Located in north eastern Spain, Catalonia has long displayed the attributes of a nation: distinct language and culture, separate social and political institutions, and a strong collective identity. At the same time, it is one of Spain''s centres of economic dynamism and innovation. As such, it is an especially striking instance of what has come to be known as ''minority'' or ''internal'' nations within a larger political order. Even after the Franco dictatorship''s systematic suppression of Catalan language and culture, the idea that the Catalan nation needed to have an independent state of its own remained at the margins of Catalan politics. Yet, in recent years Catalan independence has become: the formal objective of Catalonia''s nationalist parties; the focus of a strongly mobilized social movement; and the primary option of as much as half of Catalonia''s electorate. This drive to independence even led to a failed unilateral declaration of independence. How can this remarkable tran
