A few months back, a paper published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America (PNAS) (Ancient genomes link early farmers from Atapuerca in Spain to modern-day Basques) caused quite the stir on the Basque portion of the internet. The paper examined the genetics of various populations, including Spanish, […]
One of the most interesting and surreal experiences I had when I lived in the Basque Country during 1991-92 was when I went with my great uncle to the Gerrikaitz-Arbatzegi emetery. Cemeteries in the Basque Country are not as expansive as they are in the United States. While there is a small tract of land set […]
This book has been on my to-read pile for a while, but I haven’t gotten the English translation yet. Long-time contributor David Cox is ahead of me and has not only read the novel, but kindly provided this review. Eskerrik asko David! The Invisible Guardian Dolores Redondo 2013 Translation by Harper Collins 2015 (UK, Canada) […]
April 26, 1937. Market day in the Basque village of Gernika. Though the Spanish Civil War raged around them, villagers still gathered at the market. However, that day would come to live in infamy as the Condor Legion of Germany, at the behest of the Franco and his forces, bombed the symbolic Basque town. Not […]
Interesting facts about Basque Whalers/Sailors that I learned from Christine Echeverria Bender during a presentation she gave at Jaialdi: The first recorded transaction involving Basque sailors selling whale oil was in the year 670. The customer was a French abbey. The contracts of Basque sailors stipulated that they would receive a specific amount, 2-3 liters, […]
That Old Bilbao Moon is a complex and multifaceted book. Part memoir, part the history of a generation of Basques growing up in the aftermath of the Spanish Civil War and World War II, and part the story of the city of Bilbao and her people, Joseba Zulaika’s book takes a page from Dante and […]
The element tungsten was discovered by two Basque brothers, Juan José and Fausto Elhuyar Lubize, in 1783? Tungsten is an incredibly important element. Having the highest melting point of any element, it is extremely hard and durable, used in light bulbs, x-ray tubes, as piercing armament, and catalysts. Tungsten is also proposed as an important […]
Jon Camio, one of the speakers at the Together or Nothing at All conference during Jaialdi, sent me some more information about the event. The Agirre Center, where ex-Lehendakari Juan Jose Ibarretxe is now based, has posted more details about the conference. You can find that information here.
Monique Durham recently visited her native Pyrenees and sent me a few of her favorite photos from the trip to share. Enjoy!
Arizona is a Basque word. It seems that it wasn’t that long ago that this seemed a fringe hypothesis, but now it appears on the National Park Service’s page. The state of Arizona gets its name from a ranch from the 1700s where silver was discovered. The name of that ranch, which still exists, is […]
