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colours red and yellow, characteristic of the Catalan flag,
have invaded the social sphere of North Catalonia since the
end of the 20th Century like a need for affirmation mixed with
a desire to represent the soul of the region with the sang et
or (blood and gold). In the towns and villages, in the local
gatherings, in the numerous businesses the Catalan flag is an
unavoidable surprise to tourists and new residents. The Catalan
identity places much importance on this flag, one of the oldest
in Europe, whose existence was written of in the 11th Century.
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Declining
logos, emblems and slogans the colours of the bandera catalana
are a gauge of integration. The adoption of the flag signals
the desire to enter into the Catalan union, to promote and participate
in the process towards making Catalanity common-place. In parallel
the adjective ‘Catalan’ and the territorial name ‘Catalonia’
currently know a success without precedence. We have rediscovered
ourselves in public or commercial communication, in the arena
of sports and associations, in the smallest scale and the biggest.
It is certain that the widespread adoption of the Catalan flag
represents the persistent desire for identity. This cultural
affirmation seems to fill a deficit of official recognition
of Catalanity and it accompanies cultural renewal after many
decades of restraint. To exist Catalanity must take the way
that has been offered to it – sharing its most accessible and
fundamental sentiments. The innumerable examples of the use
of the Catalan flag display the identity shift, an opening to
the symbolic development of the Catalan movement. In comparison
the ‘red, white and blue’ flag, the adjective ‘French’ and the
name ‘France’ are far more discreet in their communication;
they do not have the same strong connotations because the French
affirmation already has an official seat.
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