Spain

Spain is a federation of intense regional identities — Catalonia, Basque Country, Galicia, Andalusia, and Madrid each have their own languages or dialects, distinct food traditions, and strong local pride. The 'Spanish identity' is more often a shared timing of life than a unified culture. That timing matters: lunch is the day's main meal at 2–4pm, dinner starts at 9pm at the earliest, and sobremesa (the post-meal lingering at the table) is the most Spanish thing imaginable. Spain emerged from forty years of Franco's dictatorship in 1975 and the cultural release that followed — La Movida, the death of the siesta as a daily practice in cities, the rebirth of regional languages — still defines the country today.