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 he
name "Catalunya del nord" (northern Catalonia), was
suggested by the North Catalan Alfons Mias at the founding of
the Catalan group Nostra Terra in 1937, carried by the Catalan
movement in the years 1970-1980 and is currently used in Perpignan
as well as in Barcelona. This name for the region encapsulated
the other traditional names – Pyrénées-Orientales
and Pays Catalans. In all cases it refers to the same territory.
The increasing use of the name Catalogne Nord / Catalunya-Nord
revealed the newly regained confidence of the inhabitants –
aware now of being part of Catalonia. Catalogne Nord or Catalogne
du Nord answered a spontaneous consensus and allowed the general
reprisal of relations with Catalogne du Sud, with Barcelona
remaining a strong symbol of the area. The need to discover
a modern and representative name emanated from a desire for
historic redefinition.
Alfons
Mias (1904-1950). Creator of the Name ‘northern Catalonia"’.
The name Pyrénées-Orientales,
born during the French Revolution, partially reflected the realities
of the territory – at once Mediterranean, Pyrénéan
and south European. A multitude of names had already undergone
trials to the detriment: Pyrénées-Méditerranée,
Pyrénées-Roussillon, Pyrénées-catalanes,
Comtats, Roussillon, Catalogne, Catalogne française.
With globalisation and the taste for the authentic, the name
Catalogne du Nord (North Catalonia) offered a ‘localisation’
most rapidly and beyond that, it better reflected the reality
of the region. It captures the region and has become an asset
for tourism and an identity which responds to the sentiments
of residents towards their land and their culture. The adoption
of the name Catalogne du Nord determines the economic environment,
the social and cultural aspects of the Pyrénées-Orientales,
combining the numerous traits that form the spirit of the land.
In the manner of other European regions this homogeneous territory
can assume its personality and receive its true name in clarity
and simplicity. |
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