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Why Do People Smoke So Much in Spain? An Explanation
Smoking is extremely harmful to health.
The Virgin of the Cigarreras and tobacco as a symbol of freedom
The Council of Ministers has approved a draft of a new anti-tobacco law which, if adopted, will ban smoking on the terraces of bars and restaurants, as well as near schools, hospitals and other public institutions. Minors will be prohibited from smoking both tobacco and vapes — until now, only sales were restricted. Meanwhile, Spain ranks sixth in Europe for the number of smokers. For many locals, a morning coffee with a cigarette at a pavement café is not merely a habit but part of the culture. For this reason, La Cotorra decided to look back at how tobacco entered and became embedded in Spanish life.
Tobacco was brought to the Old World by Christopher Columbus, and Spain became one of the first countries to launch mass production of tobacco goods. Europe’s first Royal Cigarette Factory opened in Seville in the sixteenth century. It was considered a strategic commodity, almost on a par with gold or salt. Later, factories appeared in other Spanish cities, including Valencia.
Hundreds of women worked in these factories. They were known as cigarreras (cigar workers). They laboured for a pittance, enveloped in clouds of tobacco dust, and as a result many developed severe lung diseases.
The women regarded the Virgin of Mercy as their protector, and over time the entire city began referring to her as the Virgin of the Cigarreras (La Virgen de las Cigarreras). She came to be seen as an embodiment of female independence, as the tobacco factory offered women the chance to earn a living.
The cigarreras later became symbols of the era — a collective image of the free, bold Spanish woman — and the inspiration for the character of Carmen in Prosper Mérimée’s novella. The French composer Georges Bizet set the opera Carmen on the square in front of the famous tobacco factory in Seville.
Cigarettes as a Symbol of Machismo
For many years, smoking in Spain had a distinctly gendered dimension. In the early twentieth century, it was considered improper for women to smoke in public, whereas for men a cigarette was an attribute of a tough, masculine image.
In the 1970s and 1980s, men smoked strong, unfiltered cigarettes known as Ducados azules, which were especially popular among manual labourers, miners and fishermen.
Smoking was part of the macho image. There was even a particular expression — olía a Ducados (“it smelled of Ducados”). This was said of workshops or bars frequented by working men.
After the fall of Franco’s regime, lighter cigarettes such as Fortuna became fashionable. The brand became a symbol of the “new Spain”.
Is Tobacco Smoke Becoming a Thing of the Past?
In 2011, Spain banned smoking in indoor public spaces. The country became one of the first in Europe to introduce such restrictions. The measures were met with criticism and anger, and Spanish smokers flocked to outdoor terraces.
Today Spain remains one of the most tobacco-dependent countries in Europe. According to the Ministry of Health, around 19–20 per cent of adults smoke daily. Men still smoke more than women, but among young people the gender gap has almost disappeared.
The new bill restricting cigarette consumption has not yet been fully approved or come into force — several stages remain before its final adoption.