All posts by buber

Basque Fact of the Week: The Rock Band Gatibu

One of the best parts of Jaialdi was the music. There were groups wandering the Basque block playing music, more organized acts on the main stage in the middle of the street, and the concert in the arena. Everywhere, people were dancing and singing. One of the bands that played both on the street stage […]

Basque Proverb of the Week: Proverb #27

Aski ez duena, deusik ez duena. Not having enough is like not having anything.

Basque Fact of the Week: The Deadly 1985 Airline Crash on Mount Oiz

Forty years ago, the most horrific airline disaster to ever occur in the Basque Country happened just outside of my dad’s hometown of Munitibar. Even today, the crash is imprinted on the collective minds of the local Basques – more than once it has come up in conversation when I’ve visited the Basque Country. While […]

Basque Proverb of the Week: Proverb #26

Aseak gosea ezin ikus. The satiated cannot stand to see the hungry.

Basque Fact of the Week: John Arrillaga, Stanford’s Biggest Fan

Basque names have a way of jumping out at you. I was recently attending a workshop at the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, situated on the Stanford University campus, when someone mentioned the Arrillaga rec center. “Arrillaga?” I thought to myself. “Has to be Basque.” Sure enough, John Arrillaga, one of Stanford’s biggest supporters ever, was […]

Basque Proverb of the Week: Proverb #25

Arrotz-herri, otso-herri. A foreign land is a land of wolves.

Basque Fact of the Week: Zortziak Bat International Symposium on the Basque Diaspora and Cultural Expressions

The Basque diaspora – those Basques that have found themselves for a multitude of reasons living and building lives outside of the Basque Country – have made significant contributions to the continued health and prosperity of Basque culture. Inspired by the motto Zazpiak Bat – the seven are one – the phrase Zortziak Bat has […]