National Day of Galicia Date in the current year: July 25, 2024

The history of the celebration began in 1919, when the Assembly of the Galician nationalist organization Irmandades da Fala (Brotherhood of the Language) decided to celebrate the National Day of Galicia on July 25. Such a date was chosen as it is the feast day of Saint James the Great, patron saint of Galicia’s capital of Santiago de Compostela and the entire Galicia. The first celebration was held on July 25, 1920.

Galicians celebrated their national holiday openly until Francicso Franco took control of Spain and established a dictatorship. Franco prohibited any display of non-Spanish nationalism, which meant that Galicia Day was outlawed. However, nationalists found a way to celebrate it clandestinely. They gathered with the pretext of offering a Mass for Rosalia de Castro, a renowned Galician writer and poet.

In 1968, Galician nationalists attempted to celebrate the day openly in Santiago de Compostela, for the first time during the dictatorship, which resulted in clashes with the police. Even during the first years after the fall of Franco’s regime, any demonstration organized by Galicianist organizations would still be prohibited.

National Day of Galicia as we know it today has been celebrated since the mid-1980s. It is an official public holiday that involves a number of activities, including demonstrations, concerts and fireworks. The festivities usually begin in the evening of July 24 and last until the morning of July 26.