Did You Know?
October 9 is also Sant DonÃs, when Valencian tradition has people exchange marzipan sweets in the mocadorà , a bit like a regional Valentine's Day.
Day of the Valencian Community
🇪🇸 Spain
- Public Holiday
- Regional
- Fixed date
Overview
Day of the Valencian Community is the regional day of the autonomous community on Spain's Mediterranean coast. It is observed on October 9 each year and is a public holiday in the Valencian Community only, not across the whole of Spain, and it celebrates the region's shared history and identity.
What It Is
On October 9, the Valencian Community takes a day off work and school. In the city of Valencia, the day is marked by an official civic procession that carries the historic Senyera flag, along with institutional events and public celebrations. Families also take part in the Sant DonÃs tradition known as the mocadorà , giving sweets in the shape of fruits and vegetables made from marzipan. The holiday applies to the region's three provinces of Castellón, Valencia, and Alicante, rather than to the rest of Spain.
Why It Matters
The date recalls October 9, 1238, when King James I of Aragon, known as James the Conqueror, entered the city of Valencia and founded the Kingdom of Valencia. That kingdom had its own laws and institutions within the Crown of Aragon, an inheritance that still shapes Valencian identity. Those institutions were suspended in 1707, and Valencian nationalism grew towards the end of the nineteenth century. The modern self-governing community, under the Generalitat Valenciana, was established in 1982, and its day keeps the medieval founding story at the center of regional memory.
Countries Celebrating
1 country
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