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= St. George's Day =

St. George’s Day is celebrated on 23rd April in Catalonia with the Book Day and a fair of roses that are symbols of culture and love. It also vindicates the Catalan culture. It is their St. Valentine’s Day and for that reason, giving a red “as blood” rose to your beloved person has become a tradition since the 15th century. In the 1930s giving a book to men also became a tradition on the occasion of the Book Day. The National Day of Aragon is celebrated the same day.

Reason
St. George's Day is celebrated on 23rd April since 303 because of the death of the knight George. The Saint, who was under the Emperor Diocletian’s orders, refused to obey the order to prosecute Christians, therefore he was martyred and decapitated. Very soon, people began to venerate him as a martyr and tales related to him immediately appeared.

The cult of Saint George was fully extended to all cities in Catalonia in the Middle Ages, although he was already devoted in the 8th century. Since 1456, he is their official patron saint. This day was celebrated quite intensively since the 16th century. It was at the end of the 19th century, in the middle of the political and cultural movement of the Renaixença, when St. George was established as the most celebrated patriotic, civic and cultural day in Catalonia.

Legend
The Catalan version of the legend of Saint George narrates that after a bloody battle between the knight and the dragon, the beast fell pierced by the sharpened iron. A rose bush that bloomed profusely each April was born from the drops of blood falling down to the ground. This is the explanation, according to the oral tradition, for the custom of giving roses on St. George's Day, on 23rd April.

Besides all imaginary legends and tales, it is known that the tradition of giving roses to lovers began long time ago. The link between Saint George and the chivalry and the courtly love world may have been the origin of this tradition. It is also known that in the 15th century a fair for lovers was celebrated in Barcelona. The sellers of these flowers were settled around the Palau de la Generalitat. At the same time, presenting a rose to the women who attended the Eucharist officiated at the chapel of St. George in The Palau de la Generalitat was already a tradition. Finally, it is said that the custom of giving roses has Roman roots, specifically those of the festivities in honor of the goddess Flora, which were later Christianized.

Stalls of roses
In the symbolic universe, the red rose, color of passion, is the flower of feminine love while the carnation is the one reserved for masculine love. On St. George's Day, the decoration of the rose is also quite curious and elements of different origins are mixed. On the one hand, feminine love represented by the rose with red, velvety and fragile petals, and sometimes accompanied by a spike which represents fertility, generates a very ancient interpretation of cereal seeds. Nevertheless, some people actually interprete it more prosaic and relate it to the arrival of good weather. On the other hand, the flower of St. George is usually decorated with elements that evoke Catalan identity, such as ties or strips with the Senyera, claiming the vindicative value of the day. Nowadays, florists, corners, avenues, streets, squares... become points of sale and distribution of thousands of roses that are given to the loved ones, as tradition dictates, but also to friends, parents, colleagues, clients, etcetera. This flower has exceeded the original meaning of love and has also become a courtesy and friendship gift. The rose has converted into the main character of this day, up to the point that national production is not able to keep up with demand, therefore importations from other parts of the world are needed.

History
In the 15th century a fair of roses was already celebrated in Barcelona, where mostly couples, the engaged ones, and young marriages came to celebrate St. George’s Day. This leads people to think that this day is the origin of the tradition of giving a rose that was celebrated in the Palau de la Generalitat in Catalonia. Changing this date into a provisional celebration was proposed for the first time in 1436. This proposal was made to the Corts Catalanes, but it was not made effective until 1456. Since the 15th century, St. George’s Day is the lovers' day in Catalonia, and giving a red "as blood rose and a book is a tradition among couples. The monarchs Peter II, James I, and Peter IV contributed to make the Saint popular. Despite being traditional, the popularity of giving roses was actively reestablished in 1914, due to the impulse of the Mancomunitat.

Origins
The Book Day has its origin in the 1920s, when the Valencian writer Vicent Clavel Andrés, director of the Cervantes Publishing House, proposed to have a celebration to the Cambra Oficial del Llibre de Barcelona i al Gremi d'Editors i Llibreters in order to promote books in Catalonia. The chosen date was 7th October 1927.

In 1929, in the middle of the Barcelona International Exposition, booksellers took to the street and this initiative was so successful that they decided to change the date. The new Book Day would be on 23rd April, a spring date. It also coincides with the burial of Miguel de Cervantes and with the death of playwright William Shakespeare (according to the Julian calendar; he died on 3rd May according to the Gregorian calendar), in 1616. Moreover, Josep Pla also would died the same day in 1981. From the very beginning, this celebration contributed decisively to give a strong boost to the production and marketing of Catalan books and to the Catalan editorial production. It did not stop even during the Spanish Civil War.

The transcendence of the Catalan day has been so big that 23rd April was declared World Book and Copyright Day by the UNESCO in 1995.

International Book Day
On 15th November, 1995, the UNESCO General Conference decreed 23rd April as the International Book and Copyright Day. This day, readers take the opportunity to exchange their impressions on reading on the street with their favourite writers, and writers sign their last new publishing. For the last years, this Book Day tradition has attracted a strong media component, not only for the authors, but also for the interest in this celebration. This confirms their influence and their success beyond Catalan borders.

National Day of Catalonia
St. George’s Day has been declared National Day of Catalonia by the Generalitat de Catalunya, however this day is not a public holiday: it is a working and a school day. On St. George’s Day, there are official receptions in the Palau de La Generalitat of Catalonia and in the education sector, where the Jocs Florals take place. On this important day, the printed and recited word has the greater role. According to the book Costumari Català of the folklorist Joan Amades, it was in the small town of Montblanc (Catalonia) where Saint George killed the dragon and saved the princess. For that reason, since 1987, Montblanc revives the Medieval Week of St. George’s Legend. The high point of this day is the performance of the legend of the noble knight, hero, and princesses' saviour in the stages collected by the popular tradition.

This day has a rescindable facet for Catalan culture and many balconies are decorated with the Senyera. There are also some stands with political demands to help humanitarian organisations, to raise money for schools or, just to earn some extra money. Mass media broadcast the celebration from the most emblematic places. However, it is necessary to highlight the festive atmosphere generated on this day. Some activities in libraries and concerts in the street are included in the busy Catalan cultural programme.

Books and roses are sold throughout Catalonia, but it is in La Rambla of Barcelona where this event reaches its highest expression. During these dates, there are some temporal stands set up where the usual ones are. It is a tradition to promote the sale of books signed by their authors, and to discount prices. Nearby bookshops are overflowing, and opened even on Sunday. Moreover, some poems and fragments from books are read, and theatres and showrooms make special offers. As far as roses are concerned, they turn into a business that everybody takes advantage of. Actually, it is estimated that in 2010 six millions of roses were sold in Catalonia, which means that 40% of roses were sold throughout the year.

National Day of Aragon
Lead article: Día de Aragón

The cult to Saint George (Sant Chorche, in Aragonese) in the Kingdom of Aragon dates back to 1096. That year, the belief that the mediation of Saint George in favour of the Christian forces was decisive for the victory in the Battle of Alcoraz was spread. This fight determined the withdrawal of the Muslim army which tried to assist the city of Huesca, guaranteeing the continuity of the Aragonese siege against the square. Moreover, it led irremissibly to the reconquest of this valuable city for the kingdom. The help of Saint George in this kingdom was official in 1461, it was dictated by the Cortes de Aragón met in Calatayud city upon convocation by King John II, and remaining enshrined by the Fueros de Aragón. After the Nueva Planta decrees, this Aragonese celebration was abolished for over 250 years. It was not until a day after the constitution of the Diputación General de Aragón on 10th April 1978, the celebration was restored. The declaration on 23rd April as a typical Aragonese celebration was voted and approved unanimously by the government ministers, declaring it official under the name of “Día de Aragón" (Day of Aragon). Later, this declaration became law and was adopted by the Cortes de Aragón the 16th April 1984. This law establishes the condition of holiday on 23rd April every year, a condition that is still enjoyed nowadays. The adjective “Nacional” appears because of the mention of the historical origin of this day, which was included in the text of the statutory reform ratified in 2007 by the Cortes de Aragón.