...The unification of the Spanish kingdoms that lead to the modern nation of Spain can be traced back to the 15th century in Castile and Aragon. These two nations were brought together through the marriage between Ferdinand II and Isabella I, the Catholic Monarchs. They each inherited their respective kingdom at an early age and led lives filled with prosperity and inquiry. Together, they strengthened the presence of catholicism throughout Spain and unified their people through religion. While their tactics were often considered extravagant and unethical, one cannot disguise the fact that they pushed Spain into a period that lead to expansion of territory and resources. Ferdinand II was born March 10, 1452 to John II and Juana Enríquez. His...
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...Spain occupies 85% of the Iberian Peninsula, which it shares with Portugal, in southwest Europe. Africa is less than 10 mi (16 km) south at the Strait of Gibraltar. A broad central plateau slopes to the south and east, crossed by a series of mountain ranges and river valleys. Principal rivers are the Ebro in the northeast, the Tajo in the central region, and the Guadalquivir in the south. Off Spain's east coast in the Mediterranean are the Balearic Islands (1,936 sq mi; 5,014 sq km), the largest of which is Majorca. Sixty mi (97 km) west of Africa are the Canary Islands (2,808 sq mi; 7,273 sq km). Government Parliamentary monarchy. History Spain, originally inhabited by Celts, Iberians, and Basques, became a part of the Roman Empire in 206 B.C., when it was conquered by Scipio Africanus. In A.D. 412, the barbarian Visigothic leader Ataulf crossed the Pyrenees and ruled Spain, first in the name of the Roman emperor and then independently. In 711, the Muslims under Tariq entered Spain from Africa and within a few years completed the subjugation of the country. In 732, the Franks, led by Charles Martel, defeated the Muslims near Poitiers, thus preventing the further expansion of Islam in southern Europe. Internal dissension of Spanish Islam invited a steady Christian conquest from the north. Aragon and Castile were the most important Spanish states from the 12th to the 15th century, consolidated by the marriage of Ferdinand II and Isabella I in 1469. In 1478, they...
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...* Spainish social structure Society * Spain itself is divided into 17 regions, each of which elect leaders in direct elections allowing for every region to have a level of autonomy. The Spanish constitution of 1978 protects the democratic independence for, “distinct and nationalities and regions” (Gale 2009b). Because of this, attempting to define the social structure, gender roles, family structure, social identity, and political structure for the entire country is a difficult task. Within Spain, there are six major cultures including the Castilians, the Galicians, the Basques, the Catalans, the Levante, and the Andalucians (Gale. 2009a) and other minority cultures include the Roma and the Asturians (Gale 2009b). Spaniards as a whole do share some cultural traits. * Political Structure: * The political structure of Spain at large is one of a parliamentary monarchy. The king, determined by hereditary, serves as the head of state, however, legislative powers are held within General Courts, or the Cortes Generales, which is spilt between the Congress of Deputies, the Congresso de los Diputados, and the Senate, or the Senado (Gale 2009b.). There are 350 deputies, all of which are elected by the people, and 259 senators, 208 are chosen by the people while 51 are decided by the regions of Spain. Spain, within their executive branch, holds the Council of Ministers which includes a president, a first, second, and third vice president who also serve as ministers for...
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...History of spain After Franco’s death in November 1975, a new Constitution was approved, the monarchy restored and political and social transition achieved despite earlier fears that the country would sink into violence. The peaceful transition from a highly centralized, dictatorial regime to a pluralistic, liberal democracy showed a remarkable political sophistication and a determination not to let the scars of the Civil War impede progress towards democratic reforms. Indeed, many issues were downplayed in the early years of the transition in order to avoid inflaming passions. Even so, a botched coup on February 23, 1981 (now simply referred to as F 23), plots on the king’s life, ongoing terrorist activities of Basque nationalists (ETA), and rumblings of linguistic nationalism and separatism in the Basque Provinces and Catalonia are constant reminders of underlying historic and national tensions. Since the first elections of the post Franco era in1978, Spain has seen the peaceful exchanges of socialist and conservative governments although most have been unable to obtain a majority and have been forced to form coalition governments with small regional parties that often have separatist agendas. The improved economy has gone some way to mitigate the independence threat, as has membership in the EU under whose umbrella many separatists view themselves as Europeans rather than Spaniards. One of the buzz words of the political and social transformation that has taken place...
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...Located at the crossroads of the Atlantic and the Mediterranean, Europe and Africa, Spain's history and culture are made up of a rich mix of diverse elements. Through exploration and conquest, Spain became a world power in the 16th century, and it maintained a vast overseas empire until the early 19th century. Spain has had peaceful transition to democracy following the death of Dictator Francisco FRANCO in 1975, and rapid economic modernization in 1986, which gave Spain a dynamic and rapidly growing economy and made it a global champion of freedom and human rights. More recently the government has had to focus on measures to reverse a severe economic recession that began in mid-2008. In this report I will discuss the history, demographics, major products Spain benefits from, attitudes, beliefs and religions practiced in the country, their main language societal organization and economic development of the country. At the conclusion of this report, it will be known that Spain is a country that the U.S. and other countries will continue to do business with. Spain has a long rich history with earliest signs of inhabitants going back to 800,000 BC. By 1200 BC North African and Celtic tribes settled on the peninsula creating a Celt-Iberian race. In turn, areas of Spain were colonized and fought over by the Phoenicians, Greeks, Carthaginians, Romans and the Goths. Moorish armies from North Africa invaded the peninsula in the 8th century AD and defeated the last Visigoth King and...
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...Conversos in the Inquisition Spain had an enormous Jewish community in the middle ages and toward the end of the fourteenth century large numbers of them were converted to Catholicism. A “converso” is a person who converted to Catholicism, under either duress or out of social convenience, and was suspected of secretly practicing the Jewish faith. These individuals converted for a variety of reasons. Some of them were forced while some of them went willingly into Catholicism. The term converso was applied not only to the generation that converted but also to their children and their grandchildren and on down through the generations. People often question whether or not the intensions of coversos was correct because of the danger they put themselves and their families in. This proposes the issue of why society creates such violent circumstances in which individuals must lie about private matters, like religion, in order to save their lives. In 1391 there were terrible riots sweeping across southern Spain. People were offered the choice of converting or being killed. Some 20,000 Jews converted under those circumstances. They had no intention of becoming Catholic. They were not educated in Catholicism and they went on living their Jewish lives as they had previously done. Twenty years later there were a series of preaching campaigns run by the Dominicans, which converted many tens of thousands of Jews, largely by persuasion. These people were interested in becoming Catholic...
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...connects with that first feminism that focused on the suffragists and the claim of political rights, whose momentum was partly buried as one of many consequences of the two world wars. On the other hand, it is part of a wider movement based on the protest of the young people, who raised the need for a better democracy, comprising and transforming the understanding of the political activities and the way decisions were made. However, in Spain the situation was different. Spain presented specific features because unlike France, Germany, Italy or the United States, which were already starting to evolve the fight for the equalization of women in society, Spain was living under a dictatorship that was established after a military coup and the civil war, which overthrew the form of government of the Republic. The dictatorship limited women from expressing themselves freely and living their desired life. It restricted them from showing society their importance in the world and letting men see how both are equal. The sixties in Spain was a time that excited many women writers to speak about their situations. At the same time, they were brave enough to show their works without being intimidated by what was going to happen to them. Among all the writers and all the works created on that time, the ones that described more clearly the situation were: Las ataduras by Carmen Martin Gaite, Te tratare como una reina by Rosa Montero, Nada by Carmen Laforet. The works by Carmen Martin...
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...republic, it was for reasons other than its need to protect its own property." Though the church owned very little land, their conservative beliefs and political ties to the landed elite placed themselves in direct opposition to the republic and put their future in the hands of anticlerical politicians. After the elections in 1931, political and social attacks on the church became commonplace by Socialist politicians like Manuel Azaña who opposed the Catholic Church in favor of a secular republic. Historically, addressing matters of religion and the state was normally impossible, but the current state of the church in Spain allowed politicians like Manuel Azaña to move forward with secularization. By the 19th century, the Spanish Catholic Church lost most of its wealth from the never-ending political instability, economic depression, and civil wars that crippled Spain. Through the Primo de Rivera dictatorships the church became completely dependent on public aid and government subsidies to function and their collapse but their survival in jeopardy. The church received government subsidies for pensions in an upwards of $12 million and many in the Second Republic considered this to be a heavy drain on the economy. Such funds could be used to help address attempts of fixing wealth inequality instead of a church that many considered to be a decadent and corrupt institution. What we can derive from the existence of and political support for these subsides is there was still some support...
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...Chapter 15 Study Guide In 1200, the Middle East and north Africa were dominated by two powerful empires: Byzantine and Islamic caliphate. By 1400, this structure was in disarray: • Byzantine was in decline, pressed by invading Ottoman Turks. Constantinople fell to Turks in 1453, ending empire. • By 1200s, the Muslims had fallen to Mongols. Arabs never able to unite the entire region again. Decline of Islamic caliphate: decline of caliphate and its economy was gradual and incomplete – not at all like the dramatic fall of Rome • authority of caliphate declined, landlords seized power, peasants became serfs on large estates • agricultural productively declined, tax revenues declined • Arab and Middle Eastern traders lose ground: European merchants began to exercise control of their turf and challenge the Arabs in other parts of the Mediterranean. Still, Arab and Persian commerce remained active in Indian Ocean. • The emerging Ottoman Turks expanded into southeastern Europe, and the power (both politically and militarily) was frightening to other people in other areas, such as western Europe. A Power Vacuum in International Leadership • Turkish rulers unable to reestablish Islamic position in international trade. Turks scornful of Arabs (though both were Muslim), did not promote trade, especially maritime trade, as vigorously as in past. • Turkic expansion was important well into 17th century, but real focus was on conquest...
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...Икономика с преподаване на Английски език КУРСОВА РАБОТА тема : Economic immigration: the case of Spain Изготвил: Венелина Цветанова Каменова Фак. Ном.: 10114103 Преподавател: Кръстьо Петков 2010 година Съдържание Why did I choose this topic? I. Introduction 1. The term immigration 1.1 The term immigration and the general theories behind it 1.2. Economic migrant 2. Global immigration 3. Immigration in Europe 1. Immigration within Europe 2. Immigration from outside of Europe II. The case of Spain 1. Immigration laws and policies in Spain 2. Main countries from where people emigrate to Spain 1. Bulgarians in Spain 3. Main reasons for choosing Spain III. Conclusion The data used in this project is from year 2005. Why did I choose this topic? Watching half of my classmates applying in foreign universities and many of my friends and family choosing to live abroad in order to have “better life” made me wonder what the reasons behind the migrations are. I was interested in the scientific explanation behind the migration processes. This paper gave me the opportunity to understand the incentives behind people’s decisions and the main reasons, pushing people from our own country. And even if I didn’t choose the case of Spain for my topic it proved to be a very interesting one. I learned many new things while writing this paper...
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...church every week. Religions besides Romanian Orthodox include Protestant, Jewish, Islamic, agnostic, atheist, and traditional religious. Romanians, along with other Eastern European people, have a number of trademark physical characteristics. They typically have dark brown hair and eyes. A large nose, along with a square jaw can be seen on Romanians. Women usually have high cheekbones and wide hips. A large percentage of Romanians have Hungarian ancestry; this causes their skin and eye color to be lighter, although most characteristics stay the same. Romanian families, traditionally, are married couples. Their marriage rate is pretty high among European countries, although it was much higher 30-40 years ago. Men are typically a few years older than women at the time of the marriage (men-28.4 years, women-24.9 years). Families in Romania are usually stable; a marriage there lasts 22 years on average, and the divorce rate is 1.3 (out of 1,000 people). The number of children in a family depends on family background, (higher education typically means fewer children). Families are normally pretty small, (1-4 children). There are many traditional Romanian languages. Most are Latin based and can be traced back to the Dacian days. The language of Romania is very similar to Italian; both are very Romance-based, possibly a reason for all the immigration. Romanian words that are used tend to have the suffixes –escu or –iscus, meaning belonging to the people. Romanians often settle in major...
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...AP European History Review Test Units 1-10 1. . Salvation by faith alone, the ministry of all believers, and the authority of the Bible are principles basic to (A) the Christian humanism of Erasmus (B) the Church of England (C) Catholicism after the Council of Trent (D) Lutheranism in the early sixteenth century (E) the Society of Jesus (Jesuit order) 2. The term "humanism," when applied to Renaissance Italy, refers primarily to the: (A) renewed interest in the scientific method at many Italian universities (B) capitalist values advanced by leading Italian merchant bankers (C) anti-religious movement among leading Italian intellectuals (D) scholarly interest in the study of the classical cultures of Greece and Rome (E) non-Christian themes that became prominent in Italian art and literature 3. Which of the following beliefs was central to Martin Luther's religious philosophy? (A) Salvation by faith alone (B) Saints as intermediaries between the individual Christian and God (C) The sacrament of penance (D) The priesthood defined as distinct from the laity (E) The equality of men and women 4. During the Thirty Years' War, France pursued a policy of: (A) supporting the Hapsburgs against the Protestant princes and rulers (B) allowing French Protestants to fight for the Protestants even though the monarchy supported the Roman Catholics (C) supporting the Protestant princes and rulers against the Hapsburgs (D) remaining neutral...
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...some of the granite peaks of the Pyrenees mountain zone between Spain and France. Firstly, the Basque Country is also known as Euskal Herria. This Euuskal Herria is known to mean for the home of Basque Country, which also includes the community of the area they live in. As stated by an article online by Wikipedia, Basque Country refers to a certain amount of regions inhabited by the Basque community people, known as this same word Euskal Herria in the Basque language, and its first known as including about seven traditional territories in Axular’s literary work Gero in the early 17th century. Due to the wide range of meaning of the Basque word herri, Euskal Herria is difficult to translate. Herri can be translated as nation; land,...
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...The Spanish Inquisition In 1469, the marriage of Ferdinand V of Aragon to his cousin Isabella of Castile united the two most powerful provinces of Spain (Hauben, 23). During this time, Spain was becoming one of the wealthiest nations in the world. Much of Spain’s wealth was contributed by the Jewish population, which was very successful during this time period because of Christian church laws against usury, which is an illegal practice of charging unfair rates on loans. Prejudice against the Jews and strong feelings of anti-Semitism had also grown during this time, especially after a riot on Ash Wednesday (March 15,1391), started by a Spanish archdeacon named Martinez. Martinez called out to all Spanish citizens to “purge themselves of the filthy Jews”. Martinez incited his congregation to riot. The crowd moved enmasse towards the Juderia (Jewish quarter). Some of the participants were captured by the police and flogged or beaten, but that was not enough to stop the mob. Although they did not succeed that day to destroy the Jews, the feelings that Martinez had evoked lay simmering until June 6th when the mob sacked the Juderia of Seville. It is believed that the victims numbered in the hundreds, if not thousands (C. Roth, 1964). The estimated number of victims for the riot is said to be a little over one thousand. After this ordeal, a number of Jews, called conversos, professed themselves as Christians to escape persecution. Many Christians were questioning the validity of...
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...Why did they come to the western hemisphere? Spain came to the western hemisphere in search of a direct trade route to China. Seeing how Spain prospered from their transoceanic empire, France wanted a piece in the wealth that America offered. Britain came to the western hemisphere in hopes to weaken the Spanish empire. In addition, the West Country men hoped to resolve England’s economic problems by exporting beggars to the colony of Virginia. These beggars would work in Virginia by exporting goods back to England in hopes to mend the economic woes back home. Where did they settle? The Spanish settled in present-day Florida, Texas, New Mexico, California, Mexico, Peru, and the islands of the Caribbean. The specific settlements are the following: Hispaniola, Mexico City, St. Augustine, New Mexico, and Santa Fe. The French stationed themselves along the Mississippi and St....
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