Culture
of Gibraltar
The culture of Gibraltar reflects Gibraltarians' diverse origins.
While there are Spanish and British influences, a result of the
territory's status as a UK ' overseas territory' and its proximity
to Spain, the ethnic origins of most Gibraltarians are a mix of
Andalusian Spaniards, Genoese, Maltese, Portuguese and British. The
main religion is Christianity, the majority group being the Roman
Catholic Church, then the Church of England. There is a long
established Jewish community, a number of Hindu Indians and a
Moroccan Muslim population. Gibraltarians of Genoese origin came to
the Rock in the 18th century, with the Maltese and Portuguese
following in the 19th century, coming to work and trade in the
British military base.
During the Second World War, the whole civilian population of the
Rock was evacuated, in the interests of the British military, which
decreed that 'the fortress comes first'. They were moved to the UK,
particularly to Fulham and Kensington in London and Ballymena in
Northern Ireland, as well as Jamaica and Madeira. This served to
strengthen a Gibraltarian, as opposed to simply British, identity,
and after the war, there was a successful campaign for repatriation.
British Gibraltarians
Gibraltarians have historically been proud of their British
heritage, and unlike the inhabitants of other territories, sought to
strengthen, rather than loosen their ties with the UK and the
British Crown, seeing themselves as 'more British than the British'.
This sense of being British was particularly strong when the
frontier with Spain was closed in 1969, and all communications links
were severed. Until 16th December 2006, the only flights from
Gibraltar's airport, were those to the UK. To some in Britain
itself, this sense of Britishness is often looked upon with a
mixture of incomprehension and ridicule. The fact that they are
largely of Mediterranean appearance and speak a patois or creole of
Andalusian Spanish, known as llanito leads many British and Spanish
people to mistakenly think that Gibraltarians are simply Andalucian
Spaniards, thus ignoring Gibraltarian's specific cultural heritage
and identity.
Religion
Most Gibraltarians are Roman Catholic, with the Diocese of Gibraltar
being directly responsible to the Vatican. The Rock also forms part
of the Church of England diocese covering mainland Europe, with a
'Bishop of Gibraltar in Europe'. There is also a Methodist Church
and St Andrew's Church (part of the Church of Scotland).
There is a small (600 members) but very influential Jewish minority,
active in business and politics, and five synagogues. Most Moroccans
are Muslim, and there is a large mosque at Europa Point, the
Ibrahim-al-Ibrahim Mosque, paid for by Saudi Arabia. Most Indians
are Hindu, with their own local temple.
Additionally there are two very active congregations of Jehovah's
Witnesses sharing the same Kingdom Hall, one has meetings in English
and the other in Spanish.
Relations with Spain
Historically, cultural ties with Spain have been strong, Andalusian
Spanish (or its Gibraltarian variant Yanito) being the vernacular
language of the territory. Intermarriage between Gibraltarians and
Spaniards resulted in many people having relatives on the other side
of the frontier, known in Spanish as La Verja or 'the fence'. These
people were badly affected by the closure of the frontier in 1969,
which even saw telephone links severed, so that the only way that
families could communicate was to shout across the border gates.
Others took the more cumbersome and costly route of travelling by
ferry via Morocco.
Since the frontier with Spain was reopened, ties with the
hinterland, known as the 'Campo de Gibraltar', have increased, with
many buying property in La Línea de la Concepción, Sotogrande and
further afield, where prices are considerably lower. On the
weekends, many flock across the frontier, with livelier nightclubs
and bars than in Gibraltar. Younger Gibraltarians have considerable
exposure to popular culture from Spain, and even vice versa, the pop
group 'Taxi' having found success on the Spanish charts, virtually
all of its songs being in Spanish. In addition, Gibraltarians of all
ages are avid supporters of Spanish football teams like FC Barcelona
and Real Madrid as well as teams like Manchester United and Arsenal.
However, the Gibraltar Football Association's application for
membership of UEFA, which would enable it to participate in the
European Football Championships and the Football World Cup, has met
with strong opposition from the Spanish Football Federation. This is
seen as yet another attempt to deny the existence of Gibraltar
internationally.
While Gibraltarians have multiple identities, seeing themselves to
varying degrees as Gibraltarian, British and European, they do not
generally identify with the Spanish state. While some in Britain's
Foreign Office would like to see this closening of ties result in an
'osmosis' between the Rock and the Campo, there is no prospect of
Gibraltarians accepting absorption into Spain. A trip across the
frontier, even to La Línea, is still described as 'going to Spain'.
Relations with Britain
British influence remains strong. Spanish may be widely spoken, but
it is a vernacular language only, English being the language of
government, commerce, education and the media. Gibraltarians going
on to higher education attend university in the UK, not Spain, as
indeed do those requiring medical treatment not available on the
Rock. Many university graduates remain in the UK to pursue careers
there. After the Second World War, most evacuees were repatriated,
but some stayed on, while many also moved to the UK, thereby
increasing family ties with the 'Mother Country'. While television
from Spain is easily received and widely watched, the availability
of British television via satellite, particularly Sky and the BBC,
means that Gibraltarians are as familiar with British news and
popular culture as people in the UK itself. Many Gibraltarians refer
to British people with the pejorative term 'Guiris', which is
Spanish slang for 'foreigner' or 'Northern European'.
Surnames
Many Gibraltarians have names that reflect their mixed British and
Mediterranean heritage usually with British first names like Keith,
Nigel, Gladys, Mary Ann and John, with surnames originating from all
over the Mediterranean and beyond. Surnames in Gibraltar include
those originating from Genoa, (Bosano, Canessa, Imossi, Culatto,
Licudi, Massetti, Montegriffo, Olivero and Danino), Malta (Borge,
Caruana, Xerri, Beriro, Zammit, Buttigieg, Farrugia and Azzopardi)
Spain (Garcia, Gomez, Marin, Lopez, Linares, Sanchez, Tacon), and
Portugal (Britto, Coelho, Netto, Tavares, Oliveira), as well as
Sephardic Jewish ones (Serfaty, Serruya, Attias, Benady, Hassan,
Levy, Federico). Surnames of British origin include Hook, Holmes
,Randall, Corby, Feetham & Francis.
Gibraltarian British
While many outsiders use the terms 'Gibraltarians', 'people of
Gibraltar' and 'residents of Gibraltar' interchangeably, strictly
speaking, 'Gibraltarian' should be used only to describe those
British citizens registered as such.
The UK originally regarded Gibraltarians as 'British Overseas
Territory Citizens' In 1981 Gibraltarians successfully campaigned
against this classification under the British Nationality Act ,
which would have deprived them of the right of abode in the UK,
along with other colonial subjects. This was partly due to
Gibraltar's status as part of the then European Community (now
European Union). As a result the Gibraltarians acquired the right to
register as full British citizens.
British passports issued in Gibraltar differ from those issued in
the UK, in that they feature the word 'Gibraltar' underneath 'United
Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland'. Whereas UK-issued
passports state that Her Britannic Majesty's Secretary of State
requests and requires in the name of Her Majesty the Queen to allow
the bearer to pass freely without let or hindrance, Gibraltar-issued
passports state that that it is the Governor of Gibraltar who
requests and requires this.
In 2004 an electoral register taken for the purposes of elections
for the European Parliament showed that there were only 95 persons
with the status of BOTC. Spain opposed the enfranchisement of the
Gibraltarians in EU elections on the basis of the misconception that
Gibraltarians were not full British citizens, but 'Commonwealth
citizens', despite Commonwealth citizens living in the UK having
always been able to vote in European elections.
Other British
There is a sizeable British expatriate minority, classified as
'Other British' and generally referred to by the native
Gibraltarians rather pejoratively as guiris. Historically, many came
with the British military or as civil servants, with many marrying
locals, and registering as Gibraltarians themselves, although any
British citizen resident on the Rock for at least six months may
vote. With the decline of the military presence, and the
introduction of self-government, most from the UK instead come to
work in the offshore finance sector. Many affluent people from the
UK and elsewhere are classed as 'High Net Worth Individuals', who
receive tax concessions in return for buying property and residing
locally for at least part of the year. More recently, many futures
traders have come to the Rock, since the London International
Financial Futures and Options Exchange (LIFFE) switched to
electronic trading in 1999, thereby reducing the need to be in
London. Some in Gibraltar have criticised the current government's
policy, on the grounds that too much is being done to develop luxury
properties for 'High Net Worth Individuals', and not enough to
develop property for local people, a common complaint in many other
small offshore jurisdictions. However, this should not be construed
as hostility to British people or expatriates.
Moroccans
Following the closure of the frontier, Gibraltar could no longer
rely on Spanish workers commuting from the Campo, resulting in a
labour shortage. Gibraltar instead looked to Morocco, with many
workers coming over by ferry and staying in government hostels.
Although they paid income tax and social insurance, they were denied
the right to either permanent residence or citizenship, only having
renewable work permits. This policy has prompted criticism from
human rights groups in the UK, who describe living and working
conditions for Moroccans in Gibraltar as degrading.
Indians
Most Indians in Gibraltar are in business, many of the shops on the
Rock's Main Street being Indian-owned. Although initially not able
to obtain citizenship, an increasing number have done so.
Sport culture
The Ministry for Sport, headed by the Hon Ernest Britto, Minister
for Government Services and Sport, is responsible for sports policy
matters and the provision of support to educational establishments
and the governing bodies of sport in Gibraltar. Under the
chairmanship of the Minister, a Gibraltar Sports Advisory Council
has been set up to advise the Government of Gibraltar on all matters
relating to sport.
The Government recognizes the benefits derived from participation in
sports and recreational activities. Importance is given to the
availability of suitable facilities for the practice of sport. There
are a large number of Sports facilities in Gibraltar, of varying
standards. These provide opportunities for residents and visitors
alike to enjoy sport as a recreation and for the serious sports
enthusiasts to improve standards and participate in local and
International events.
There are, at the moment, eighteen Gibraltar Sports Associations
that have gained official recognition from their respective
International Governing Bodies. Others, including the Gibraltar
National Olympic Committee, have submitted applications for
recognition which are being considered
In late 1999 a Sports Development Unit was set up to assist
Gibraltar governing bodies of sport and Educational establishments
to improve standards.
Gibraltar's resident population is active in sport and standards
are, by and large, rather high, in relation to Gibraltar's
population. Participation in officially recognised or other sports
events, abroad or in Gibraltar, is welcomed by Gibraltar sports
persons.
Gibraltar's sports facilities are also being used by foreign sports
persons for 'warm-weather' training. This practice is being
encouraged and more and better facilities are projected in order to
improve the product for locals and visitors alike.
The Gibraltar Football Association
The GFA was formed as the Gibraltar Civilian Football Association in
1895, changing to its current name in later years. It is one of the
oldest football associations in the world.
The GFA was formed as an increasing number of football clubs were
coming into existence in Gibraltar, and the association was designed
to bring some form of organisation to the game there. Between the
association's formation and 1907 the only football competition in
Gibraltar was the Merchant's Cup. However, in 1907 the GFA
established a league to complement the existing cup competition.
By 1901, the GFA had established a representative "national" team,
competing against military teams. This representative team continued
to play down the years, their highlight probably being a draw
against Real Madrid in 1949.
The GFA affiliated with The Football Association in 1909, but is
currently trying to become a full member of UEFA so that its
national team can compete in the European Football Championship and
the Football World Cup.
Gibraltarian Football League
The Gibraltarian Football League was established by the Gibraltar
Football Association (GFA) in 1905. It originally contained eight
member clubs, but it has grown over the years.
In 1909 the league grew to two divisions, and it currently has three
divisions which clubs can be promoted and relegated between at the
end of each season.
The Gibraltar cricket team
Cricket has been played in Gibraltar by British servicemen since the
late 18th century. A cricket ground is known to have existed north
of the Rock of Gibraltar in 1800. Civilians were playing the game as
well as servicemen by 1822.
The Gibraltar Cricket Club was formed in 1883, and formed the
backbone of civilian cricket until well into the 20th Century.
In 1890, a ship carrying the Australian cricket team on the way to a
tour of England, docked in Gibraltar Harbour after a collision with
two other ships. The Australians played a game against a Gibraltar
Garrison team. The local side were dismissed for just 25, and the
Australians won the game, scoring 150/8.
Gibraltar first participated in the ICC Trophy in 1982, and have
played every tournament since, with the exception of the 2005
tournament, for which they failed to qualify. They have also
competed in the European Championship on every occasion since it
began in 1996.
The Gibraltar Rugby Union
Campo Gibraltar Rugby Union Football Club plays all its games in
nearby Spain.
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