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UNDERSTANDING SPANIARDS

The habits you will never be able to truly master like a Spaniard

It doesn't matter how long you live here or how hard you try, there are just some things that you will never be able to do as well as a Spaniard.

Published: 3 February 2020 09:26 CET
Updated: 3 October 2023 16:38 CEST
spanish habits
Spaniards are experts at making noise. (Photo by JUSSI NUKARI / LEHTIKUVA / AFP)

Straight-talking

Otherwise known as ‘being blunt’. While the thought of telling people what you really thought of them sends most Anglo-Saxons into a cold sweat, Spaniards don’t give two hoots about giving you their honest opinion whether it is asked for or not. So if you really are looking for the truth, trust a Spaniard. 

Expect no-nonsense talk from Spaniards, without it being nasty. (Photo by PHILIPPE DESMAZES / AFP)
 

Tanning

For many Spaniards, sunbathing isn’t just a form of relaxation it is an art form bordering on obsession. Never setting foot on the beach without their tanning oils – or even olive oil – these Spaniards leave us pasty and often-sunburnt guiris in the shade.

Spaniards tan easily, although those who overdo it end up with skin like leather in older age. (Photo by Jewel SAMAD / AFP)
 

Swearing

Swear words are the glue that hold many Spanish conversations together and are to be regularly found peppering the sentences of even the most demure-looking abuela. Swearing is such a normal part of Spanish vocabulary that even the strongest of curse words is used liberally in everyday conversation. 

READ ALSO: What’s the worst possible insult you can say to someone in Spain?

Casual non-aggressive swearing is common in many social settings in Spain. Photo: Susanna Davtyan/Pexels
 

Sitting down to eat lunch

In the fast-paced modern world, more and more people end up eating their lunch at their desks, or grabbing a sandwich to-go. Not most Spaniards, who still enjoy long lunches, sitting at actual tables and enjoying numerous courses. The classic menu del día – a fixed-price three-course menu – is still the lunch of choice for many in Spain. This is one habit that is we could all get used to.

In Spain, lunch on the go is a big no-no. (Photo by ANDER GILLENEA / AFP)
 

Keeping conversations going

Part of the reason why lunch and dinner can drag out for so long in Spain is because Spaniards truly know how to talk; and they’re experts at the art of la sobremesa. And these are genuine conversations, not just small talk about the weather to break the ice. Spanish people tend to be genuine and sociable, so chats can go on for hours in an enjoyable fashion. You’ll also notice that when it comes to saying goodbye, this can also be dragged out for a long time, usually involving going up to each person individually and having one final talk before ending with two kisses or a hug.

Relax, don’t look at the time and let the conversation flow in Spain. (Photo by CESAR MANSO / AFP)
 
 

Speaking quietly at the top of your voice

It’s hard enough to get your mouth around the Spanish r, but even if you master the language, it’s the pitch and frequency of the talking you’ll struggle to conquer. As mentioned earlier, Spaniards are world champion chatterboxes and seem to talk with permanently raised voices. 

READ MORE: Why are Spaniards so loud?

Is King Felipe VI the country’s most softspoken Spaniard? (Photo by Emily KASK / AFP)
 

Drinking without getting too drunk 

13 percent of Spaniards drink alcohol every day, making them the second nation that drinks the most frequently in the EU after Portugal. In fact, having a couple of small beers (cañas) or a glass of wine with lunch on a workday is perfectly acceptable and overall alcohol is common in most social gatherings. And yet you’ll rarely see Spaniards getting blind drunk and falling over as is common in the city centres of the UK and Ireland every weekend. They pace themselves, often eat while drinking and on a night out they’ll do plenty of dancing to sweat out the booze. Why? Perhaps because the objective is to have fun, not to get drunk. 

Pouring cider the Asturian way is an art, and although Spaniards drink the small serving in one gulp, you’ll rarely see them drunk.  (Photo by RAFA RIVAS / AFP)
 
 

Partying until the early hours and ‘painting the monkey’ the next day

Somewhat tied to the fact that Spaniards pace themselves when it comes to drinking is the fact that they’re capable of partying until later than pretty much any other country in the world. The fact that they start late – dinner at 10pm, meet at 11pm, hit the clubs at 2am – no doubt helps them with their late-night antics, but overall Spaniards show great resilience when it comes to keeping the party going until the sun rises. They’re also experts at sleeping in the next day until lunchtime or later, and then doing what’s called pintar la mona (literally ‘painting the monkey, but really means doing nothing) as they slowly recover from the night out. Oh, have we mentioned the thousands of local festivals that are held in every single village, town and city across Spain? Life here can sometimes feel like one constant fiesta.

Expect the party to go on until 6 or 7am with Spaniards. (Photo by Pau BARRENA / AFP)
 

Taking summer holidays

If you ever visited Madrid and found it more ghost town than bustling city, chances are you landed in August – the month when seemingly every Madrileño leaves the stifling city for cooler coastal climes. And it’s not just the people, many bars, restaurants and shops close their shutters for the entire month, displaying a “cerrado por vacaciones” sign outside. So forget about getting mundane things like your dry cleaning done and instead take a leaf out of the locals’ book and head for the pool. 

Practically nobody works during August in Spain. (Photo by JAIME REINA / AFP)
 

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POLITICS

Which Catalans want independence from Spain?

Catalan separatist politicians have taken on kingmaker roles in Spanish politics in recent months, but Catalans themselves increasingly see independence as unlikely. Which Catalans still support independence and which don't?

Published: 10 May 2024 11:39 CEST
Which Catalans want independence from Spain?

Catalan separatists are playing an increasingly crucial role in politics at the national level in Spain, but the vast majority of Catalans themselves see the prospect of independence as increasingly unlikely.

This is according to annual survey data released by the Institute of Political and Social Sciences (ICPS) in Catalonia, which revealed that just 5 percent of Catalans polled believe that an independent Catalonia will ever become a reality. In 2015 that figure was 17 percent.

The survey also confirmed that support for independence (39.5 percent) remains well below support for staying within Spain (52.5 percent). Catalans will go to the polls in regional elections on May 12th in a vote many view as crucial for the stability of the national government.

Catalan pro-independence parties, namely Junts per Cataluyna and Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya, have essentially become kingmakers in Spanish politics following July 2023’s general election result and subsequent amnesty deal offered by Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez to cling onto power.

READ ALSO:

Often when the Catalan question is discussed, particularly in the context of national politics, broad strokes statements are made about the people and politics in the region. Catalans are all separatists, some say. Some even say they are terrorists, or that only far-left radicals want independence.

But who really still wants independence? What are the demographics behind Catalan separatism, and what does it tell us about the future of the movement?

Age breakdown

A study by the Generalitat revealed that younger voters, between 16- 42, generally show less enthusiasm for independence than older voters. Young people are more likely to show preference for the current model (of Catalonia as a region within Spain) rather than full independence, according to a survey by the Catalan Centre for Opinion Studies (CEO) cited by El País.

CEO polling groups respondents by age, the ‘silent generation’ (over 78); ‘baby boomers’ (between 59 and 77); ‘generation X’ (between 43 and 58); ‘millennials’ (between 27 and 42) and ‘generation Z’ (between 16 and 26).

The results were stark. When asked “what should be the relationship between Catalonia and Spain” the preference for independence only exceeded 30 percent among baby boomers (34 percent) and generation X (32 percent). But even within these age groups, the most pro-independence, a fully-independent Catalonia barely convinced more than a quarter to a third of respondents.

Among younger people, however, regional autonomy was the preferred option for millennials (28 percent) and generation Z (29 percent), ahead of an independent Catalonia, which appealed to 26 percent and 23 percent respectively. Interestingly, in this sense young people are closer to their grandparents’ views than to their parents’ generation on the question of independence. Among the silent generation, regional autonomy within Spain had 33 percent support, and 27 percent supported an independent Catalonia.

A demonstrator waves a half-Spanish and half-Senyera flag during a protest by far-right party Vox against the government in Barcelona in 2020. (Photo by Pau Barrena / AFP)

Young men

Furthermore, delving further into the graphics, it becomes clear that young men are some of the least likely people to support Catalan independence. A survey published by Òmnium points to “a marked conservative movement and a move away from the fundamental values of sovereignty among the country’s youth” more generally but specifically among young men.

Young men, the study demonstrates, are the most ‘espanyolistas’ in the region, in other words, the least favourable towards Catalan independence and most likely to be pro-centralisation and Spanish. They are also the ones who view using the Catalan language as a lesser priority. However, this isn’t an isolated policy issue, and young men in the region are also more likely to be sceptical about climate change, the least in favour of paying taxes, the least feminist, and those who perceive the threat of the extreme right as the least relevant.

The study termed this the ‘derechización‘ (what we might call the ‘right-wingisation’ in English) of young men, a trend across the rest of the country and the world in recent years.

Class and income

Income and social class also play a role in pro-separatist politics, and the data suggests that separatism is more popular among people self-describing as ‘comfortably off’.

According to data from the CEO cited by El País in 2017, the real flashpoint of separatist politics in Catalonia, around a third (32 percent) of Catalans earning less than €900 were in favour of independence. However, over half (53 percent) of respondents earning €1,800 or more per month were pro-independence, while 54 percent of the wealthy (monthly income of €4,000 or more per month) wanted to see an independent Catalonia.

This also ties into educational level and class. Data compiled by the London School of Economics shows that independence is most popular among the highly educated (secondary and university levels), something that makes higher incomes levels more attainable and upward social mobility more likely.

Catalan origins

Interestingly, it seems that Catalans born outside Catalonia are more likely to be on lower incomes and therefore less likely to hold pro-separatist views. There also seems to be evidence that having a multi-generational Catalan background makes you more likely to be pro-independence.

As El País states, “even more glaring is the relationship between background and pro-independence sentiment. Among third generation Catalans – those with both parents and all four grandparents born in Catalonia – support for independence rises to 75 percent.”

“But this figure drops drastically when it comes to families with more varied backgrounds. Support for independence stands at 49 percent among those with one parent from outside the region and drops to 29 percent among children of immigrants.”

Geography

Geography also plays a role. As these municipality map breakdowns by RTVE show, if the population living in each area is taken into account, as in the second map, you can see that in the largest municipalities, such as Barcelona and its surrounding metropolitan area, the non-nationalist bloc holds the greatest electoral weight.

The maps are stark, but population even things even out: in municipalities where there was a nationalist or pro-independence majority in 2021, found largely in the country and smaller towns, slightly over 3 million Catalans live; but in the big cities, where people are more likely to be sceptical, that figure is almost 5 million.

As the Royal Elcano Institute put it in its analysis of the post-2017 political chaos, Catalan independence bucks the traditional rural/urban split: “While Scottish independence is viewed more favourably in big cities, in Catalonia the territorial divide is the reverse: rural areas register a majority in favour of independence, with urban areas having a majority against.”

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