Paella is one of the best-known dishes in Spanish cuisine.
For this reason, many non-Spaniards view it as Spain's national dish, but
Spaniards almost unanimously consider it to be a dish from the Valencian
region. Valencians, in turn, regard paella as one of their identifying
symbols.
Paella takes its name from the wide, shallow traditional pan used to cook
the dish on an open fire. Paella means "frying pan" in Valencian,
Valencia's regional language. As a dish, it may have ancient roots, but in
its modern form it is traced back to the mid-19th century, in the rural
area around the Albufera lagoon adjacent to the city of Valencia, on the
east coast of Spain.
