Saint George's Day - Learn Spanish

April 23rd marks the celebration of Sant Jordi, one of the most representative festivities in Catalonia. If you find yourself in Barcelona on this day, you will see a multitude of book and rose stalls.

It is curious because Sant Jordi is the mythical Saint George, that Christian knight who saved a princess from the claws of a terrible dragon. How has spilled dragon blood turned into printed ink? It is the result of one of those curious caroms that occur in the sphere of traditions.

I’m sure you know the legend, but let’s do a summary: George, the son of a Roman official and a Christian woman, enlisted in the legions and was stationed in Nicomedia (Asia Minor) by order of Emperor Diocletian. When the emperor issued an edict decreeing the persecution of Christians, George refused, which earned him a death sentence and martyrdom.

But the best-known story of this soldier is, without a doubt, that of his fight against the dragon of Cappadocia (in present-day Turkey). Legend has it that the fierce beast terrorized the region, so the fearful locals decided to sacrifice two lambs daily to avoid attacks. When the lambs ran out, they had no choice but to offer humans. These sacrifices were chosen by lottery, but curiously, it never fell upon any member of the royal family, until a furious mob seized the king's daughter and offered her to the monster.

God willed that, on the way to the dragon's lair, the princess encountered the soldier George who, furious about the sacrifices, decided to intervene. We won't dwell on the details of the fight, but finally George won the battle, and since then his feat has been known and celebrated not only in Catalonia, but also in countries like England, Bulgaria, and Portugal.

One of the details of the story says that the spilled blood of the beast turned into a rose that the knight gave to the princess. And with this detail, the celebration of Sant Jordi begins, as the men of Catalonia, turned into knights for a day, gave roses to their beloved princesses in memory of the legend.

Well... and the books? A modern legend says that both Shakespeare and Cervantes died on the same day, coincidentally on April 23rd, 1616. This is not entirely true, as Cervantes died on the 22nd and was buried on the 23rd; and Shakespeare died when England had not yet adopted the Gregorian calendar, so the Bard actually left this world on May 3rd. In any case, the only author who truly died on April 23rd, 1616, was Inca Garcilaso de la Vega, born in Peru. Losses aside, this date ended up being adopted as "International Book Day."

In view of this, any reader might wonder if it isn't a bit "incorrect" for men to give a simple and ethereal rose while women must gift a lasting and profound volume. Fortunately, things have changed, and today, men give a book in addition to the flower.

Given that Saint George is the patron saint of Catalonia and this community has produced great writers such as Josep Pla (who, by the way, also died on an April 23rd), Eduardo Mendoza, Ana María Matute, or Rosa Regás, it is logical that it is one of the major days for all Catalans.