Feliç Dia de Sant Jordi !!

Remember to buy her a rose and him a book

According to popular tradition, Sant Jordi was a Roman soldier and was born in the 3rd century in Capadocia in Turkey. This Saint, who was under the orders of the emperor Diocletian, refused to carry out the emperor's edict to persecute all Christians throughout the empire. For this reason he was martyred and decapitated by his companions. In the eastern part of the empire, he soon became venerated as a martyr and shortly after this, fantastic stories related to him began to appear.

The exploits of Sant Jordi and the Dragon became popular throughout Europe around the 9th century and were compiled by the archbishop of Genoa, Iacopo da Varazze, in his book 'Legenda sanctorum'. In this version, however, the exploits took place in Libya.

The most popular legend in Catalonia about Sant Jordi tells that at Montblanc, in Conca de Barberà, there was a terrible dragon which viciously attacked men and beasts. To pacify it, lots were drawn and a person was chosen to be given as a sacrifice to the monster. One day, the misfortune fell on the king's daughter, who would have died in the beast's claws if it had not been for the arrival of a handsome knight who challenged the dragon and killed it. This same legend, although with slight variations, is told as a popular legend in England, Portugal and Greece.

In the beginning, Sant Jordi was a figure associated with the world of knights and courtly love, which could explain the custom of presenting a rose on the festival of the Saint. Some versions put this custom back to the Fira dels Enamorats (the Lovers' Fair) which was held in Barcelona at around the 15th century. What we can say for certain is that, at that time, roses were given out to the ladies who attended the mass given in the Sant Jordi Chapel of the Palau de la Generalitat on the day of Sant Jordi. The Dia del Llibre (the Book Day) is much more recent. According to some sources, it was first held on October 7th 1926 in commemoration of the birth of Miguel de Cervantes. The original idea came from the writer Vicent Clavel Andrés, who proposed it to the Cambra Oficial del Llibre de Barcelona. Shortly after, in the year 1930, the date was changed to April 23rd, the day of the death of Cervantes and of other universally known authors such as William Shakespeare and Garcilaso de la Vega. On this date, other well-known writers such as Josep Pla, Maurice Druon, K. Laxness, Vladimir Nabokov and Manuel Mejía Vallejo were also born or died.

On November 15th, 1995, at a general conference which took place in Paris, the festival of April 23rd dedicated to literature was declared World Book and Copyright Day by the UNESCO.

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