The national animal of Spain is the bull. The Spanish bull is a very important national symbol and a highly recognizable cultural emblem. It is a symbol of pride and national identity within Spain, and of course bullfighting is an important Spanish institution. Some, though, suggest the lion should instead by Spain’s national animal.
So, somewhat predictably, the Spanish national animal is the bull.
The bull is perhaps the one animal that most people would associate with Spain, and it is in many ways very important culturally to Spain and Spanish people.
Today, we’re going to look at what you need to know about the national animal of Spain.
Let’s get started.
What is the national animal of Spain?
The national animal of Spain is the bull.
Now, it’s worth clarifying right away exactly what we mean by this.
Usually, when most of us talk about bulls, what we mean is simply a male cow, or indeed often just a male of any similar species like elephants of hippos.
In the case of Spain’s national animal, though, what we are referring to is a very specific kind of bull known as the Spanish fighting bull.
This is an Iberian cattle population, though they are bred more or less exclusively for fighting and are generally not used for meat or milk.
Though the precise origin of this bull population is not known, some trace it back to the wild bulls of the Iberian Peninsula and the bulls used for arena games during the Roman period.
This is disputed and is far from certain, but we can see that the breeding stock of these bulls comes from an extremely old genetic pool.
These bulls are specifically bred for aggression, which is naturally a very unusual trait to breed for.
They are typically colored black or brown, and are bread not for heavy muscles but for a more defined and athletic look.
Cattle, then, is the species of animal that is the national animal of Spain; but the Spanish fighting bull in particular is Spain’s national animal.
Though we typically use the word “bull” to mean a male, in the context of this breed, both females and males are used for the bullfighting sport.
As mentioned, there are parts of the Spanish population that think lions are the more important Spanish symbol; whether this is because of the rejection of bullfighting or simply because of the power of lions is often an individual question.
Why is the bull the national animal of Spain?
The bull is the national animal of Spain primarily because of the tradition of bullfighting.
Spanish bullfighting, historically speaking, was an important national institution and still remains so in parts of Spain today.
Bullfighting was something that not only Spanish people but also outsiders associated with Spain, and thus the bull became the national animal for this reason.
Bulls are symbols of pride, strength, and national identity, and indeed these powerful beasts are certainly evocative for people.
Many would have no objection to the use of the bull as the national animal in its own right even entirely divorced from the practice of bullfighting.
And bullfighting, importantly, is not just a Spanish institution but is practiced in other countries with close associations to Spain; Portugal and many countries in Latin America.
You also have the running of the bulls, too, a festival in which bulls are run alongside people through the streets with the aim being to try to avoid the bulls.
This, too, leads to injuries and sometimes death.
As you can see, then, the Spanish certainly like to tempt fate with these large, powerful animals and their piercing horns!
Are there still bullfights in Spain?
There are still bullfights in Spain today, though many regions of Spain have now outlawed the practice.
Calonge, Tossa de mar, and Vilamacolum, among others, have outlawed bullfighting with no intention to bring the practice back.
But federally, bullfighting remains legal in Spain and is still practiced in many areas.
Whether bullfighting will ever be fully banned in Spain is a complex question.
The short answer is that it’s unlikely to happen any time soon.
The practice is still very popular in large parts of the country and whether to keep it going is an often heated debate.
If it is eventually banned, it will not be for some time.
Where do bulls come from?
Spanish fighting bulls are naturally bred from other cattle subspecies, but where precisely the species originated is unclear.
As mentioned, the species is an Iberian heterogeneous population, meaning that it is mixed from many dissimilar parts.
The cattle that were the originator of these species likely lived in Spain and central Europe, but given how long the practice has been going on, it’s very hard to say much more than this about it.
Spanish fighting bulls today are mostly bred in Spain itself, particularly in Iberia, and so the simpler answer is just that these bulls are mostly found in Spain!
So, “bull” is really a somewhat ambiguous term as it rather describes a male cow than a distinct species of its own.
Nevertheless, it is among the most important national symbols of Spain.
There are multiple kinds of bull in Spain and again the main one we are talking about is known as the Spanish fighting bull.
The bull, whether or not the fighting continues, will continue to be one of the most important Spanish symbols.