"Las colonias industriales son un auténtico fenómeno social, económico y cultural, característico de la industrialización española con más de 150 años de historia, que se encuentran inmersas en un proceso de recuperación y de dignificación de su pasado para encarar con éxito su futuro.
Las colonias españolas constituyen un caso único en el mundo por la concentración de una gran cantidad de estos núcleos industriales, a la vez fábrica y pueblo, en las cuencas fluviales de los ríos españoles, en el caso de las colonias textiles, y al pie de la explotación de los recursos naturales en el caso de las agrícolas, mineras, metalúrgicas y químicas.
La localización industrial en la campiña hizo necesaria la construcción de la colonia obrera, es decir: un pueblo con todos los servicios, en continua transformación ante los retos de cada época."
I think "industrial colony" is probably OK, but just want to check.
Explanation: An industrial colony is perfectly correct but may not be understandable to an English speaking audience. The idea sprung from the concept of "welfare capitalism" and was intended to avoid the social conditions documented by Jacob Riis and others as well as to consolidate worker loyalty and avoid the unionization of workers. In Spanish cities an example is the colonia Guell: http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colonia_Güell. My grandfather was director of a factory in a similar social - industrial experiment in the state of New York: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Endicott_Johnson_Corporation. (visiting the "Tri Cities" from New York as a child, what I most remember were the wonderful carousels in the company (now public) parks. In Spain, the rural "colonies" lacked the amenities and social cohesion of the urban projects.
I'd like to write a few things about "colonia". I the north of the Andalusian province where I live (Jaén) there are a number of "Nuevas Poblaciones", also referrred to as "nuevas colonias" o "nuevos asentamientos" (La Carolina, Guarromán...) . They were all created at the end of the 18th c. and were connected to mining and agriculture. The "colonos" or "pobladores" (settlers) were Bavarian, Swiss, Flemish... These early "colonias" were followed by others in other parts of Spain, more clearly linked to industry, created for other purposes and in different contexts. Yet, I can't see why the word "colony" should not be used, especially if its meaning is made clear in the text itself. Another good option is "settlement" (mediamatrix's proposal), but to me this is more the translation of "poblaciones, asentamientos".
With all due respect to Alejandro, I strongly reject the literal translation here for the connotations that Charles mentions. These communities were planned to channel the workers' habits, activities, beliefs and lifestyle to conform to the owners' vision of a desirable, healthy and controllable community. They offered great benefits to many working people and their families but were not at all spontaneous. Among the motives for the philanthropy toward the workers were the objectives to control them, to keep them dependent and to keep them from organizing.
Generalized usage is an important criterion, too, and there are 47,800 hits for "industrial colony," followed closely by 37,800 for "industrial settllement." So 'industrial colony' has three arguments in its favor.
If the location was in the US, I'd be inclined to call it a "settlement," but the word "colonia" has a long history in Spain (and Latin America) and I think it keeps the local flavor, and it's more recognizable, if you use 'colony' in English - as long as it's not misunderstood as a reference to colonialism.
peer agreement (net): +3
