Rexurdimento facts for kids
The Rexurdimento (pronounced "Reh-shoor-jee-MEN-toh") means "Resurgence" in Galician. It was an important time in the History of Galicia during the 1800s. This period was all about bringing the Galician language back to life. For a long time, called the "dark centuries," Castilian Spanish was used much more. The Rexurdimento helped Galician become a language for culture and daily life again. It was similar to the Renaixença in Catalonia.
During this time, a movement called Romanticism made people value their local cultures more. In Spain, this meant people started to appreciate languages other than Castilian Spanish. Instead of everyone being the same, people celebrated regional traditions and languages. In Galicia, Castilian Spanish was spoken in cities and by richer people. Galician was mostly spoken in the countryside and didn't have many books written in it. This meant that Castilian Spanish was used for important things like books and business, while Galician was just for everyday talk.
Getting Ready for the Rexurdimento
The time before the main Rexurdimento is called the Prerrexurdimento. This was a period of change. It can be split into two parts: before and after the Solís Uprising in 1846. The first part saw a slow interest in the Galician language. The second part was more focused. It included the first new Galician books in hundreds of years that became popular.
Around 1840, some smart people thought Galicia was falling behind. They believed Galicia needed its own strong identity to improve. This idea grew at the University of Santiago de Compostela. A key leader was Antolín Faraldo Asorey.
The Solís Uprising in 1846 was a fight against the central government. It failed, and its leaders, the Martyrs of Carral, were executed. Even though it was a defeat, it made Galician writers more aware of their heritage. Authors who loved Galicia published in magazines like El Centinela de Galicia. Benito Viceto wrote a History of Galicia (1865–1866). It told a heroic story of Galician history. Other important works included A gaita gallega ("The Galician Bagpipes") by Juan Manuel Pintos (1853). The first "Floral Games" (a poetry contest) were held in A Coruña in 1861. Newspapers also started printing parts of Galician stories and plays.
Two main types of writing appeared then. One was political writing. The first political writings were about the Peninsular War against Napoleon's France. An example is Un labrador que foi sarxento ("A farmer who was a sergeant," 1808). Later, newspapers printed arguments for and against different political ideas. They also criticized how Galicia was run. The other type was literary writing. This included songs called villancicos and a play called A casamenteira by Antonio Benito Fandiño (1849). It was about arranged marriages. There were also funny sonnets and poetry books by Nicomedes Pastor Díaz. Francisco Añón was another important writer.
Professor Dolores Vilavedra says this early period was like a Galician version of Romanticism. Some groups formed, like the Academia Literaria de Santiago. They had their own magazine, El Idólatra de Galicia. But many of these groups were shut down after the 1846 Solís Uprising.
Young people like Manuel Murguía, Eduardo Pondal, and Rosalía de Castro continued this movement. In 1856, they met at the Banquete de Conxo. This meeting led to the founding of the Liceo de la Juventud. It became a place for cultural activities.
The Main Rexurdimento Period
The true Rexurdimento is usually said to start in 1863. That's when Rosalía de Castro published her famous poetry book, Cantares Gallegos. However, the change from the Prerrexurdimento wasn't sudden. For over ten years after Cantares Gallegos, not many other important Galician books were published. This time included Spain's Glorious Revolution.
But starting in 1875, more works appeared in Galician. This included newspapers again. The most famous was O Tío Marcos da Portela ("Uncle Marcos from Portela," 1876–1889). The Biblioteca Gallega ("Galician Library") published 52 works from 1885. These included Aires da miña terra ("Airs of My Land") by Manuel Curros Enríquez and Queixumes dos Pinos ("Moans of the Pines") by Eduardo Pondal.
The year 1880 was especially good for Galician literature. Three important books came out: Follas Novas ("New Leaves") by Rosalía de Castro, Aires da miña terra by Curros Enríquez, and Espiñas, follas e frores. Ramiño primeiro ("Spines, Leaves, and Fronds. First Sprigs") by Valentín Lamas Carvajal.
In 1886, a literary contest was held just for works in Galician. Poetry was very popular. Collections of Galician poems started to appear. In a more political way, Manuel Murguía published Los precursores ("The Precursors") that year.
During these years, many grammar books, dictionaries, and literary studies were also published. More history books came out, including another History of Galicia by Manuel Murguía. People also rediscovered old Galician songs from medieval troubadours, called the Cantigas. The first collection of these songs was published in 1875.
The first important story written in Galician was Maxina ou a filla espúrea ("Maxina or A Spurious Daughter") by Marcial Valladares Núñez. It appeared in a magazine in the 1880s. This book was special because it mixed Galician and Castilian Spanish. This showed how the characters lived in two different worlds. The first play in Galician was Rentar de Castromil (1904) by Evaristo Martelo Paumán.
Antonio López Ferreiro, a church leader, is seen as the true father of the Galician novel. He wrote three novels. His best-known one is A tecedeira de Bonabal ("The Weaver of Bonabal"). These realistic stories were also historical novels. They were set at different times in Galician history.
Costumbrismo was also popular in Galicia. This style of writing or art showed everyday life, habits, and customs. In Galicia, it mostly focused on life in the countryside. Stories about city life in Galician only started appearing later in the 1800s. These were written by authors like Francisco Álvarez de Novoa. His works were about city life, middle-class people, and their thoughts. This paved the way for new writers in the Irmandades da fala.
There were very few plays written during the Rexurdimento period.
See also
In Spanish: Rexurdimento para niños
