Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

-speaking cultures, a ''verbena'' is an

agricultural show An agricultural show is a public event exhibiting the equipment, animals, sports and recreation associated with agriculture and animal husbandry. The largest comprise a livestock show (a judged event or display in which breeding stock is exhibi ...

, modest

amusement park An amusement park is a park that features various attractions, such as rides and games, as well as other events for entertainment purposes. A theme park is a type of amusement park that bases its structures and attractions around a central ...

, or dance party, especially one held at night. An old tradition, they usually take place after dark in summer. Nowadays, some major cities, such as Barcelona, host "permanent" ''verbenas'' (''revetlla'' in Catalan), but these have less tradition character than those that appear for only a few days each year. A large contemporary ''verbena'' features mechanical

amusement ride Amusement rides, sometimes called carnival rides, are mechanical devices or structures that move people especially kids to create fun and enjoyment. Rides are often perceived by many as being scary or more dangerous than they actually are. This ...

sideshow In North America, a sideshow is an extra, secondary production associated with a circus, carnival, fair, or other such attraction. Types There are four main types of classic sideshow attractions: *The Ten-in-One offers a program of ten s ...

attractions, and usually some sort of

gambling Gambling (also known as betting or gaming) is the wagering of something of value ("the stakes") on a random event with the intent of winning something else of value, where instances of strategy are discounted. Gambling thus requires three elem ...

. Typical ''verbena'' food includes churros, ham, cheese, marzipan, candied egg yolks ("yemas"), candied

quince The quince (; ''Cydonia oblonga'') is the sole member of the genus ''Cydonia'' in the Malinae subtribe (which also contains apples and pears, among other fruits) of the Rosaceae family. It is a deciduous tree that bears hard, aromatic bright ...

("membrillo"), and sugared fruits—though in recent years, modern

junk food "Junk food" is a term used to describe food that is high in calories from sugar and/or fat, and possibly also sodium, but with little dietary fiber, protein, vitamins, minerals, or other important forms of nutritional value. It is also known as HF ...

s have found their way into the mix. There are always

alcoholic beverage An alcoholic beverage (also called an alcoholic drink, adult beverage, or a drink) is a drink that contains ethanol, a type of alcohol that acts as a drug and is produced by fermentation of grains, fruits, or other sources of sugar. The con ...

s—usually Spanish

wine Wine is an alcoholic drink typically made from fermented grapes. Yeast consumes the sugar in the grapes and converts it to ethanol and carbon dioxide, releasing heat in the process. Different varieties of grapes and strains of yeasts are ...

sangría Sangria (, es, sangría , pt, sangria ) is an alcoholic beverage originating in Spain and Portugal. Under EU regulations only those two Iberian nations can label their product as Sangria; similar products from different regions are differ ...

and lager beer. There is usually music and dancing, either organized or spontaneously. In recent years, ''verbenas'' have incorporated recorded

popular music Popular music is music with wide appeal that is typically distributed to large audiences through the music industry. These forms and styles can be enjoyed and performed by people with little or no musical training.Popular Music. (2015). ''Funk ...

rock music Rock music is a broad genre of popular music that originated as "rock and roll" in the United States in the late 1940s and early 1950s, developing into a range of different styles in the mid-1960s and later, particularly in the United States and ...

, and even

karaoke Karaoke (; ; , clipped compound of Japanese ''kara'' "empty" and ''ōkesutora'' "orchestra") is a type of interactive entertainment usually offered in clubs and bars, where people sing along to recorded music using a microphone. The music is ...

, but in

Andalusia Andalusia (, ; es, Andalucía ) is the southernmost autonomous community in Peninsular Spain. It is the most populous and the second-largest autonomous community in the country. It is officially recognised as a "historical nationality". The ...

and even beyond,

flamenco Flamenco (), in its strictest sense, is an art form based on the various folkloric music traditions of southern Spain, developed within the gitano subculture of the region of Andalusia, and also having historical presence in Extremadura an ...

and other traditional music still dominate ''verbenas''. When the musicians take a break, a runner carrying fireworks (''

toro de fuego A ''toro de fuego'' ("fire bull") is a festive activity in Spain, where a metal frame resembling a bull, with fireworks attached to it, is set alight, and then the person carrying the frame runs around town at night as if chasing people in the st ...

'') may dash into the crowd. The word ''verbena'' comes without alteration from

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

. The term originally referred to the plant verbena, from which the term for a fair derives.

Artistic representation

One of the most famous ''

zarzuela () is a Spanish lyric-dramatic genre that alternates between spoken and sung scenes, the latter incorporating operatic and popular songs, as well as dance. The etymology of the name is uncertain, but some propose it may derive from the name of ...

'' (Spanish

operetta Operetta is a form of theatre and a genre of light opera. It includes spoken dialogue, songs, and dances. It is lighter than opera in terms of its music, orchestral size, length of the work, and at face value, subject matter. Apart from its s ...

) pieces in the ''

género chico Género chico (literally, "little genre") is a Spanish genre of short, light plays with music. It is a major branch of ''zarzuela'', Spain's form of popular music theatre with dialogue, and differs from ''zarzuela grande'' and most other operatic f ...

'' ("smaller genre") is '' La Verbena de la Paloma'' ("The Fair of the Dove"), set at a ''verbena'' on the night of the Virgin of the Paloma, August 14; it was also made into a 1963 movie. There is a 1939 film called '' Verbena Tragica'' (also known as ''Tragic Festival''). The song "Verbena de San Cayetano" celebrates a ''verbena'' in

Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...

References

{{Reflist Festivals in Spain Spanish culture

Artistic representation

See also

References