What’s in a name? For a place like the Basque Country, there are several names that jumble together and can be confusing at times. Because the Basque Country is split by the Spanish-French border and, even within Spain, it is split into two different autonomous communities, there are different names that reflect this politically complex and messy situation.

- Euskal Herria literally means the Basque Country, though Herria can take on other meanings like “people” or “nation” so the meaning can be a little vague. Euskal Herria refers to the seven historical Basque provinces: Bizkaia, Gipuzkoa, Araba, and Nafarroa in Hegoalde (literally, the southern part, in Spain) and Lapurdi, Zuberoa, and Nafarroa Beherea in Iparralde (the northern part, in France). The oldest references to Euskal Herria as a concept come from the mid 1500s. Joan Perez de Lazarraga, writing around 1564–1567, called it eusquel erria and eusquel erriau while the phrase Heuscal-Herrian appeared in 1571 in Joanes Leizarraga‘s translation of the Bible.
- In contrast, Euskadi has a narrower meaning, referring specifically to the three provinces that comprise the Basque Autonomous Community (BAC): Bizkaia, Gipuzkoa, and Araba. Nafarroa forms its own autonomous community. Thus, Euskadi and BAC are synonymous. The BAC was formed through the Statute of Autonomy of the Basque Country in 1979. However, Euskal Herria is also a co-official designation of the BAC, so it does get a little confusing…
- Originally coined by Sabino Arana as Euzkadi, Euskadi is now the accepted form. Arana created Euzkadi as a term in contrast to Euskal Herria which didn’t have the same connotation as the homeland of a Basque people. It always carried a political weight that Euskal Herria did not. It was also originally meant to embody all seven provinces, but with time that has shifted. Euzkadi also became the official name of the autonomous Basque entity created in 1936, but then destroyed by the Spanish Civil War. Bernardo Atxaga has an interesting article about the first time he heard the word Euzkadi and the evolving difference between Euzkadi and Euskadi.
- In all of this, Nafarroa is its own autonomous community within Spain, separate from the BAC.
- In the north, in Iparralde, after the French Revolution, any separate recognition of the Basque provinces as Basque was lost. Today, Iparralde is part of the French Pyrénées-Atlantiques department, which lumps it together with Béarn.
A full list of all of Buber’s Basque Facts of the Week can be found in the Archive.
Primary sources: Basque Country (autonomous community), Wikipedia; Basque Country (greater region), Wikipedia
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Greetings,
Navarre was not “lumped” with the Bearn. Navarre did not want to join Euskadi. Unlike Guipuzcoa and Biscaye, Navarre never lost the fueros, the laws established in 1512.
Monique
I never said Nafarroa was. I said Iparralde was.
Iparralda is situated in French Navarre, not the Bearn. The name Pyrenees Atlantiques is a relatively new name in the long history of the Pyrenees. 3 Basques provinces and the Bearn are listed under Pyrenees Atlantiques. The Basques are still the Basques and so are the Bearnais. But they work together. On commercial labels and products one can see the Basque flag, the one Sabino Arana designed and the flag of Bearn, 2 peaceful cows.
I may be wrong, but what comes across to me in this American Basque blog is the idea that it is an affront to the Basque culture that three Basque provinces are situated in France. I hope that I am wrong. The Basque provinces are in Europe, Spain and France, not in the U.S. The Basque Americans are buena gente ( I prefer to use Spanish to describe “good people” it adds more weight) but the cultures are not the same. For whatever reason, some Basque American cannot accept this fact.
Monique