Pubilla

Formal naming of a pubilla during a ceremony in Solsona

Pubilles in Ulldecona.

A pubilla (Catalan pronunciation: [puˈβiʎə], Western Catalan: [puˈβiʎa]; plural pubilles) in ancestral Catalan tradition was the female that would inherit the whole rural estate in the absence of a brother.

Tradition

She was the female version of the hereu or male heir of the whole inmoval property of the family. Traditionally, when there was no male heir, the eldest girl of the family would inherit the home and the estate in ancient Catalonia. The purpose was not to divide estates that were already too small to exploit in a profitable manner.^[1]

From mid 20th century onwards the image of the pubilla underwent a change; in present times the pubilla has a role similar to a local beauty queen in local popular celebrations.^[2] Sometimes the female gegants are dressed as a pubilla, like in Manresa.^[3] Often the naming of a pubilla is a good occasion for a Catalan girl to dress in the traditional costume.^[4]

See also

• Traditions of Catalonia
• Symbols of Catalonia
• Ciutat Pubilla de la Sardana

References

Literature

• Kathryn A. Woolard, Double talk: bilingualism and the politics of ethnicity in Catalonia, Stanford University Press (1989), ISBN 978-0-8047-1502-7

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Pubilla

• L'hereu i la pubilla de la Garrotxa: una qüestió de devoció, no de vocació
• Elecció de l'hereu i pubilla de la catalunya central 2010