The leader of Spain's Catalonia region has rallied cheering crowds to fight for "freedom" in snap elections Sunday that he has recast as a vote for nationhood.

Artur Mas, president of the northeastern region, is openly defying a furious Madrid by promising a referendum on sovereignty for Catalonia if Sunday's vote gives him a mandate.

"We are not vassals of the state," he told thousands of people chanting "independence" in a Barcelona stadium, wrapping up a bitterly fought campaign before a day of pre-vote reflection Saturday.

Mas urged supporters to be "builders of freedom".

"Catalonia is one of the oldest nations of Europe and all through history we have had to fight against very high obstacles, very strong setbacks," Mas said, slipping into English to reach a foreign audience.

"We have fought against armies, we have fought against dictatorships, we have overcome setbacks and now we are alive, our culture is alive, our language is alive, our nation is alive."

Catalonia is fiercely proud of its language and culture, which were suppressed by General Francisco Franco until the dictator's death in 1975 but returned to life under Spanish democracy.

The region has been welded to Spain since the nation's symbolic birth when Queen Isabella of Castile and King Ferdinand of Aragon, which included Catalonia, married in 1469.

In a forest of banners, Catalan and European flags at the stadium where Mas brought his campaign to a close, some placards called for Mas as president of a new Catalan nation.

"I'm for independence," said one supporter, 20-year-old student Anna Roses. "Artur Mas does not say the word because Madrid is putting on the pressure, but it's the only solution," she added.

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Catalan leader seeks 'freedom' in snap election