Fanning the soaring temperatures 

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rhona fans femalefocusonline aug24By Rhona Wells

As the Summer heat intensifies on the Costa Blanca, the numbers of women using traditional fans increases. Old women, young women even children and the occasional man can be seen, making the most of this time-honoured aid to keeping cool.


While Spain enjoys strong links with the fan, historians generally agree that they originated in Asia, likely in China at around 2000 BC. They were also found in India, where the earliest examples were made of palm leaves, and in Persia, where impressive ostrich feather fans were prominent.
The Portuguese dominated early trade with Asia, and as a result, the folding fan arrived in Europe during the 15th century. Japan is credited with the invention of the “sensu” folding fan, which is made up of two primary parts, the stick – composed of a varying number of ‘blades’ and the mount, a mechanism inspired by bat wings.
By the 16th century, the fan had gained popularity in courts across Europe, including Spain, Italy, England and France.
In England, fans were an adornment of female dress during Henry VIII’s reign, and Queen Elizabeth I frequently styled herself with a fan.
The folding fan is known in Spanish as “abanico.” As the accessory gained popularity in Europe, ‘abanico’ craftsmanship emerged, reaching its pinnacle during the 17th century, when renowned painters were hired to decorate fans for the nobility.
The famous 17th-century painting by Diego Velazquez, La dama del abanico, demonstrates the emerging centrality of the fan in Spanish culture. In 1797, the Real Fábrica de Abanicos (Royal Fan Factory) was established and produced a wide variety of fans, extending their usage to all social classes, ages, and genders, and to occasions ranging from parties to mourning to daily life. Other factories, such as the famous Casa de Dieg, which opened in 1823 in Madrid’s Puerta del Sol is still in operation today.
As Spanish manufacturers of fans began to take hold, so did the country’s tourism industry. After Napoleon’s attempts to capture Spain failed, the country became a popular destination for countless rugged adventurers.
During this boom, Spanish culture became an exportable commodity. Washington Irving’s Tales of the Alhambra, published in 1832, was widely circulated in Europe and beyond. A romanticised version of the country appeared in the popular opera Carmen, which portrays a love triangle anchored by a Spanish gypsy in the title role. This also led to the popularity of Flamenco dances, where the use of fans plays a major part.
The dancers use a slightly larger fan, called “pericon” to give a greater sensual and spellbinding effect to the dance.
Despite its historic importance, the real reason behind the popularity of the hand-held fan then, and now, is that in the heat, its use actually helps to increase airflow and the evaporation of sweat on the skin. For this reason alone it is certain will we see its continued use in Spain.
Ladies throughout the 19th and 20th centuries used fans to communicate in secret: to declare love, for example, as females were not permitted to speak their minds until well into the 1970s.
Here are some of the more well-known gestures:
• To fan quickly: intense romantic interest
• To fan slowly: already married, or uninterested quickly meant the woman was either engaged or has a love interest
• To close slowly: this would mean a “yes”
• To close quickly: a clear “no”
The language of the beautiful and traditional Spanish fan is just one of many secret languages invented over time to communicate efficiently without being vocal or overt.
While in some countries the fan may be seen as an antiquated artefact, it is still a major part of the Spanish culture – both for practical reasons and as a subtle method of communication and is likely to remain so for some time to come.