GEOGRAPHY
With an area of 181 square miles, Andorra is one of the smallest states in Europe. The landlocked Andorra is situated between spain on the south and west and by France on the north and east. it is dominated by the high peaks of the Pyrenees with numerous narrow valleys and gorges; a variety of mountain streams flow together to form the country’s largest river, the Valira; the lower valleys offer good pasture-lands.
INCEPTION AS A NATION
The most ancient peoples of the region that became Andorra were Iberians and Celtiberians. Those people considered ancestral Andorrans migrated to Andorra from the ancient land of Catalonia (see Catalanians). Andorra’s rugged landscape has, over the centuries, ensured the small population a life of relative isolation. its independence emerged by decree of Charlemagne of the Franks, who drove the Moors from the region in 803 c. e. In 843 Holy Roman Emperor Charles II granted bishops of the Spanish city Seco de Urgel control of Andorra.
A count from Foix in southern France was granted cogovernance of Andorra with Urgel’s bishops in 1278 and 1288. The French head of state would eventually assume cogovernance with the representatives of Urgel’s bishops, and Andorra paid a nominal sum to each over the years. From 1589, when Henry II of Foix became Henry IV of France, Andorra was ruled by French kings. Essentially this feudal arrangement of government remained in place until 1993, the last of its kind in Europe. The Andorrans first received some self-governance in 1419, with the establishment of a local parliament, the Council of the Land.
Andorrans voted for their first constitution in 1993, establishing a parliamentary democracy But in an anachronistic anomaly, the bishop of Seco de Urgel and the president of France technically remain coprinces of the independent country of Andorra. Andorra joined the United Nations in 1993.
CULTURAL IDENTITY
Because the Catalan language of the Andorrans was once considered a dialect of Provengal and is now claimed as a Hispanic language, its speakers in both Catalonia (in spain) and Andorra feel independent culturally from either France or Spain, whom Catalan speakers consider foreign conquerors. Catalan literature flourished in the Middle Ages, reaching a zenith of achievement in the 15th century made possible by the brilliant courts of Provence in southern France. It was strongly influenced by the poetry of Provengal trou-badors at a time when southern France had its
Before ninth century Andorrans migrate from ancient land of Catalonia in present-day northeastern Spain.
803 Charlemagne drives out Muslims from Andorra; Andorra is declared free state.
843 Holy Roman Emperor Charles II grants rule of Andorra to bishops or princes of Urgel.
1159 Andorra becomes subject of struggle between count of Foix in France and Catalan bishop of Urgel.
1278 First Act of Joint Overlordship is drawn up, in which bishop of Urgel and count of Foix both control Andorra.
1288 Second Act of Joint Overlordship is drawn up.
1419 Local parliament, Council of the Land, is established.
1589 Rule of Andorra passed to French kings.
1793 French monarchy is overthrown in French Revolution, leaving Andorra without protection of French government.
1806 Napoleon I Bonaparte reestablishes overlordship of French government.
1870 President of France becomes overlord of Andorra.
1970 Andorran women gain right to vote.
1991 Agreement with European Union (EU) regulates tax-free trade, setting duty-free quotas to encourage tourism.
1993 Andorra becomes parliamentary coprincipality under first constitution; Andorra joins United Nations (UN).
1997 University of Andorra is founded; courses are offered in conjunction with universities in Spain and France.
Own culture distinct from the Frankish culture to the north. Catalanians in Catalonia and the future Andorra also benefited from Catalonia’s unification with Aragon in Spain in the 12th century; the pairing of the two polities led to a rise in Aragonese-Catalanian power and wealth. By the 15th century Catalan literature had evolved its own forms distinct from those of Provencal literature, which had begun to wane after the 13th century as France and French gained dominance in southern France. Catalan took on the status of a minority language in a landscape of growing language hegemony, which had begun with the imposition of French from the north, after Aragon lost its independence to Castile in the latter 15th century. Provencal largely disappeared until its 19th-century revival; Catalan, spoken in mountainous regions more remote from trends in France and Spain, has fared better. The economic strength of Catalonia, which was the first region in Spain to industrialize, has also helped to preserve Catalan. It is the preferred language of most Catalanians, who number some 6 million people.
It is characteristic of minority peoples to engage in symbolic acts or customs in order to affirm their ethnocultural distinctness in the absence of a nationality Catalanians find it difficult to maintain their cultural unity when their population lives within separate political entities. One unifying element of Catalanian culture is the egalitarian circle dance, the sardana. It represents qualities that Catalanians hold dear, such as harmony, democracy, and brotherhood. Sardana dancers link hands with raised arms, forming circles that grow bigger and bigger as more people join in. When the circle gets too big, the dancers form more circles. One of the main features of the dance is its spontaneity—for instance, except on special occasions, dancers wear everyday clothes. Thus a crowd of Catalanians—peo-ple of all ages and ranks in life—may start to dance the sardana whenever the communal spirit moves them.
Further Reading
Thomas Eccardt. Secrets of the Seven Smallest States of Europe: Andorra, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malta, Monaco, San Marino, and Vatican City (New York: Hippocrene, 2004).
Barry Taylor. Andorra (Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-CLIO, 1993).
Andorrans: nationality time line
World History
