Category Archives: Interviews

A Calling to Write: An Interview with Author Bryce Ternet

Bryce Ternet is an author known for his novels set in the Basque Country and in various parts of the American West. His novels are full of fascinating characters and detailed explorations of exotic locations, often inspired by his many travels. By one of those serendipitous coincidences in life, his wanderings have taken him Los […]

A Donkey from Munitibar Wanders Here: An Interview with Professor Joxe Mallea-Olaetxe

For centuries, the history of the Basques has been written by non-Basques – we have so little historical documentation written directly in Euskara or even by Basque themselves. Thus, when we find any hint of Basque history written by Basques, we must examine it to the fullest. The unassuming carvings left by Basque sheepherders in […]

Telling the Stories that Need to be Told: An Interview with Richard Etulain

Ever since Robert Laxalt’s Sweet Promised Land told the story of his Basque immigrant father, there has been a growing recognition that the lives and stories of these men and women are not only worth telling, but comprise an integral part of our collective history and experience. Professor Richard Etulain has made it his life’s […]

Making Basque Identity Cool: An Interview with John Ysursa

John Ysursa is near-omnipresent in the Basque community of the United States. He’s seemingly at every festival, he’s a central part of Boise State University’s Basque program, and he has authored a book on Basque dance. His enthusiasm for all things Basque – particularly how to get others excited about the Basque culture – is […]

A Sense of Family and Belonging: An Interview with Linda Uruburu

For those of us Basque-Americans that grew up in the West, we were surrounded by the sheepherders that came before us. Images of sheep wagons, bands of sheep, and sheepherder’s bread are common. However, the Basque-American experience is as varied as Basques themselves. Out east, the typical Basque immigrant was very different. Still driven by […]

The Power of Story: An Interview with Begoña Echeverria and Annika Speer

On April 26, 1937, the Basque city of Gernika was bombed. This, and other disastrous events during the Spanish Civil War, led to thousands of Basque children being evacuated from the Basque Country. In their play, Picasso Presents Gernika, Drs. Begoña Echeverria and Annika Speer, both professors at the University of California, Riverside, explore the […]

The Linguistic Richness of the Feminine: An Interview with Begoña Echeverria

Professor Begoña Echeverria is no stranger to Buber’s Basque Page. Back in 2014, she wrote a guest column describing her use of song to teach elements of Euskara. However, that is only one of the myriad of activities she is leading to not only promote but also to understand Basque language and culture. Her play […]

Building Bridges: An Interview with Benoît Etcheverry

Benoît Etcheverry Macazaga seems omnipresent across the Webscape of the Basque diaspora. Whether through websites, radio, or now webcasts, he uses the thousands of connections he has made over the years to examine the relationship between the diaspora and the home country Euskal Herria. Why? Simply put, his goal is to build stronger bridges between […]

A Man on the Move Studying Movement of Basques: An Interview with Pedro Oiarzabal

Pedro Oiarzabal has traveled the world, taking the pulse of Basque diaspora communities across the globe. In normal times, he can often be found at Basque festivals, talking to everyone he can, to understand what being Basque means. Currently, he is the co-lead of a project that aims to document the stories of Basque veterans […]

An Interview with Gloria Totoricagüena

Conducted in Spring 2006 Dr. Gloria Totoricagüena, a prominant researcher in the field of the Basque diaspora, was recently named the director of the University of Nevada, Reno’s Center for Basque Studies. In this interview, conducted over email, I asked her about growing up Basque, her plans for the Center, and her views on what […]