Today we present you the 6 most surprising and mysterious Spanish Myths. Discover with us these legends and their meaning.
Spanish Myths
For many centuries, Spain was a land of battles, as the Spanish and Islamic forces fought for supremacy of the peninsula, city by city and kingdom by kingdom. In this context of struggle, historical heroes became the subject of Spanish myths, legends and balladry. Itinerant troubadours recorded their deeds of valor in the epic tales of the myths of Spain.
The myths of Spain talk a lot about mythical creatures and legends of romance. Why not turn your attention to the historical imaginative world of the myths of Spain? Dragons, fairies, trolls and witches populate the Spanish tradition.
And for every story there is a mystical side. Here are 6 famous myths of Spain that you should know.
1. El coco
Engaging children with Spain’s myths or scary legends to get them to behave can be a common scenario around the world. Many of us have heard the stories of the Boogieman or a creature that could take away disobedient children. In the myths of Spain, there is the legend of “El Coco“, a monstrous creature that eats or kidnaps children if they disobey or cause trouble.
People incorporate these myths of Spain into rhymes or lullabies and many parents use it to encourage children to go to bed, saying:
“Go to sleep child, go to sleep now, the bogeyman is coming and will eat you.“
According to the myths of Spain, the real story of the coconut begins with Francisco Ortega, also known as the Moruno, was a man sick with tuberculosis in the early 20th century. He was desperately seeking a cure for the disease, so he sought help from a Curandera (healer old lady). She told him that he would be cured by drinking the blood of children and rubbing their fat on his chest.
And so, the Moruno kidnapped a 7 year old boy named Bernardo, in a cloth bag, to cut off his armpit and drink his blood and thus this creepy story was born. El Coco is known for walking the streets at night with a black bag, looking for children who wander the streets or misbehave.
2. Ratoncito Perez
The second of Spain’s myths begins in mid-1894, when Luis Colomo was asked to write a story for the young King Alfonso XIII, who had just lost a tooth. Colomo, inspired by the character of a mouse named “Ratóncito Pérez“, who originally appeared in a story a few years ago.
Thus was created in the myths of Spain the story of the tooth fairy, a mouse who lived in a cookie box with his family in Madrid, who ran through the pipes to reach the rooms of children who had lost their teeth and leave them coins.
Perez is the Spanish version of the tooth fairy and has been very popular among the people. The Spanish myth was later adapted into a movie and other books. The Madrid City Hall paid tribute to Ratoncito Perez with a commemorative plaque that reads: “Here lived, in a box of cookies, Ratoncito Perez, according to the story that Father Coloma wrote for the young King Alfonso XIII“.
3. The Origin of Barcelona
In the myths of Spain there are different legends that speak about the foundation and the name of the city of Barcelona. One of the Spanish myths says that Hercules once set out on a voyage with nine ships, which got separated and finally, only eight of them were traced.
According to the myths of Spain, it is said that collectively the other ships, began searching for the ninth and found it at the bottom of Montjuic hill. The crew fell in love with the area and decided to name the city after Barca (ship) and Nona (ninth).
It is also said that Hercules fell in love with a beautiful girl named Pyrene. However, they could not stay together for more than months, as they supposedly had to continue on their respective journeys. This is where the name “Pyrenees” comes from.
Another of Spain’s myths says that the origin of the city was attributed to the Carthaginians, to Hannibal’s father Hamilcar Barca. He came to this area and founded the city, then gave it his surname, Barca. However, there is no evidence to prove any of the stories.
4. Hall of the Abencerrajes
The city of Granada is home to several myths of Spain and stories that date back to Islamic times. The Hall of the Abencerrajes, located in the city, derives its name from a tragic legend in which 36 members of the noble Abencerrage family were invited to a banquet at the Alhambra palace by Sultan Abu Al-Hassan.
The Sultan had discovered that the head of the invited family, Hamet, was courting his favorite concubine named Zoraya. Seeking revenge, he called his guards during the banquet and had them slit the throats of each member of the family.
The heads of the victims were then thrown into the fountains. Spanish myth holds that the stain visible at the bottom of the fountains today is the blood that remains as a permanent reminder of the horrible massacre.
5. The Legend of St. George and the Dragon
This is one of the most popular Spanish Myths located in the region of Catalonia that is celebrated with great pomp and show, even today, especially in Barcelona. The Spanish myth says that there was once a dragon living in Montblanc, who terrorized the villagers and devoured their animals. Soon, all the animals were gone, and it was time for the dragon to turn his wrath on the people.
The villagers decided to disguise and sacrifice one person each day, offering her to the dragon. On one of these occasions, the unfortunate person whose name was chosen was the princess. People offered to take her place, due to her kind nature, but the King refused to let anyone sacrifice their lives for his daughter.
The princess was sent to the dragon, and just as she was about to be swallowed, a knight in shining armor appeared and decided to fight the creature. After a hard confrontation, he was able to kill the dragon with his spear and spill its blood.
From the place where the blood had been spilled, a red rose grew, which the knight then plucked and presented to the princess. The knight was named Sant Jordi (St. George). To commemorate this event, every year on April 23, a big celebration is held in the streets and men give roses to the women they love. If you visit Barcelona at that time, you will surely experience a great public event.
6. The lovers of Teruel
The Spanish myth of the lovers of Teruel dates back to the 13th century, when Isabel and Diego, both from wealthy families, fell in love and wanted to marry. However, an unfortunate turn of events caused Diego’s family to lose their money and Isabel’s father refused to let his daughter marry him.
Diego petitioned his father for five years, in which he would return after making his fortune, and then marry Isabel. No one heard from him for the next five years and on the day of the end of the agreed period, Isabel’s father married her to someone else.
In a twisted twist, just after the wedding ceremony, Diego was seen returning to the city with much wealth. He was heartbroken to see that the love of his life was married to someone else and could not bear the thought of their separation. Later that night, he sneaked into her room and asked her to kiss him, as he was dying.
Isabel refused, as she did not want to cheat on her husband. Diego died right next to her bed, leaving her in shock. The next day, she went to his funeral in her wedding dress and proceeded to kiss him one last time. However, she died there, next to his body. The villagers decided to bury them side by side, near St. Peter’s Church, so that at least in death, the lovers could be together.
