Diada de Sant Jordi

Also known as The Day of Lovers, during Diada de Sant Jordi people exchange of gifts between sweethearts. Men give roses to women they appreciate, and women give to men they appreciate a special book. Roses have been associated with this day since medieval times, but the giving of books is a more recent marketing ploy. For Sant Jordi, a rose and a book. This tradition, which combines a rose as a symbol of love and a book as a symbol of culture. It is a day for walking around and enjoying the spectacle of streets turning into open-air book shops.

In 1923, a smart bookseller started to promote the holiday as a way to honour the nearly simultaneous deaths of Miguel Cervantes and William Shakespeare on April 23, 1616.

On April 23 1981, Josep Pla, one of the biggest writers ever in Catalonia was death. Barcelona is the publishing capital of the Spanish speaking world and this heady one-two punch of love and literacy was quickly adopted.

Catalonia has exported this tradition of the book and the rose to the rest of the world. In 1995, the UNESCO adopted April 23rd as World Book and Copyright Day. The Director General, Koichiro Matsuura, has declared that this year's edition presents another occasion for politicians, economic institutions and civilians to honour this vehicle of expression, education and communication.

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