This festivity, one of the most popular in Andalusia, takes place in Granada. The whole city, its streets, its squares are filled with altars in honor of the Holy Cross.

This festival has Christian and pagan origins, and this year again Granada will  celebrate it. iNMSOL informs you about this festivity, have a look!

History of the Day of the Cross

It seems that everything began in the seventeenth century, when in 1625 an alabaster cross was made in the  San Lázaro neighborhood and all the neighbors of the area started celebrating singing and dancing around it. Then, the tradition went on in the typical neighborhoods and areas of Granada: the Albaicín, the Realejo, etc. The children also began to build small altars decorated with ceramics and copper objects.

Throughout history, the celebration of the Cross has undergone different stages, with its near disappearance after the prohibition of asking for money for crosses in 1833. Because the tradition remained in the private sphere for many years, began to resurface from 1924 with the convocation for the first time of a contest of altars by the City Council, that definitively reinstated this day as a big day  in the calendar of the city  from 1964.

Day of Cross

Día de la Cruz Granada 2023

What about today?

Today, people preserve the traditions, and, if on one hand, it goes on being a Christian Festivity, on the other it has been converted in a day, when people have fun dancing around the crosses and seeing some flamenco performances.

In fact, in this celebration, it is very common to find children and adults dressed in flamenco costumes. All the “cross makers” take part to a competition to choose the most beautiful cross and these are framed in four modalities:

  • Streets and squares

  • Shop windows

  • Schools

  • Courtyards

Day of Cross in Granada

The city delivers the prize on May 3 in a ceremony with an  official proclamation.

iNMSOL Students on the Day of the Cross.

Our school could not lose this event! In fact, this year, some of our students have visited some of the most beautiful Crosses around the city.  They had the possibility to appreciate such a peculiar festivity of Granada!

Find the Crosses all over the city:

Here you have the map of the Crosses around the city.  

Day of Cross in Granada

Enjoy!

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