Category Archives: Diaspora

Excellent Resources from the Basque Museum

Did you know that the Basque Museum and Cultural Center had so many online resources? If you are interested in pursuing your genealogy, looking at the history of Basques in Boise and America more broadly, or wanting to learn a bit more about Basque culture, the Basque Museum has you covered. Taken from their most […]

Diaspora eta Zu 2.0: A Discussion on New Technologies in the Diaspora

On Sunday, I was fortunate enough to appear on Benoit Etcheverry Macazaga‘s new radio program. Benoit has been a fixture in promoting Basque culture on the Internet for many years, hosting multiple radio programs dedicated to the Basques. His most recent venture, Diaspora eta Zu 2.0, is really focused on the Basque diaspora and connecting […]

Basque Fact of the Week: The History of the Basques in the West

Since at least the time of the Spanish conquests, Basques have been a feature of the American West. Basques were a big part of the Spanish armies that rolled over South America, Mexico, and southwestern United States. They came later as well, after the Carlist Wars, after the gold rush of the mid-1800s, and in […]

Basque Fact of the Week: Tree Carvings of the Sheepherders

People, particularly boys and young men, have an almost uncontrollable impulse to leave their mark on their surroundings. Whether the graffiti that decorates the hearts of large cities or the now-preserved etchings of Spanish conquistadors on the rocks of El Morro, we have to show others we’ve already been there. The same is true of […]

basque-genealogy is moving

If you are interested in finding out more about your Basque surname or your Basque ancestry, an excellent resource is the group basque-genealogy. For many years, the group has been hosted by Yahoo Groups. However, with their change in service conditions, the group owner, Cecilia Puchulutegui, is moving it to Groups.io. If you’ve never checked […]

Remembering my Dad: Sheepherder’s Bread, the way the Sheepherder intended (sort of)

My dad would have turned 75 today. To celebrate his birthday, I thought I’d repost this blog about making bread the sheepherder’s way. Happy birthday dad! I miss you! As I mentioned earlier, seemingly once I left home for school, my dad began making his own jamon and chorizo. Another tradition my dad has revived […]

Abertzaleak: Basque Patriots

During the Christmas holiday, which we spent in and around Boise visiting grandparents, we made a stop at the Basque Museum and Cultural Center. After making our yearly pass through the gift shop, we took a stroll through the museum itself and found the newest exhibit on Basques in the military. The goal is to […]

The Good and the Bad about Basque Arboglyphs

A lot of the men that came to the United States were barely more than boys. Suddenly, they found themselves alone in the hills of west, tending herds of sheep with little more company than their dog. It’s no surprise, then, that many of them left their signature behind. Tagging the trees like urban kids […]

A Basque refugee

Eighty years ago, Spain was mired in a civil war that pitted the Republican government and its allies against the Nationalist forces of Franco. As Franco’s forces gained ground in the Basque Country, thousands of people, mostly children, fled to other lands, becoming refugees. Britain alone took nearly 4000 children. This is the story of […]

Basque Firsts by Vince J. Juaristi

Basques have had their impact on world history and there are key historical figures that most Basques already know. St. Ignatius, the founder of the Jesuit order, was born in Loyola. The first person to (deliberately) circumnavigate the Earth, Juan Sebastian Elcano, was from Getaria. However, there are many other Basques that have made important […]