Catalan culture is strongly present in Rivesaltes!
The "Festa Gegantera": the Festival of the Giants
Once a year, you can discover the Festa Gegantera, a not-to-be-missed event for exchanging ideas and meeting new people!
An all-day event featuring sardana, Catalan ballads , castells, trobadas de gegants and cobla.
Here is a glossary to help you understand these traditions:
GEGANTS :
They can be seen at many festivals, often religious, striding the streets, followed by their procession. Historically, they are much more present on the Iberian side than on the French.
Nevertheless, over the last twenty years or so, this tradition has become increasingly rooted in the common culture shared by the Catalan region and Catalonia, and these figures are honored at village or patron saint festivals.
SARDANES & CONTREPAS :
These are traditional Catalan dances.
During the sardana, dancers stand in a circle holding hands, accompanied by the music of an instrumental ensemble called a "cobla". The term also refers to the music that accompanies the dance.
The contrepas is an ancient dance evoking the Passion of Christ. It is danced in an open round made up entirely of male elements. Its slow, solemn introduction serves to introduce the dancers and the dance.
CASTELLS:
Literally "human castles": a tradition inherited from southern Catalonia.
This traditional, visually impressive cultural event involves building a human pyramid of 6 to 10 storeys, which a very small person then climbs to reach the top.
The Legend of the Babau...
Once upon a time, there was a peaceful little village called Rivesaltes.
On a moonless night, February 2, 1290, just as everyone is drifting off to sleep, a frightful commotion rings out from deep within the ramparts. Six babies have just disappeared! Taken by a huge beast, it has entered through the forat del forn (the oven hole) through which ashes and waste are usually thrown. On another night, the village watchman spotted some kind of iguana in the usually calm waters of the Agly, with its fearsome jaws and impressive claws.
When the Batlle (the Mayor) asked for a description of the animal, the man, stammering with fright, could only articulate "va... vau...", i.e. "he has... he has...". And so "va vau" became "Ba bau". The word went around town, giving the name of Babau (pronounced "babao") to this bloodthirsty monster.
The affair had gone on far too long.
In 1290, Galdric Trencaven, Seigneur des Fraisses et Périllos, was undoubtedly the man for the job. He hung pigs from the ramparts to bait the beast. In a nearby house, Galdric, dressed for battle, was ready. It took him several nights of watching before the monster showed its face again. At the end of the fourth night, Lord Trencaven was finally able to shoot two lethal arrows into the animal's throat.
The monster had finally been vanquished! The local population celebrated the end of this terrible tragedy with a memorable mass and banquet.
Today, his footprint and a rib can be seen at the Rivesaltes Tourist Office. Come and see it...