Language policies of Francoist Spain

In Basque, Catalan, and Galician nationalism in the early 20th century, language was a central topic and defined both groups national identities, specifically the Basque, Catalan, and Galician languages, respectively.

[8] As part of the nationalistic efforts: In the first decade of Franco's rule, languages other than Castilian were "confined to private spaces".

Basque was different enough that it could not be taken as a debased form of Spanish but was despised as a rural language of limited currency, unfit for modern discourse.

The Press Law of Manuel Fraga Iribarne replaced the pre-publication censorship with after-the-fact punishments.

Most notably, several sporting organizations—including FC Barcelona and Athletic Bilbao, among others—were forced to change their names from the local language to Spanish.