Catalanism

Catalan nationalism is the nationalist ideology which asserts that Catalans are a nation and promotes the cultural unity of Catalans.

Intellectually, Catalan nationalism can be said to have commenced as a political philosophy in the unsuccessful attempts to establish a federal state in Spain in the context of the First Republic. Valentí Almirall i Llozer and other intellectuals that participated in this process set up a new political ideology in the 19th century, to restore self-government, as well as to obtain recognition for the Catalan language. These demands were summarized in the so-called Bases de Manresa in 1892.

It met very little support at first. But after the Spanish–American War in which the United States invaded and annexed the last of the Spanish colonies, these early stages of Catalanism grew in support, mostly because of the weakened Spanish international position after the war and the loss of the two main destinations for Catalan exports (Cuba and Puerto Rico).

Being a broad movement, it can be found in several manifestations in the current political scene. Most of the main Catalan political parties—Catalan European Democratic Party (PDECAT), Republican Left of Catalonia (ERC), Socialists' Party of Catalonia (PSC),En Comú Podem (ECP) and Popular Unity Candidature (CUP)—adhere to Catalanism to varying degrees.

The scope of their national objectives diverges as well. While some restrict them to Catalonia-proper alone, others seek the acknowledgment of the political personality of the so-called Catalan Countries, the Catalan-speaking territories as a whole. Such claims, which can be seen as a form of Pan-nationalism, can be read in official documents of CiU, ERC and Popular Unity Candidates (CUP). Besides Catalonia, the main Catalan-speaking regions have their own nationalist parties and coalitions which support, to varying degrees, the demands for the building of a national identity for the Catalan Countries: Valencian Nationalist Bloc (BNV) in the Valencian Community, Bloc Nacional i d'Esquerres, PSM and Majorcan Union (UM) in the Balearic Islands. Other nationalist parties have existed with additional affiliations such as PSC - Reagrupament whose leader Josep Pallach i Carolà died in 1977.

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