. correlates with a decline of Catalan culture, which was politically absorbed by the Spanish state after the conquest of Barcelona in 1714. However, Catalan language and culture flourished again under the stimulus of the European Romantic Nationalism movement (known as the Renaixença in Catalonia). During the first Dictatorship (Primo de Rivera, 1923-1930), the Spanish Civil War (1936-1939), and the long Francoist era (1939-1975), Catalan language and culture were repressed, yet refurbished and reconstructed at the same time. This rise of a plural, complex, and non-homogeneous Catalan identity constitutes the subject matter of this volume. National conflicts that emerged later in the Spanish democratic state leant heavily on the life engagement and vital commitment experienced by the entrenched intellectual movements of the twentieth century in Catalonia, Valencian Country and the Balearic Islands. This book reveals the cultural and literary grassroots of these conflicts.

This volume offers an overview of the ongoing debate regarding nationalism, globalisation, secessionism and languages in 21st century Catalonia. At the heart of the book is a set of interlocking questions relating to socio-political issues in sub-state nations seeking independence in the 21st century.

The present book is a complex approach to the elements that built the history of Catalonia. This collective book analyze differents aspects, such as: cultural history, the History of Law, the Political history or the History of the State, from the Midlle Ages to the Modern and Contemporary history.

Although the fight for independence by national minorities has received much attention recently, there is no study of how globalised sport in its most advanced form can help to stimulate it. This book shows how the 1992 Olympic Games raised the tension that already existed between Catalonia and Spain, from the time they were awarded to Barcelona until they opened. John Hargreaves analyses and explains the way in which the conflict developed and eventually was resolved, in terms of the special characteristics of Catalan nationalism, the nature of the new Spanish democracy and the special role played by the International Olympic Committee. This book will be relevant to academics, researchers and postgraduates specialising in nationalism and Catalan nationalism, as well as being of interest to teachers, researchers and students of political sociology, cultural studies and sports studies, and professionals working in the fields of culture, sport, recreation and leisure.

Analyses with rare impartiality what sets the Catalans apart from Spain, and how the separatist debate is playing out.