Spain's Origins: From Roman Hispania to the Catholic Monarchs

Spain, from Hispania to the Catholic Monarchs: The Debate on Its Birth

How long has Spain existed? This question, which seems like a high school exam topic, has lacked a single answer for centuries. In a history forum, a user raised the issue citing an epigram by Martial as the first proof that Hispanians already identified as a collective against the Greeks. Trinc this, 148 responses ranged from 19 BC to the union of Castile and Aragon, showing that the disagreement is not only political but also methodological.

The Myth of Miscegenation and Geography as Destiny

The debate starts with a thesis repeated in the forum: the Iberian Peninsula is not a transit zone but a final settlement area, meaning modern Spaniards are largely the same people who were there when the Romans arrived. Against the myth of miscegenation, it is argued that Roman contributions are overvalued, Germanic ones undervalued, and Morisco and Jewish influences exaggerated. This stance mixes genetics, history, and a touch of ideology, serving to place Spain's origin much earlier than standard textbooks allow.

Geography indeed plays a central role. The peninsula is the western extremity of Eurasia, conditioning human flows. But concluding there is a three-thousand-year racial and cultural continuity involves a leap many are unwilling to make. The discussion then shifts to sources: what evidence exists that Hispanians felt Hispanic before Rome?

Martial, the Hispanians, and the First Sense of Community

According to the material, the first known mention is an epigram by Marcus Valerius Martial, where the poet boasts of the Hispanic race, more virile and rustic, compared to Greek customs. It is not a modern national identity, but a specifically Hispanic sense of community within the Roman world. Martial built a network of friendships of Hispanic origin in Rome, starting with Seneca, and compiled a list of illustrious Hispanians proving this group consciousness existed.

Some argue this proves nothing: a Roman born in Hispania felt more Roman than Hispanic, a sentiment that remained strong well into the 6th century. For these critics, speaking of "Hispanians" is like speaking today of "Galicians": a provincial, not national, identity. The discussion heats up when the term "Spaniards" is introduced in the Middle Ages, after the empire's fall, when foreigners used it for the peninsula's peoples.

The Visigothic Kingdom: First Spain or Failed Experiment?

One of the most cited milestones is the Visigothic kingdom. Under Leovigild, there was territorial unity; with Reccared and the Third Council of Toledo came religious unity; and with Recceswinth, legal unity. This sequence, summarized by some as "one people, one king, one law, one treasury," is for many the first sketch of Spain as a political entity. Saint Isidore of Seville, in his "Praise of Spain," elevates the homeland as the first nation in a nearly modern sense.

But not everyone buys the narrative. Some recall that the Visigoths were an Eastern Germanic people who disappeared suddenly after the Muslim invasion, and their supposed Spanishness is a later construction. Gregory of Tours' chronicle, calling Leovigild "King of the Hispanians," is used as evidence both for and against: for some, it shows they already spoke of a king of the Hispanians; for others, it merely reflects a geographical designation.

The Galician Thesis: Pelayo, the Suevic Kingdom, and the Origin of the First Kingdom

Amidst the debate, a current emerges placing Spain's origin in Galicia. It argues that the first kingdom in Europe is Galicia, that the first Iberian kings were Galicians, and that Pelayo was a Galician king. According to this version, the Kingdom of Asturias did not exist as such. This thesis sparks controversy because it clashes with the Castile-centric view that has dominated historiography.

The response is swift: the Suevi who arrived in Galicia were few, and the Hispano-Romans detested them. Moreover, the first European kingdom is Armenia, also the first Christian one. Galicia would be second in both, but not the origin of Spain. The discussion on the role of Suevi and Visigoths in forming Hispanic identity remains open, with each side having its sources.

The Catholic Monarchs and Modern Spain

The most widespread view, taught in schools, places Spain's birth in the union of Castile and Aragon under the Catholic Monarchs (Isabella I of Castile and Ferdinand II of Aragon). This is the thesis defended by those recalling it was in textbooks. However, others nuance this: the Catholic Monarchs did not create the concept but culminated a task begun centuries earlier. The concept of Spain as a unified, Castile-centric nation is actually very modern, just as Russia is a modern concept from a Moscow-centric viewpoint.

The discussion moves to the role of language. For some, Spain is born as a country when its language separates from Latin, in the 9th-10th centuries. For others, language does not define a nation; it is used to invent nations where none existed. The example of peripheral nationalisms is recurrent: if a Catalan denies Spain's existence but believes Catalonia is a country, they apply an unsustainable double standard.

A Wealth of Sources: Chronicles, Councils, and Epigraphy

The debate is not only ideological; it is also an exercise in documentary archaeology. Chronicles like that of John of Biclaro, the Councils of Toledo, mentions by Gregory of Tours, and Martial's epigrams are cited. Each source is interpreted based on the starting thesis. Those defending an early origin see these mentions as proof of national identity; those delaying it consider them simple geographical or administrative designations.

The discussion on sources leads to a provisional conclusion: there is no single answer, and likely never will be. Spanish identity was built layer by layer, from Roman Hispania to the dynastic union of the Catholic Monarchs, passing through the Visigothic kingdom and Asturian resistance. Each layer added an element: territory, religion, law, language. The question "How long has Spain existed?" is, fundamentally, a question about what we understand by Spain.

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What is disorienting is not the lack of agreement, but the amount of evidence each side can gather to defend its version. From a Martial epigram to a 7th-century council, everything counts to sustain that Spain existed before anyone named it. History, as always, is written by the winners, but also by those who argue.