New Book Explores Social Self-Management in Early 20th-Century Santa Cruz de Tenerife

A new book offers fresh insight into how the Canary Islands evolved socially at the start of the 20th century. The Royal Canarian Academy of Fine Arts (Racba) has published Recreational Societies in Santa Cruz de Tenerife: An Alternative for Sociocultural Self-Management (1902-1925), a study by academic Conrado Álvarez Fariña that explores how civil society helped shape the city’s identity.

Rather than just providing a historical timeline, Álvarez Fariña examines how citizens took charge of their own affairs during the reign of Alfonso XIII. He argues that local groups—such as the Ateneo, the Círculo de Amistad XII de Enero, the Juventud Republicana, and the Salón Frégoli—were more than just social clubs. They acted as hubs for self-management, allowing residents to organize their own cultural activities. The book suggests that this spirit of cooperation laid the foundation for much of the city's modern identity.

The book will be officially presented this Tuesday at 7:00 p.m. at the Racba headquarters (Plaza Ireneo González, 1, Santa Cruz de Tenerife). Supported by the Government of the Canary Islands, the event will feature a discussion with the author and Dr. Pilar Carreño Corbella, a specialist in Geography and History, who will explore how these early efforts in citizen participation transformed the cultural life of the era.