Sep 1, 2026 · 18 min · 9 segments
A tertulia has no members, no minutes and no closing time, and historically it has been powerful enough to pressure kings to ratify constitutions. The word in its traditional, historical sense means a…
Marti BuckleyHost
There is a Spanish institution with no members, no minutes, no agenda, and no closing time.
It influenced a king to accept a constitution, made careers, destroyed reputations all around the table.
It runs on coffee, wine, argument, and the unspoken rule that you have to show up.
Both the Grand Robert and the Oxford English Dictionary record tertullia as a Spanish word that entered French in 1776, and English in 1785, an evening party in Spain, and 250 years later, the tertulia is still going, though these days you're just as likely to find it on the radio as you are in a cafe.
Today I'm going to break down what a tertulia is, where the word comes from, and how the word traces back, and probably I might add, to a Roman era theologian and a row of theater seats.
I'm Marty Buckley, an author, journalist, and cook who has lived in Spain since 2010.
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There is a Spanish institution with no members, no minutes, no agenda, and no closing time.
It influenced a king to accept a constitution, made careers, destroyed reputations all around the table.
It runs on coffee, wine, argument, and the unspoken rule that you have to show up.
Both the Grand Robert and the Oxford English Dictionary record tertullia as a Spanish word that entered French in 1776, and English in 1785, an evening party in Spain, and 250 years later, the tertulia is still going, though these days you're just as likely to find it on the radio as you are in a cafe.
Today I'm going to break down what a tertulia is, where the word comes from, and how the word traces back, and probably I might add, to a Roman era theologian and a row of theater seats.
I'm Marty Buckley, an author, journalist, and cook who has lived in Spain since 2010.
