Day of La Rioja in Spain

The Day of La Rioja (Día de La Rioja) is an annual public holiday in the Spanish autonomous community of La Rioja, on June 9. It marks the anniversary of when the autonomous community of La Rioja's statute was approved on June 9, 1982.

Local wine tasting is one of the activities on the Day of La Rioja.

©iStockphoto.com/carlos sanchez pereyra

What do people do?

Various events are organized on the Day of La Rioja. These include:

• Exhibitions of the work of artists living in La Rioja.
• Concerts of modern and traditional music.
• Communal meals.
• Tastings of traditional dishes and local wines.
• Sports events.

Many people display the flag of the autonomous community of La Rioja during events and on public buildings and private homes. Many people also wear clothes or paint their faces based on the flag's colors.

Public life

The Day of La Rioja is a public holiday in the Spanish autonomous community of La Rioja on June 9. Public life is generally quiet on this date. Many businesses and other organizations are closed. Many stores are closed but some bakers and food stores may be open. Public transport services generally run to a reduced schedule but there may be no services in rural areas. Large events may cause some local disruption to traffic, particularly in the centers of towns and villages.

Regional or local authorities may move the public holiday to a different date. If June 9 falls on a Tuesday or Thursday, many businesses and organizations are also closed on Monday, June 8, or Friday, June 10. June 9 is a public holiday known as the Day of the Region of Murcia in the Spanish autonomous community of Murcia. The Day of La Rioja is not a public holiday in the rest of Spain on June 9.

Background

The area that is now the autonomous community of La Rioja has been inhabited for thousands of years. It was under the control of the Romans and the Moors. La Rioja was also part of the kingdoms of Viguera, Pamplona and Castile. The Spanish autonomous community of La Rioja is north east Spain. It borders the autonomous communities of:

• Aragon.
• The Basque Country.
• Castile and León.
• Navarre.

The autonomous community of La Rioja's statute was approved on June 9, 1982. The Day of La Rioja was first observed on June 9, 1983.

Symbols

The autonomous community of La Rioja's flag is one-and-a-half times as wide as it is high. It consists of four equal horizontal bands. These are colored from top to bottom:

• Red.
• White.
• Green.
• Yellow.

The autonomous community of La Rioja's coat of arms is at the flag's center. The coat of arms consists of a red crown on top of a blue shield. The shield also has images of St. James' cross on mount Laturce, a castle on a bridge over a river, two scallop shells and three fleur-de-lis. The St. James' cross and the scallop shells denote the Way of St. James. This is an ancient pilgrimage route leading from France to the cathedral in Santiago de Compostela in Galicia. The Way of St James route passes through the autonomous community of La Rioja.

Day of La Rioja Observances

Other holidays in June 2013 in Spain

• Day of Murcia ―Sunday, June 9, 2013
• Day of Murcia observed ―Monday, June 10, 2013
• Day of La Rioja observed ―Monday, June 10, 2013
• San Antonio ―Thursday, June 13, 2013
• June Solstice ―Friday, June 21, 2013
• Saint John the Baptist Day ―Monday, June 24, 2013