Read on to discover what happens on Valencia Day, the Spanish holiday held on October 9
Every year, October 9 is celebrated in Spain’s Valencian Community as the ‘Día de la Comunidad Valenciana’ or Day of Valencia, and the day is taken as a day off work and school.
Each autonomous community in Spain has its own bank holiday to celebrate local customs, and in Valencia this is celebrated on October 9. This means that the provinces of Alicante, Valencia and Castellón all have a public holiday on this day, and many shops and supermarkets are shut for the day.
The history of Valencia Day dates back to 1238, the year when King James I of Aragón reclaimed the region from the Moors as part of Spain’s ‘reconquista’ period. As such, October 9 is a day for celebrating Valencian identity, traditions and the regional minority language valenciano.
Towns and cities up and down the region normally hold activities and free events to mark the day, including live music, things to do with kids and maybe a giant community paella, which is the traditional Valencia dish.
October 9 also happens to be the Catholic Feast of San Dionisio, traditionally considered the patron saint of lovers, so don’t be surprised to find some amorously themed activities happening on the same day as Valencia Day.
For example, tradition dictates that men give the gift of a silk scarf containing a delicious assortment of sweet marzipan treats to their sweetheart, known as a ‘Mocaorà’. More than 70,000 kilos of marzipan are used to make 200,000 of these mocadoràs every year.
The celebrations are particularly fervent in Valencia capital city, where there is often a firework show held at midnight on October 8 to mark the start of the special day. On October 9, they also have a procession in which the royal flag is paraded through the city centre, as well as the usual Mascletà smoke and firework show and other musical and cultural activities.
Image 1: @mjosecatala/Twitter
Image 2: VisitValencia.com
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