Galicia irredenta

Map of Galicia irredenta. In grey is Galicia proper and in yellow are the places in Spain where Galician is spoken outside of it.

Galicia irredenta[1] ("Unredeemed Galicia") or Galicia estremeira[2] ("Outer" or "External Galicia"), also spelled as Galiza irredenta[3] and Galiza estremeira[4] and also known as Faixa Leste[5] or Franxa Leste[6] ("Eastern Strip"), is a term used for all Galician-speaking territories located outside of Galicia. These are all located in Spain, in either Asturias or Castile and León.[7][8] These territories are sometimes divided into three subregions: El Bierzo (O Bierzo in Galician), Eo-Navia (Eo-Navia in Galician) and As Portelas (or Upper Sanabria, As Portelas or Alta Seabra in Galician).[9]

There have been several attempts from these territories to join Galicia. An example is Porto de Sanabria, a small village where, in 2018, a vote was organized to join to the region due to the lack of response from the government of Castile and León to requests from locals to fix a road. 202 people voted in favor, 19 against and 6 did a blank vote. However, this vote did not intend any official change and was only made to know the opinion of the inhabitants.[10]

Another example was that of El Bierzo, a comarca where more people prefer to join Galicia than to stay in Castile and León. There are people who have proposed to turn it into a new province of Spain and join it to Galicia.[11] This initiative became more serious when a request was sent in 2021 to the Xunta de Galicia asking it to recognize El Bierzo as a new province of Galicia.[12] This proposal was rejected by the Spanish prominent parties PP and PSOE.[13]

  • Map of Galician-speaking Asturias (Eo-Navia), claimed as part of Galicia irredenta.[9]
    Map of Galician-speaking Asturias (Eo-Navia), claimed as part of Galicia irredenta.[9]
  • Map of the Galician-speaking part of El Bierzo, also claimed as part of Galicia irredenta.[9]
    Map of the Galician-speaking part of El Bierzo, also claimed as part of Galicia irredenta.[9]
  • Map of the As Portelas region, the third region of Galicia irredenta.[9]
    Map of the As Portelas region, the third region of Galicia irredenta.[9]
  1. ^ "El PP plantea reformar la definición de la región para evitar peticiones de anexión". El Norte de Castilla (in Spanish). 20 June 2006.
  2. ^ Méndez Ferrín, Xosé Luís (22 April 2017). "Da freguesía administrativa en Galicia". Faro de Vigo (in Galician).
  3. ^ "El BNG desiste de crear agrupaciones nacionalistas en el Occidente de Asturias". El Progreso de Lugo (in Spanish). 6 February 2012.
  4. ^ Miragaia Doldán, Manuel (18 July 2016). "Por um galeguismo do século XXI: Assembleia Nacional Galega (ANG)". Galicia Confidencial.
  5. ^ Banhos, Alexandre (2013). "O castelhano como blocador da normalidade do português na Galiza". Boletim da Academia Galega da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese). 6: 11–27.
  6. ^ Gómez Bautista, Alberto (2004). "Algunhas notas sobre a lingua galega da Franxa Leste". Madrygal. Revista de Estudios Gallegos (in Galician). 7: 45–48.
  7. ^ Lugris, Igor (20 October 2006). "A Galiza irredenta tambén existe!". Galicia Hoxe (in Galician). Archived from the original on 2 September 2007.
  8. ^ Baelo Álvarez, Manuel (15 December 2005). "La Galicia irredenta en el Bierzo". Diario de León (in Spanish).
  9. ^ a b c d "Para cando un convenio que potencie o galego na histórica rexión galegofalante do Bierzo?". Galicia Confidencial (in Galician). 2 February 2018.
  10. ^ "Porto, el pueblo zamorano que votó en 'referéndum' anexionarse a Galicia". ABC (in Spanish). 28 August 2018.
  11. ^ "A comarca do Bierzo aposta por se constituír como provincia, con preferencia por facelo uníndose a Galiza". Nós Diario (in Galician). 25 May 2020.
  12. ^ "A reivindicación dun Bierzo integrado na Galiza chega ao Parlamento galego". Nós Diario (in Galician). 28 January 2021.
  13. ^ Cabo, Natalia (14 April 2021). "PP y PSOE tumban la propuesta del BNG para reconocer El Bierzo como provincia e incorporarla a Galicia". El Plural (in Spanish).