Alfonso Daniel Rodríguez Castelao
Encyclopedia
Galician people
The Galicians are an ethnic group, a nationality whose historical homeland is Galicia in north-western Spain. Most Galicians are bilingual, speaking both their historic language, Galician, and Castilian Spanish.-Political and administrative divisions:...
writer in Galician language
Galician language
Galician is a language of the Western Ibero-Romance branch, spoken in Galicia, an autonomous community located in northwestern Spain, where it is co-official with Castilian Spanish, as well as in border zones of the neighbouring territories of Asturias and Castile and León.Modern Galician and...
and one of the main symbols of Galician nationalism
Nationalism
Nationalism is a political ideology that involves a strong identification of a group of individuals with a political entity defined in national terms, i.e. a nation. In the 'modernist' image of the nation, it is nationalism that creates national identity. There are various definitions for what...
. As a politician, caricaturist, painter, and writer, he is one of the leading figures of Galician identity
Galician people
The Galicians are an ethnic group, a nationality whose historical homeland is Galicia in north-western Spain. Most Galicians are bilingual, speaking both their historic language, Galician, and Castilian Spanish.-Political and administrative divisions:...
and culture, and one of the main names behind the cultural movement Xeración Nós. He was also one of the founders and president of the Partido Galeguista
Partido Galeguista (1931)
The Partido Galeguista was a Galician nationalist party founded in December 1931. It achieved notoriety during the time of the Spanish Second Republic...
(Galicianist Party).
Early life and youth (1886–1929)
Alfonso Daniel Rodríguez Castelao was born on 30 January 1886 in RianxoRianxo
Rianxo is a port town in Galicia, Spain, in the Province of A Coruña. It has a population of a little over 11,000 and its two main industries are fishing and tourism. The town's yearly celebration of Our Lady of Guadalupe is popular with tourists. Rianxo was the birthplace of several influential...
, Galicia.
He spent his childhood and adolescence in Santa Rosa de Toay, Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
. In 1900, the Rodríguez Castelao family returned to Rianxo.
Medicine
Medicine is the science and art of healing. It encompasses a variety of health care practices evolved to maintain and restore health by the prevention and treatment of illness....
from the University of Santiago de Compostela
University of Santiago de Compostela
The Royal University of Santiago de Compostela - USC is a public university located in the city of Santiago de Compostela, Galicia, Spain. A second campus is located in Lugo, Galicia....
. During his university years Rodríguez Castelao joined the tuna
Tuna (music)
A University Tuna is a musical group in Spain, Portugal, The Netherlands, Central America or South America, made up of university students. It is also known as a Tuna or Tunas if it is in plural...
, with which he visited Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
in a number of occasions. He passed his doctorate
Doctorate
A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder to teach in a specific field, A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder...
in Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
in 1909, where he began to gain some popularity as a caricaturist and cartoon artist. In fact, Rodríguez Castelao often admitted he only studied medicine to please the wishes of his father. He rarely practiced medicine professionally despite having the credentials for it. He eventually settled down in Rianxo, where he joined the political movement Acción Gallega ("Galician Action"). As a caricaturist, Rodríguez Castelao focussed on the everyday in a humorous way, although after experiencing the Spanish Civil War
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil WarAlso known as The Crusade among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War among Carlists, and The Rebellion or Uprising among Republicans. was a major conflict fought in Spain from 17 July 1936 to 1 April 1939...
, he turned to using his art to denounce the cruelties of Fascism
Fascism
Fascism is a radical authoritarian nationalist political ideology. Fascists seek to rejuvenate their nation based on commitment to the national community as an organic entity, in which individuals are bound together in national identity by suprapersonal connections of ancestry, culture, and blood...
in a collection of paintings. His paintings would also depict casual moments of Galician life and culture.
In 1916, he moved to Pontevedra
Pontevedra
Pontevedra is a city in the north-west of the Iberian Peninsula. It is the capital of both the comarca and province of Pontevedra, in Galicia . It is also the capital of its own municipality which is, in fact, often considered as an extension of the actual city...
, where he joined the Irmandades da Fala
Irmandades da Fala
The Irmandades da Fala was a Galician nationalist organization active between 1916 and 1936.It was the first political organization of Galicia that only used the Galician language.-Origin:...
("Brotherhoods of the Language"). Rodríguez Castelao developed an emotional attachment with Pontevedra and frequently claimed he wanted to be considered a native of that city; he even expressed a will to be buried there and not back in his original Rianxo or elsewhere. Also in 1916, he participated in the Asembleia Nazonalista de Lugo ("Nationalist Assembly of Lugo"), signing a key declaration for the history of Galician nationalism
Galician nationalism
Galician nationalism is a political movement arguing for the recognition of Galicia as a nation. The political movement referred to as modern Galician nationalism was born at the beginning of the twentieth century from the idea of Galicianism.- Ideology :...
.
In 1920, he starts publishing the magazine Nós
Nós
Nós is an Irish language youth lifestyle magazine. The magazine first began publishing online on 17 March 2008 as part of the annual Irish language week, Seachtain na Gaeilge...
, together with Vicente Risco
Vicente Risco
Vicente Martínez Risco Agüero was a Galician intellectual of the 20th Century. He was a founder member of Xeración Nós, and among the most important figures in the history of Galician literature. He is well regarded for his writings on Galician nationalism, as well as a contributor to the Galician...
and Otero Pedrayo
Otero Pedrayo
Ramón Otero Pedrayo was a Galician geographer, writer and intellectual. He was a key member of the Galician cultural and political movement Xeración Nós.-Biography:...
. That same year he travelled through France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
and Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. In 1922, he wrote the novel Un Ollo de Vidro and in 1924 he joined the Seminário de Estudos Galegos ("Seminar of Galician Studies") and founded the Coral Polifónica de Pontevedra ("Pontevedra Polyphonic Choir"; as he was an amateur musician). Two years, in 1926, he published Cousas. He travelled to Brittany
Brittany
Brittany is a cultural and administrative region in the north-west of France. Previously a kingdom and then a duchy, Brittany was united to the Kingdom of France in 1532 as a province. Brittany has also been referred to as Less, Lesser or Little Britain...
in 1928 to study stone crosses and publish As Cruces de Pedra na Bretaña. That is also the year when his only son dies at the age of 14.
Political career (1930–1950)
In 1930, he founded the Federación Republicana Galega ("Galician Republican Federation") at Lestrove Palace and participated in the meetings of the Partido Nacionalista Republicano Galego ("Galician Republican Nationalist Party") and in the assembly for the Federal State of Galicia. The next year he published the book Nós and became the official representative of the Partido Galeguista
Partido Galeguista (1931)
The Partido Galeguista was a Galician nationalist party founded in December 1931. It achieved notoriety during the time of the Spanish Second Republic...
to the Cortes Generales
Cortes Generales
The Cortes Generales is the legislature of Spain. It is a bicameral parliament, composed of the Congress of Deputies and the Senate . The Cortes has power to enact any law and to amend the constitution...
. In 1934, he published Retrincos, Os Dous de Sempre and the a re-edition of Cousas.
He became member of the Real Academia Galega
Real Academia Galega
The Royal Galician Academy is an institution dedicated to the study of Galician culture and especially the Galician language; it promulgates norms of grammar, spelling, and vocabulary and works to promote the language. The Academy is based in A Coruña, Galicia, Spain. The current president is...
("Royal Galician Academy") in 1933, and shortly after that, in 1935, he was forced into exile by the Spanish government to the Spanish city of Badajoz
Badajoz
Badajoz is the capital of the Province of Badajoz in the autonomous community of Extremadura, Spain, situated close to the Portuguese border, on the left bank of the river Guadiana, and the Madrid–Lisbon railway. The population in 2007 was 145,257....
, in Extremadura
Extremadura
Extremadura is an autonomous community of western Spain whose capital city is Mérida. Its component provinces are Cáceres and Badajoz. It is bordered by Portugal to the west...
, where he worked as a civil servant. It was then where he began to write what would become his key work, Sempre en Galiza. In 1936
Spanish general election, 1936
Legislative elections were held in Spain on February 16, 1936. At stake were all 473 seats in the unicameral Cortes Generales. The winners of the 1936 elections were the Popular Front, a left-wing coalition of the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party , Republican Left , Esquerra Republicana de...
he gained a seat at the Spanish parliament, this time representing the Frente Popular
Popular Front (Spain)
The Popular Front in Spain's Second Republic was an electoral coalition and pact signed in January 1936 by various left-wing political organisations, instigated by Manuel Azaña for the purpose of contesting that year's election....
alliance (Popular Front, which included the Galicianist Party).
The Civil War
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil WarAlso known as The Crusade among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War among Carlists, and The Rebellion or Uprising among Republicans. was a major conflict fought in Spain from 17 July 1936 to 1 April 1939...
began whilst Rodríguez Castelao was in Madrid presenting the results of the referendum
Referendum
A referendum is a direct vote in which an entire electorate is asked to either accept or reject a particular proposal. This may result in the adoption of a new constitution, a constitutional amendment, a law, the recall of an elected official or simply a specific government policy. It is a form of...
for the Galician Statute of Autonomy
Galician Statute of Autonomy (1936)
The Galician Statute of Autonomy was a statute of autonomy for Galicia. It was voted in referendum and presented to the Spanish Parliament. Yet, it could never be implemented because of the Spanish Civil War and subsequent Francoist dictatorship...
, which had been approved by 98 per cent of voters, and in which Castelao had played a critical role together with his personal friend Alexandre Bóveda
Alexandre Bóveda
Alexandre Bóveda Iglesias , commonly known as Alexandre Bóveda, was a Galician politician and financial officer. He is considered one of the most important Galicianist intellectuals during the Spanish Second Republic...
. During the war he organised the Milicias Galegas ("Galician Militias") in collaboration with the Spanish Communist Party
Spanish Communist Party
Spanish Communist Party , was the first communist party in Spain, formed out of the Federación de Juventudes Socialistas . The founders of the party, that had belonged to leftwing within FJS, included Ramón Merino Gracia, Manuel Ugarte, Pedro Illescasm Luis Portela, Tiburicio Pico and Rito Estaban...
and declared his support to the government of the Spanish Republic
Second Spanish Republic
The Second Spanish Republic was the government of Spain between April 14 1931, and its destruction by a military rebellion, led by General Francisco Franco....
. As the Francoist
Francisco Franco
Francisco Franco y Bahamonde was a Spanish general, dictator and head of state of Spain from October 1936 , and de facto regent of the nominally restored Kingdom of Spain from 1947 until his death in November, 1975...
troops advanced Rodríguez Castelao moved to Valencia - where he still had time to publish Galicia Martir and Atila en Galicia - and later moved to Barcelona
Barcelona
Barcelona is the second largest city in Spain after Madrid, and the capital of Catalonia, with a population of 1,621,537 within its administrative limits on a land area of...
.
In 1938, he was sent by the Spanish government to the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
, the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
, in order to obtain support for the Republic. From New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
he cruised to Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...
, where in 1941 he performed for the first time the play Os vellos non deben de namorarse, Castelao's contribution to Galician theatre.
In 1944, while in Buenos Aires, he finished and published a seminal work of Galician political theory: Sempre en Galiza (lit. "Always in Galicia"), which was in fact a compilation of three books (three parts) and a number of other texts. Sempre en Galiza is a work of paramount importance as it sets the basis for the ideological development of contemporary Galician nationalism
Galician nationalism
Galician nationalism is a political movement arguing for the recognition of Galicia as a nation. The political movement referred to as modern Galician nationalism was born at the beginning of the twentieth century from the idea of Galicianism.- Ideology :...
. It has been considered one of the most advanced political texts of its time. Also in that year he became the first president of the Consello de Galiza, the Government of Galicia
Xunta de Galicia
The Xunta de Galicia is the collective decision-making body of the government of the autonomous community of Galicia, composed of the President, the Vice-President and the specialized ministers ....
in exile. In 1945, together with Catalonian and Basque intellectuals in exile, he founded the magazine Galeuzca as an evocation of the political alliance of 1933 between Galicia, Catalonia
Catalonia
Catalonia is an autonomous community in northeastern Spain, with the official status of a "nationality" of Spain. Catalonia comprises four provinces: Barcelona, Girona, Lleida, and Tarragona. Its capital and largest city is Barcelona. Catalonia covers an area of 32,114 km² and has an...
and the Basque Country
Basque Country (autonomous community)
The Basque Country is an autonomous community of northern Spain. It includes the Basque provinces of Álava, Biscay and Gipuzkoa, also called Historical Territories....
. In 1946 he was appointed as Minister of the Spanish Republican government in exile, living in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
. In 1947, back in Buenos Aires and after being diagnosed with lung cancer
Lung cancer
Lung cancer is a disease characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissues of the lung. If left untreated, this growth can spread beyond the lung in a process called metastasis into nearby tissue and, eventually, into other parts of the body. Most cancers that start in lung, known as primary...
, he published As Cruces de Pedra na Galiza.
Rodríguez Castelao died on 7 January 1950 at the hospital of the Centro Gallego ("Galician Centre") in Buenos Aires. The Argentine Senate
Argentine Senate
The Argentine Senate is the upper house of the Argentine National Congress. It has 72 senators: three for each province and three for the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires...
and the City of Buenos Aires erected monuments to honour him. Since then, most of his work has been translated and published into a number of languages. In 1984, Rodríguez Castelao's remains were brought back to Galicia and he was buried at the Panteón de Galegos Ilustres ("Pantheon of Illustrious Galicians"), Bonaval, in the capital city of Santiago de Compostela
Santiago de Compostela
Santiago de Compostela is the capital of the autonomous community of Galicia, Spain.The city's Cathedral is the destination today, as it has been throughout history, of the important 9th century medieval pilgrimage route, the Way of St. James...
.
Political views
Rodríguez Castelao was a Galician nationalistGalician nationalism
Galician nationalism is a political movement arguing for the recognition of Galicia as a nation. The political movement referred to as modern Galician nationalism was born at the beginning of the twentieth century from the idea of Galicianism.- Ideology :...
(heir of the early Galicianism
Galicianism (Galicia)
Galicianism is a political ideology of nationalist character whose objective is the defence of Galicia and its culture by the means of the establishment and strengthening of its own institutions.-Origins:...
), federalist
Federalism
Federalism is a political concept in which a group of members are bound together by covenant with a governing representative head. The term "federalism" is also used to describe a system of the government in which sovereignty is constitutionally divided between a central governing authority and...
, pacifist
Pacifism
Pacifism is the opposition to war and violence. The term "pacifism" was coined by the French peace campaignerÉmile Arnaud and adopted by other peace activists at the tenth Universal Peace Congress inGlasgow in 1901.- Definition :...
, progressist
Progressivism
Progressivism is an umbrella term for a political ideology advocating or favoring social, political, and economic reform or changes. Progressivism is often viewed by some conservatives, constitutionalists, and libertarians to be in opposition to conservative or reactionary ideologies.The...
and internationalist
Internationalism (politics)
Internationalism is a political movement which advocates a greater economic and political cooperation among nations for the theoretical benefit of all...
. He accepted the autonomy granted to Galicia by the Second Spanish Republic
Second Spanish Republic
The Second Spanish Republic was the government of Spain between April 14 1931, and its destruction by a military rebellion, led by General Francisco Franco....
as a tool to construct a possible Galician State, in federation with other Iberian
Iberian Peninsula
The Iberian Peninsula , sometimes called Iberia, is located in the extreme southwest of Europe and includes the modern-day sovereign states of Spain, Portugal and Andorra, as well as the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar...
nations. He was also a convinced pro-European
Pro-European
Pro-European is a subjective term applied to a person who supports the idea of European unification and generally supports further 'deepening' of European integration, specifically in the context of political argument over the current and future status of the EU and its policies.-The Pro-European...
. He wrote in Sempre en Galiza that one of his dreams was to "one day see the emergence of a 'United States of Europe' ".
At the end of his life, and as expressed in the final parts of Sempre en Galiza, Rodríguez Castelao became somewhat disappointed with the Spanish Republican politicians in exile, and began to discuss the advantages of a completely independent Galician State.
Idea of Spain
Rodríguez Castelao always used the term of Hespaña instead of España, taken directly from the old name HispaniaHispania
Another theory holds that the name derives from Ezpanna, the Basque word for "border" or "edge", thus meaning the farthest area or place. Isidore of Sevilla considered Hispania derived from Hispalis....
. By using Hespaña he was in fact referring to the Iberian Peninsula
Iberian Peninsula
The Iberian Peninsula , sometimes called Iberia, is located in the extreme southwest of Europe and includes the modern-day sovereign states of Spain, Portugal and Andorra, as well as the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar...
as a whole, and not just to the country known as Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
. In fact, he would use the term España in a depreciative way, an example of the "past" and what "should be avoided". It was his ideal that a federation
Federation
A federation , also known as a federal state, is a type of sovereign state characterized by a union of partially self-governing states or regions united by a central government...
of "Iberian Nations" should emerge to create this new Hespaña. For Rodríguez Castelao these nations were: Castile
Castile and León
Castile and León is an autonomous community in north-western Spain. It was so constituted in 1983 and it comprises the historical regions of León and Old Castile...
, Catalonia
Catalonia
Catalonia is an autonomous community in northeastern Spain, with the official status of a "nationality" of Spain. Catalonia comprises four provinces: Barcelona, Girona, Lleida, and Tarragona. Its capital and largest city is Barcelona. Catalonia covers an area of 32,114 km² and has an...
, the Basque Country
Basque Country (autonomous community)
The Basque Country is an autonomous community of northern Spain. It includes the Basque provinces of Álava, Biscay and Gipuzkoa, also called Historical Territories....
, Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
and Galicia. He also implied that apart from creating the political conditions for it, cultural conditions (education) should also be provided.
Rodríguez Castelao did not support the classical idea of Iberian Federalism, as this advocated for the union of the two Iberian States
Sovereign state
A sovereign state, or simply, state, is a state with a defined territory on which it exercises internal and external sovereignty, a permanent population, a government, and the capacity to enter into relations with other sovereign states. It is also normally understood to be a state which is neither...
, Spain and Portugal as such, and not of what he considered to be the real five nations of Iberia. He pointed out that before these nations could federate the Spanish State should "break up" first, so all nations could pact entering the new federation on equal political terms, as free-states
Free state (government)
Free state is a term occasionally used in the official titles of some states.In principle the title asserts and emphasises the freedom of the state in question, but what this actually means varies greatly in different contexts:...
. He resented that Spain had a desproportionate influence from Castile
Castile (historical region)
A former kingdom, Castile gradually merged with its neighbours to become the Crown of Castile and later the Kingdom of Spain when united with the Crown of Aragon and the Kingdom of Navarre...
, which was taking over the other nations and regions.
Then again, Rodríguez Castelao seemed to have gained a sympathy for the idea of full independence for Galicia in the last years of his life, as succinctly mentioned in Sempre in Galiza and in a number of late texts and letters.
Language
Although bilingual in GalicianGalician language
Galician is a language of the Western Ibero-Romance branch, spoken in Galicia, an autonomous community located in northwestern Spain, where it is co-official with Castilian Spanish, as well as in border zones of the neighbouring territories of Asturias and Castile and León.Modern Galician and...
and Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
, Rodríguez Castelao always wrote and published in Galician, with very rare exceptions. He was a keen defender of Galician culture and considered the language to be the key element of cohesion among the Galician people
Galician people
The Galicians are an ethnic group, a nationality whose historical homeland is Galicia in north-western Spain. Most Galicians are bilingual, speaking both their historic language, Galician, and Castilian Spanish.-Political and administrative divisions:...
. In Sempre en Galiza he stated "If we are Galician that is because of the language". Castelao often criticised the imposition of Spanish language in Galicia, and demanded for Galician to become an official language and thus the preferred language in the administration and education.
Rodríguez Castelao could, in a way, be considered a pre-reintegrationist
Reintegrationism
Reintegrationism is the linguistic and cultural movement in Galicia which defends the unity of Galician and Portuguese as a single language. In other words, it postulates that Galician and Portuguese languages did not only share a common origin and literary tradition, but that they are in fact...
as he claimed that Galician and Portuguese
Portuguese language
Portuguese is a Romance language that arose in the medieval Kingdom of Galicia, nowadays Galicia and Northern Portugal. The southern part of the Kingdom of Galicia became independent as the County of Portugal in 1095...
had not just a common origin
Galician-Portuguese
Galician-Portuguese or Old Portuguese was a West Iberian Romance language spoken in the Middle Ages, in the northwest area of the Iberian Peninsula. It was first spoken in the area bounded in the north and west by the Atlantic Ocean and the Douro River in the south but it was later extended south...
, but also a "common future". In his travels to Portugal, and sporadically to Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
while residing in Argentina, Rodríguez Castelao was impressed with how easily he could use his native Galician in order to communicate freely with Portuguese speakers.
Nevertheless, Rodríguez Castelao never used Portuguese orthography
Orthography
The orthography of a language specifies a standardized way of using a specific writing system to write the language. Where more than one writing system is used for a language, for example Kurdish, Uyghur, Serbian or Inuktitut, there can be more than one orthography...
in his writings, despite affirming that "I hope that one day Galician and Portuguese will, gradually and naturally, merge". Indeed, Rodríguez Castelao's political writings were addressed to a Galician audience mostly, hence he used a type of language and spelling that could be easily understood by all. Rodríguez Castelao always prioritised his native language as a tool to unite Galicians. He did make use of old Galician words though, often common in Portuguese, as a way to progressively introduce them into colloquial speech; for example his preference for the term Galiza instead of Galicia for the name of the country.
Partial bibliography
- Cego da romería (1913)
- Diario (1921)
- Un ollo de vidro. Memorias d'un esquelete (1922)
- Cousas (1926, 1929)
- Cincoenta homes por dez reás (1930)
- As cruces de pedra na Bretaña (1930)
- Nós (1931)
- Os dous de sempre (1934)
- Retrincos (1934)
- Galicia Mártir (1937)
- Atila en Galicia (1937)
- Milicianos (1938)
- Sempre en Galiza (1944)
- Os vellos non deben de namorarse (play represented in 1941, published posthumously in 1953)
- As cruces de pedra na Galiza (published posthumously in 1950)
See also
- Partido Galeguista (1931)Partido Galeguista (1931)The Partido Galeguista was a Galician nationalist party founded in December 1931. It achieved notoriety during the time of the Spanish Second Republic...
- Galician nationalismGalician nationalismGalician nationalism is a political movement arguing for the recognition of Galicia as a nation. The political movement referred to as modern Galician nationalism was born at the beginning of the twentieth century from the idea of Galicianism.- Ideology :...
- Galician Statute of Autonomy (1936)Galician Statute of Autonomy (1936)The Galician Statute of Autonomy was a statute of autonomy for Galicia. It was voted in referendum and presented to the Spanish Parliament. Yet, it could never be implemented because of the Spanish Civil War and subsequent Francoist dictatorship...
- Galicianism (Galicia)Galicianism (Galicia)Galicianism is a political ideology of nationalist character whose objective is the defence of Galicia and its culture by the means of the establishment and strengthening of its own institutions.-Origins:...
External links
- Museo Castelao.org – Biography, bibliography, museum information (in Galician)
- Biography of Castelao (in English)
- Selected quotes from Castelao on language and politics (in Galician)
- "Castelao y Casares Quiroga" – article about Castelao and Santiago Casares QuirogaSantiago Casares QuirogaSantiago Casares y Quiroga was a Spanish politician who was Prime Minister of Spain from 13 May to 19 July 1936....
(in Spanish) - "Theoretical Conceptualization of Emigration and Exile in Alfonso Rodriguez Castelao's Sempre en Galiza", by Mel Bohn (2006). Retrieved 27 September 2008.