Speak the Culture: Spain: Be Fluent in Spanish Life and Culture

so, but the current low birth rate (an ongoing national

concern at only 1.3 children per woman) means that the

few are indulged more than ever. Children are seen as

integral to Spanish life, not as separate entities, and

so go everywhere with their parents, often keeping

similarly late hours.The bonds of family and children are

perhaps best revealed by the fact that more Spaniards

in their 20s live with their parents than in any other

European country.The high costs of moving out no

doubt help shore up the young Spaniard’s emotional

bonds with mater and pater. Even those who do flee

the nest rarely fly far – the majority of young Spanish

adults can be found taking Sunday lunch with their

parents every week.

As of July 2007 Spanish parents became eligible for a€2,500 grant for every

newborn produced.

Also in 2007, Ponga in Asturias offered€6,000 to any couple with a child moving to

the town in an effort to reduce the residents’ average age. Fewer than 50 of the 851

inhabitants were under 18.

Spanish families receive the lowest level of state child support in the EU.

A Spanish couple would need to have 12 children to receive the same cash garnered

by just two of the little treasures in Germany.

Baby talk

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1. Identity: the
   building blocks of
   2. Literature
   and philosophy
   3. Art and
   architecture
   4. Performing
   arts
   5. Cinema
   and fashion
   6. Media and
   communications
   7. Food and drink 8. Living culture:
   the details of

Violence in the sun
El Ejido, a town in
Almería, descended
into chaos in 2000 after
a mentally disabled
Moroccan man was
accused of stabbing a
local woman. North
Africans, their homes,
cars and shops were
attacked for three days
by large gangs of rioters.
Almería relies heavily on
cheap migrant labour,
willing to work for low
pay picking fruit and veg
in stiflingly hot plastic
polytunnels.

Dying to reach the EU
The Strait of Gibraltar
has become a dangerous
last crossing for
thousands of migrants
trying to enter Spain
illegally. Many perish
trying to make the
journey in unsuitable
boats. The trip from
West Africa, usually
Mauritania, to the
Canary Islands has
claimed even more lives
as sub-Saharan Africans
try to find a way into
Spain. More than 30,000
were intercepted trying
to reach the Canaries in
2006.