Some people say that there were many hares in the area in ancient times, and the Carthaginian colonialists named it "Hare Country", thus evolving the name of Spain. Others say that its name comes from the Basque language. It means "frontier, ocean" and was mistakenly recognized by the Romans as the name of the place. Later, it became the name of the country today. Others say that its name originates from the Hebrew Phoenician language, meaning "buried", which later means "buried wealth and mineral deposits".
Spain is located on the Iberian Peninsula in southern Europe. It borders the Bay of Biscay to the north, Portugal to the west, Morocco in Africa to the south across the Strait of Gibraltar, the Mediterranean Sea to the southeast and south, and France and Andorra to the northeast.
Spain covers an area of ??504,750 square kilometers. The population is 37.65 million (1981), of which Spanish (Castilians) account for 72.8%, followed by Catalans, and the remainder are Galicians and Basques.
Spain is divided into 50 provinces, with cities (towns) under each province. The capital is Madrid. The currency is the "peseta". The official language is Spanish, and its own national language is commonly used in minority areas.
Spanish people like to be lively, talkative, straightforward and polite;
Be elegant and graceful, enthusiastic, sincere and friendly;
The national tradition values ??civilization, and most of them believe in Catholicism;
"Thirteenth" and "Friday" are very taboo, and there is no good sign if you encounter them;
Kissing in public is a bad custom, and women without earrings are ridiculed.
Spanish people are very talkative. They are happy to chat, whether it is bullfighting, politics, literature, art or trivial life matters, they are all good topics for them. They usually hold social activities after 9 pm, especially meals, which are mostly held very late. Spanish women use fans not mainly to cool themselves down, but to express some inconvenient words by making various movements with the fans: When a woman opens her fan and covers the lower half of her face, it means she is asking: "Do you like me?" or "I love you"; if she keeps fanning rapidly, it means "please leave me"; if she opens and closes the fan for a while, it means "I am very fond of you". Miss you"; if you turn the fan over and over in your hand, it means "you are too annoying"; if you fold the fan, it means "you are not worthy of love"; if you throw the fan on the table , which is equivalent to telling "I don't like you, I love someone else"; opening a fan and supporting your chin in front of your boyfriend means "I hope to meet you sooner next time."
The Spanish have a special custom of seeking happiness. When the bell rings at midnight on New Year’s Eve, everyone must eat 12 grapes to wish themselves 12 happy years in the new year. Everything goes well during the month. They are always accustomed to holding a gold coin in their hands during New Year's Day, thinking that this will bring good luck; the poor who do not have gold coins are also accustomed to holding a copper coin in their hands instead. They love the pomegranate flower the most, regard it as a symbol of wealth and good luck, and respect it as the national flower. They prefer red, yellow, and also black. It is believed that red symbolizes auspiciousness and enthusiasm, yellow symbolizes nobility; brightness, and black symbolizes solemnity. Among the Galicians in northern Spain, the status of men and women is unusual. Women are extremely authoritative. Whether they decide things, participate in social activities, give speeches, etc., they are women. Even the power to inherit inheritance belongs to women.
When Spaniards meet guests on official occasions, they usually shake hands. When their relatives and friends meet, usually the men should hug each other on the shoulders; the women should gently kiss each other on the first floor and kiss on the cheeks.
Close boyfriends often hug each other when they meet and say goodbye. The women hugged each other gently and kissed each cheek.
The siesta (Spanish, lunch break) at noon every day is a time for family members to reunite and have the main meal of the day. Most offices and shops will be closed from 1:30 pm to 4:30 pm.
You must arrive on time only to watch the bullfight.
One peculiar thing about Spain is that dinner is very late. Restaurants generally don't open until 9 o'clock, and they don't get busy until around 11 o'clock.
Bring some flowers when you are invited to a dinner (do not bring dahlias and chrysanthemums, as people associate them with death). Other gifts can include various snacks. Cakes and chocolates.
Guests sometimes receive gifts and should unpack them immediately.
Conversation
Appropriate topics of conversation include politics (although it is best not to compare Spain to the United States politically), sports and travel.
Don’t talk about religion, family and career. Don't criticize bullfighting. Bullfighting in Spain is not a sport, but an art.
92.2% of Spanish people believe in Roman Catholicism, and other religions include Protestantism and Judaism.
The Spaniards are most taboo about “13” and “Friday”. These numbers and dates are considered very unlucky and will bring bad luck or disaster. They don't want to talk about issues such as religion, family and personal work, and they don't want to hear anyone say bad things about bullfighting. They behave in an elegant manner and are not used to kissing on the lips in public. They think it is extremely unsightly behavior and immoral behavior. They believe that it is unlucky for children to fight, curse, and cry on New Year's Day, which is an ominous sign. Therefore, in order to get children's smiles on this day, adults usually agree to whatever requests children make. They tabooed dahlias and chrysanthemums, seeing these two flowers as symbols of death. in their country. If a woman goes out on the street without earrings, she is just like a normal person without clothes.
Spanish people mainly eat Western food, but they are also happy to taste Chinese dishes. They are more casual about breakfast and dinner, but take lunch very seriously. They do not like to drink hot soup like the Chinese, but they like to drink cold soup. Spaniards have a food festival every month for 1 or 2 months of the year: in January, they eat rice, eel pie, smoked sausage, etc.; in February, they mostly eat honey rolls, pizza, wine, milk, etc.; in March, they eat Dishes cooked with snails and sardines; eat roasted suckling pig, roasted mutton, etc. in April; eat apples in May; eat roasted beef in June; drink wine freely in July; roast crabs and turkeys in August; eat strawberries and grapes in September ; In October, enjoy various seasonal delicacies; in November, eat fried cakes, roast pork, sausages, and game; in December, celebrate New Year's Eve and drink garlic soup, which indicates that everything will go well in the coming year.
① Pay attention to the nutritional content of dishes; pay attention to the color and quality of dishes.
② Taste: I generally don’t like too salty food and prefer spicy and sour taste.
③The staple food is mainly noodles, but also rice.
④ Non-staple food likes fish, mutton, beef, pork (and pig offal), shrimp, crab, turkey, snail, ham, etc.; vegetables like onions, peppers, tomatoes, fresh mushrooms, potatoes, peas etc.; seasonings like vinegar, olive oil, pepper, chili, etc.
⑤ Preference for dishes made with cooking methods such as deep-frying, pan-frying, roasting, and stir-frying.
⑥Chinese Food I like Chinese Sichuan and Cantonese cuisine.
⑦The menu includes barbecue, watermelon pot, roasted suckling pig, fried chicken, crispy cod, fried lobster, stir-fried chowder, kung pao chicken, squirrel fish, fried prawns, assorted fresh mushrooms, Crispy fat duck, braised snow fungus braised vegetables, agarwood soup and other flavorful dishes.
⑧Water and wine: I like to drink cider, white wine and beer. I also like mineral water, coffee and Coca-Cola as feed. I also like Chinese Longjing tea.
⑨Fruits: Like to eat fresh fruits such as apples, pomegranates, lemons, citrus, strawberries, grapes, pears, peaches, pineapples, watermelons, etc.; like to eat dried fruits such as almonds, peanuts, etc.