In Galicia, an autonomous community in northwestern Spain

 “There is of course a deep spiritual need, which the pilgrimage seems to satisfy, particularly for those hardy enough to tackle the journey on foot.”

― Edwin Mullins, The Pilgrimage to Santiago
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(in northwestern Spain) Covering 11,419 square miles (29,575 square kilometers), Galicia is bounded by the Atlantic Ocean and Portugal, and its capital is Santiago de Compostela. Its name is derived from the Celtic Gallaeci, who lived here when the region was conquered by the Romans around 137 BCE. It lost much of its political autonomy after the unification of Castile and Aragon in 1479. (The region was made an autonomous community in 1981.) Galicia has more than 1,660 kilometers (1,030 miles) of coastline, including its offshore islands and islets, among them Cíes Islands, Ons, Sálvora, and Cortegada Island (which together form the Atlantic Islands of Galicia National Park), and the largest and most populated, A Illa de Arousa (the only island municipality in Galicia).

+ Galicia’s culture and language developed in relative isolation, showing greater affinity for the Portuguese culture and language than for the culture and language of Spain until the final separation of the two countries in 1668. Other noteworthy literary periods include the Rexurdimento (“Resurgence” or “Revival”) of the late 19th century, as well as the 1920s and ’30s. In the 19th century. Rosalía de Castro was a leading figure of the Resurgence. Her Cantares gallegos ("Galician Songs”) was the first major work to be written in the Galician language in centuries. It represented the revival of Galician as a literary language and inspired a growing regional consciousness. In the years just before Franco came to power, a group of Galician writers born in the 1880s formed the core of the Galician cultural movement. Known as the Xeración Nós (“The We Generation”), these writers promoted their objectives in the literary and artistic journal Nós (1920; “We”), dedicated to consolidating Galician culture.

+ Galicia, which is still a unique region with its own language and distinctive culture, is home to Santiago de Compostela, the destination of more than quarter of a million souls who travel each year along the Camino de Santiago pilgrim trails. Santiago is one of Spain's most beautiful and magical cities, a good reason for any traveler to make their way to Spain's northwestern corner. Yet, Galicia is much more than Santiago. The wild coastline is frayed up and down its length by majestic rías (coastal inlets), and strung with cliffs, beaches, islands, and fishing ports (which bring in arguably the best seafood in Europe). Inland is a labyrinth of deep-green valleys, speckled with stone villages, medieval monasteries and age-old vineyards. And, as you travel you will repeatedly run into reminders of Galicia's unique cultural identity: the sound of bagpipes and the wayside cruceiros (carved-stone crosses), and the castro fort-villages of Galicians' Celtic ancestors.