WHAT'S IN A NAME...

My meeting earlier this week with Hannibal reminds me of another, more subtle, way Spain has changed since the Franco period.

Traditionally, calling out the name Maria or Jesus (not to mention Hannibal) on any city or village street in Andalucia made most heads turn in your direction. But, like everything else in Spain, names are also changing...

Forty or so years ago, girls were usually given - in addition to Maria and other religious names - abstract ones like Esperanza ('Hope') or Dulcinea ('Sweetness'). I'm thinking here of the current President of the Community of Madrid, Esperanza Aguirre, and of the teacher of the Spanish class I've just joined, Dulce, not to mention the numbers of Dolores ('Sorrow'), Conchita ('Conception'), Consuelo ('Consolation') or Mercedes ('Mercy') you're always coming across.

As in the case of girls' names, the church also encouraged the use of naming Spanish boys after biblical characters, particularly saints. Hence the multitude of Manuels, Pedros, Marcuses, Juans, Joses and Pepes of a certain age.

But that's all changed. According to the National Institute of Statistics, most new-born babies in Andalucia last year were named Alejandro or Lucia. And these names aren't even especially Andalucian, given that they were also the most popular names in Valencia, the Canary Islands and two other regions of Spain. To date, there are almost 8,000 boys named Alejandro and almost 10,000 girls named Lucia all under the age of one. Imagine a classroom teacher calling out either of those names in a few years' time...!

Such naming trends are evident in other parts of Spain too. In the Basque Country 25 years ago, the most popular names were Mikel and Leire. Now, in keeping with its more nationalist stance, Basque names like Iker and Irati predominate. Likewise in Catalonia, where regional names Feliu and Aina prevail.

Nonetheless, in common with parents all over the world, there will also be those who name their children after rock and sports stars. So, unlike in the case of all the Alejandros and Lucias, future classroom teachers should have no problem identifying the Amy Acosta, the Madonna Mendoza or the Ronaldo Rodriguez...

HANNIBAL OF THE ALPS

Always go for an early morning run when it's cool so took Lola with me this morning which greatly pleased Senora Noriega. Didn't please Lola so much which soon became clear when she started to drag and dawdle and become obsessively preoccupied with sniffing every dog that passed. And early morning is the time when all the dogs in the neighbourhood go for their 'paseo' - that peculiarly Spanish custom for families to go for a walk, usually in the cool of the evening, to see and, more importantly, be seen.

Anyway whatever the reason, Lola sniffed and sniffed. Every dog within pawing and sniffing distance. And not just the pedigrees but a bit of rough as well. Lola is, after all, no snob and seems to like nothing more than putting herself about and being a bit of a tease. But perhaps I'm being too harsh on her. Maybe all she was doing was just showing off her latest cut and pedicure...

I returned her to Senora Noriega as quickly as possible to avoid a hail of pleas and promises for more exercice later, showered and made a swift exit to the local bank to seek out Hannibal. But let me first explain...

I've had my current passport now for almost ten years and it's due for imminent renewal. But when you renew a passport in Spain, you need to send the application forms to the consular office in Madrid together with a photograph taken by an approved photographer and signed off by another in an approved occupation. Which is where Hannibal Alvarez comes in. He's the manager of the local bank and one of the few on the 'approved' list who's also known me for the requisite two-year period.

After signing off, without blinking, my unforgiving Cruella de Vil photo as a true likeness, Hannibal reminisced a bit about his summer break in the region from which he comes - the Spanish Pyrenees. Not exactly the Alps I know but the best Spain has to offer in terms of winter skiing. And from now on, whenever I think of him, a vision of Hannibal crossing the Alps inevitably springs to mind and I'm taken right back to school days and those dusty Roman history classes and their equally dusty cast of characters .....