Els_Segadors

Els Segadors

Els Segadors

National anthem of Catalonia, Spain

"Els Segadors" (Eastern Calatan: [əls səɣəˈðos], Western Calatan: [els seɣaˈðos]; "The Reapers") is the official national anthem[1] of Catalonia, nationality[2] and autonomous community of Spain.

Quick Facts English: The Reapers, Lyrics ...
Instrumental recording of the anthem

History

The Reapers' War "Corpus de Sang" (1640). Painted in 1910
Portrait of Francesc Alió, composer of the music

The original song dates in the oral tradition to 1640, based on the events of June 1640 known as Corpus de Sang during the Thirty Years' War (1618–1648) between Spain, England, France and Austria, the event that started the Reapers' War or Guerra dels Segadors, also known as the Catalan Revolt,[3] where Catalans fought against the Count-Duke of Olivares, the chief minister of King Philip IV of Spain. The song describes the event, an uprising of peasants due to the large presence of the Royal army in the Principality of Catalonia, as they were required to lodge and provision the troops, creating a large tension and discomfort and leading to episodes such as religious sacrileges, destruction of personal properties, and rape of women by the soldiers. The second part of the song tells the arrival of the rebel reapers in Barcelona, who kill various guards, the royal officers and the viceroy of Catalonia, Dalmau de Queralt, ending with the exhortation to Catalans to take the arms, as they are at war.

In the 19th century, the text was compiled in the Romancillero Catalán, a book of folk traditions written by Manuel Milà i Fontanals. The music was standardized by Francesc Alió in 1892.[3] Its modern lyrics were written by Emili Guanyavents, who won a competition convened by the political party Unió Catalanista in 1899, simplifying the text to three verses. At the time, the change of lyrics caused some controversy among conservative elements, as Guanyavents, coming from sectors close to anarchism, gave them a revolutionary tone.

Since the beginning of the 20th century, "Els Segadors" became one of the most relevant symbols of catalanism and Catalonia itself, increasing its popularity during the Second Spanish Republic and the Civil War. Despite an attempt of the Generalitat de Catalunya (Catalan autonomous government) in 1931 to replace it with another song, "El Cant del Poble", "Els Segadors" remained highly popular, treated by Catalan government and population as the national anthem. The dictatorship of Francisco Franco (1939–1975) banned the public use of Catalan national symbolism, among them "Els Segadors". Tolerated songs, such as the "Virolai" or "La Santa Espina", were often played in its place to express Catalan identity.

After decades used de facto, sometimes alongside the "Cant de la Senyera", the Catalan government officially adopted "Els Segadors" as the national anthem of Catalonia on 25 February 1993, by law of its parliament. The official version was made in 1994. The new Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia of 2006 confirms this decision by its article 8.4.[4]

Lyrics

Modern lyrics

More information Poetic English translation, Occitan translation ...

Original lyrics: pre-1899

c. 1900 choral a capella vocal recording (original lyrics) (verses one and fifteen)
Arranged by Lluís Millet and performed by the Orfeó Català
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More information Catalan original, English translation ...

Recordings and variations

An arrangement of "Els Segadors" appears on "Ballad of the Fallen" by Charlie Haden (1983). Contemporary Catalan composer Jordi Savall made a version of the folk song,[11] using the original narrative (which dates back to the 17th century) combined with the modern lyrics and refrain, which were added later. The song has also been recorded and interpreted by major artists, included on albums such as Traditional Catalan Songs (Victoria de los Ángeles).

In October 2017, in the aftermath of the Catalan independence referendum, the American band A Sound of Thunder released a heavy metal variation of the anthem, using a mix of English and Catalan lyrics.[12]

See also

Notes

  1. See Help:IPA/Catalan and Catalan phonology.
  2. Sometimes written Catalunya, comtat gran ([kətəˈluɲə kumˈtat ɡɾan]; English: Catalonia, large county; Spanish: Cataluña, condado grande).[9][10]

References

  1. [1]
    "Law 1/1993, 25 February, of the national anthem". dogc.vlex.es. Retrieved 14 September 2019.
  2. [2]
    "First article of the Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia. 'Catalonia, as a nationality, exercises its self-government constituted as an autonomous community...'". gencat.cat. Retrieved 30 June 2018.
  3. [3]
    "Generalitat de Catalunya: National symbols". Archived from the original on 2013-10-16.
  4. [4]
    "Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia, Article 8.1: "The flag, the holiday and the anthem are the national symbols of Catalonia, defined as a nationality by Article 1"" (PDF). parlament.cat. Retrieved 14 September 2019.
  5. [5]
    "Todo sobre 'Els Segadors': la letra y su significado". El Plural. 2017-09-20.
  6. [6]
    "National anthem". Gencat.cat.
  7. [7]
    Muntaner, Josep Massot i; Pueyo, Salvador; Martorell, Oriol (1993). Els segadors: himne nacional de Catalunya (in Catalan). L'Abadia de Montserrat. ISBN 978-84-7826-464-3.
  8. [8]
    Oliver y Castañer, Jaime (May 1900). Los Segadors: Estudio histórico-político de literatura popular catalana (in Spanish). La España Moderna. p. 108.
  9. [9]
    Vergés, Oriol; Cruañas, Josep (1982). La Generalitat en la història de Catalunya (in Catalan). Departament de Cultura de la Generalitat de Catalunya. p. 34. ISBN 978-84-500-8153-4.
  10. [10]
    Schädel, Bernhard (1908). Manual de fonètica catalana (in Catalan). O. Schulze Verlag. p. 80.
  11. [11]
    "CANÇONS DE LA CATALUNYA MIL·LENÀRIA. Planys & Llegendes – Alia Vox". www.alia-vox.com. Retrieved 2022-01-09.
  12. [12]
    https://www.asoundofthunderband.com/single-post/2017/10/05/Hola-Catalunya [dead link]
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