Basque Proverb of the Week

Basque Proverb of the Week: Proverb #4

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Adiskide onekin, orduak labur.

Time flies when you are among friends.

Image generated by Buber using ChatGPT.

These proverbs were collected by Jon Aske. For the full list, along with the origin and interpretation of each proverb, click this link.

Basque Fact of the Week, Euskara

Basque Fact of the Week: Euskaltegiak and Barnetegiak

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Learning Euskara can be a daunting challenge as it is simply so different from English, Spanish, or French. During Franco’s time, the use of Basque was discouraged or even outright forbidden and this led to the decline of the language. However, this also motivated people to create new institutions, new avenues, new places for people to learn Basque. These euskaltegis became a key part in the effort to preserve and promote the language.

The euskaltegia in Urrats. Image from Wikimedia.
  • Euskaltegi literally means “Basque-place” – a place to learn Basque. Euskaltegis target adults that want to learn the language. There are two primary types, public and private. The private euskaltegis are usually associated with a federation, such as Alfabetatze Euskalduntze Koordinakundea (AEK). The public ones, usually associated and funded by individual towns, are called Udal Euskaltegiak (udal means town or city council). A list of Udal Euskaltegiak can be found here. HABE – Helduen Alfabetatze eta Berreuskalduntzerako Erakundea or the Institute for Adult Literacy and Re-Basqueization – also has a list of Euskaltegiak in Euskadi.
  • Euskaltegis where people board at the school and essentially immerse themselves in the Basque language 24/7 are called barnetegis – “barne” means boarder. Courses are often about a month, though they can be as short as 12 days, and students often live on site, with every interaction in Basque.
  • There are more than 100 Euskaltegiak around the globe. Of course, most are in the Basque Country, with most of those being in Hegoalde, but there are Euskaltegiak in other parts of the world.
  • Schools specializing in teaching adults the Basque language have existed for at least 100 years. In Nafarroa, they were called “Cátedras vascas” o “Academias de la lengua vasca.” The Spanish Civil War disrupted so many things, including these schools. In 1950, the Diputación Foral de Navarra created the first public euskaltegi in Pamplona, the Academia del Euskera. Ulibarri Euskaltegi of Bilbao, created in 1975, is the oldest professional euskaltegi in the Basque Country.
  • The first modern Euskaltegiak created in the 1960s specialized in night classes for adults. They hit their peak in the 1980s and 1990s where some 44,000 people learned Basque at an euskaltegi. However, enrollment has dropped since then, possibly as other avenues to learn Basque arose.

A full list of all of Buber’s Basque Facts of the Week can be found in the Archive.

Primary sources: Euskaltegi, Wikipedia; Euskaltegi, Wikipedia

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Children of Guernica: A Film Project by Begoña Echeverria et al

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Dr. Begoña Echeverria has reached out to share news about her new project, CHILDREN OF GUERNICA a film by herself, Annika Speer, and Jacqueline Postajian. You may recall that I interviewed Begoña and Annika about their play, Picasso Presents Gernika. Please see her note below.

“Many of you were supportive of my play Picasso Presents Gernika, which my collaborators and I staged at the Chino Community Theatre, the Santa Monica Playhouse, and at the United Nations Headquarters in honor of World Refugee Day. We are grateful that numerous Basque clubs and organizations hosted screenings of the play as well.

We are now making a short film adaptation, CHILDREN OF GUERNICA, stemming from the play. The film is inspired by a true story of a Basque refugee who escaped the bombing of Gernika by emigrating to England.

Here’s the premise: In April 1937, Hitler bombed the sacred Basque town Gernika. 20,000 children were evacuated to foreign countries for protection, separated from their families. Our short historical fiction film tells the story of one of those children, Andrea. Weaving art created by children of survivors with documentary footage and narrative, CHILDREN OF GUERNICA follows Andrea as she confronts the traumas of her past in order to seek peace in the present. Our film considers how art contributes to our healing and humanity.

My goal is to represent the Basque community and tell our stories on screen, while also tying our stories to the broader world. Please consider making a tax-deductible donation to my fundraiser to help us bring this important story to life! A generous anonymous donor will provide matching funds if $5000 is collected by March 15st, 2025. For more information about the film and ways to give, follow this link. Thank you! Mila esker!”

Basque Proverb of the Week

Basque Proverb of the Week: Proverb #3

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Aberats izatea baino, izen ona hobe.

It’s better to have a good reputation than to be rich.

Image generated by Buber using ChatGPT.

These proverbs were collected by Jon Aske. For the full list, along with the origin and interpretation of each proverb, click this link.

Basque Fact of the Week, Euskadi, Euskara

Basque Fact of the Week: The Origin of the Word Basque (Goat People?)

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Why are the Basques called the Basques? Baskijski, Baskický, Baskisk, Vasco, Baskilainen, Baskisch, βασκικός, Vasco, Baskijski, Bass, баскский. All of the names for the Basques are similar and seemingly have nothing to do with what the Basques actually call themselves, Euskaldunak. Where does the word Basque even come from?

A Basque with his azpi gorri, one of the few native breeds of goats in the Basque Country. Image from El Correo.
  • The English word Basque comes from the French, which in turn comes from the Gascon word Basco. In fact, both Basque and Gascon come from the Latin word for one of the tribes that inhabited what is the modern day Basque Country, the Vascones. In Latin, the word was originally uasco.
  • There was a theory that the Latin word for the Basques evolved from the Latin word for forest – boscus o buscus – but that has been discarded as that word itself is of relatively modern origin (the Middle Ages) and maybe comes from German.
  • Another theory is that uasco came from what the Basques and Aquitainians called themselves, from an early form of the modern Basque eusk-. The Romans called another tribe in the region the Auscii, which is theorized to have a similar origin.
  • Yet another theory links the word Basque to an inscription found on an old Roman-era coin that read barscunes. This has been interpreted as a Celtic word possibly meaning “the mountain people.”
  • Strabo, the Greek chronicler of the Roman Empire, called what was possibly (likely?) that same tribe as the Vascones the Ouaskonous or the Ouáskones. This is what the Greeks called them, the Οὐάσκωνες. Ouaskonous means the “goat people” as these people were known to sacrifice rams to their gods. Ouaskonous is typically rendered in English as Vasconians.
  • At least two references link the Latin uasco with the Greek Ouaskonous, but the vast majority don’t – even the Oxford Dictionary doesn’t make this connection.
  • Just like the theory that uasco comes from eusk-, there is speculation that so does Ouaskonous.
  • It is surprisingly hard to find serious discussion of these relationships. For example, while multiple sources say that Ouaskonous means something like “the goat people,” I can’t find conclusive evidence of this.

A full list of all of Buber’s Basque Facts of the Week can be found in the Archive.

Primary sources: Vascones, Wikipedia; Basques, Wikipedia

Basque Proverb of the Week

Basque Proverb of the Week: Proverb #2

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Abadearen lapikoa, txikia baina gozoa

The priest’s pot is small but his supper is tasty.

Image generated by Buber using ChatGPT.

These proverbs were collected by Jon Aske. For the full list, along with the origin and interpretation of each proverb, click this link.

Basque Fact of the Week, History

Basque Fact of the Week: The Basque Witch Trials

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Of the things often associated with the Basques – exploration and seafaring, pintxos, rural sports, an odd language – one of the most infamous is the Witch Trials. A mania, at least fueled by if not instigated by the Inquisition and other religious figures, swept parts of the Basque Country, leading to people accusing neighbors, friends, and families of cohorting with Satan. This happened more than once, and led to the trial and execution of many accused witches.

Engraving by Jan Ziarnko depicting a witches’ Sabbath, according to the description of Pierre de Lancre in Tableau de l’inconstance des mauvais anges et demons, from Wikimedia.
  • The first witch trials in the Basque Country immediately followed Castilla’s and the Inquisition’s conquering of the Kingdom of Nafarroa, in 1525. These trials essentially defined how the Inquisition would conduct such trials. The first trials were held by the Council of Nafarroa’s special commissioner. Two sisters, aged 9 and 11, were brought in to look for the Devil’s mark in peoples’ eyes. In at least five different places, people were detained and executed, but we don’t know how many. At the end, the Inquisition took over and actually tempered activities, urging skepticism of spell casting and banning confiscation of property. They insisted that witches be re-educated rather than executed.
  • In 1609, Pierre de Lancre led a witch-hunt in Iparralde, in the province of Lapurdi. His investigations led to the burning of 70 people, including a few priests, for witchcraft. However, he estimated that some 10% of the population – 3000 people – were witches. He was dismissed from office before he could persecute all of his suspects. However, his efforts directly inspired the trials in Logroño.
  • Perhaps the most well known witch trials were in 1609-1610. The Inquisition held trials in the town of Logroño, in La Rioja. In these trials, the Inquisition resumed executions. In 1610, some 10-12 people were burned at the stake, though about half had already died during torture to extract confessions and were burned symbolically.
  • After, the Inquisition appointed Alonso de Salazar Frías, the so-called Witches’ Advocate, to investigate witchcraft activities, with a particular focus on the region around Zugarramurdi. He collected confessions from nearly 2000 people, naming upwards of an additional 5000 people as witches. The majority of those 2000 people were children aged 7-14. In the end, 6 of the nearly 7000 people accused were executed for witchcraft. The nature of the accounts of witchcraft and how people created the stories they told the Inquisitors has been studied by Emma Wilby.

A full list of all of Buber’s Basque Facts of the Week can be found in the Archive.

Primary sources: Navarre witch trials (1525-26), Wikipedia; Basque witch trials, Wikipedia; Labourd witch-hunt of 1609, Wikipedia

Basque Proverb of the Week

Basque Proverb of the Week: Proverb #1

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Image generated by Buber using ChatGPT.

A, zer parea! Karakola eta barea!

Oh, what a pair, a snail and a slug.

These proverbs were collected by Jon Aske. For the full list, along with the origin and interpretation of each proverb, click this link.

Basque Fact of the Week, Diaspora, Euskadi

Basque Fact of the Week: Durango, Durango, Durango… So Many Durangos

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Despite their small country and the relatively small number of people, Basques have left their mark all across the globe. This is reflected in place names and one prime example is Durango. Durango is a relatively small village in the heart of Bizkaia, a larger city in Mexico, and a quaint town in Colorado.

Photo of Durango from the Euskadi/Basque Country website.
  • The original Durango is in Bizkaia. We don’t know exactly when Durango was founded, but the name Durango was mentioned in documents by at least 1051, when it was part of the Kingdom of Nafarroa, though the town was probably founded 100 years later. Right around the turn of the century (about 1200), it became part of Castilla. In the 1400s, Durango was a part of the War of the Bands, during which time a number of tower houses were built in the town and the surrounding area. It was also during this time that the Heresy of Durango occurred.
  • The 1500s were a rough time for Durango. In 1517, it was hit by plague. 1544 brought flooding followed by fires in 1554. And, in 1597, plague ravaged the town yet again.
  • Today, the town has about 30,000 people. While the town is possibly the oldest in Bizkaia, it doesn’t look it as it was devastated by bombings during the Spanish Civil War and had to be rebuilt.
  • In Mexico, Durango refers to both a state and a city. As a state within Mexico, Durango is the 8th largest, boasting a population of nearly 2 million people. Before the Spanish arrived, the area was settled by the Huichols, Coras, Tepehuanos and Tarahumaras native peoples. The first Spaniard arrived in 1532. However, it wasn’t until 1546 when silver was discovered that the region attracted attention. Francisco de Ibarra, a conquistador from Eibar, Gipuzkoa (though some sources say he was from Durango) came and conquered the area.
  • The city was founded in 1563 by Ibarra and is the capital of the state. It began as a mining town. It became an official city, receiving its coat of arms, in 1630. During the Mexican War of Independence in the early 1800s, a number of key players were executed in the city. In 1911, under the leadership of the Arrieta brothers, the city joined the Mexican Revolution. In the 1950s, the city started growing a film industry.
  • Durango, Colorado, is a town of about 20,000 in the southwest corner of Colorado. The town was created in 1880 by the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad as a stop along the way to Silverton, Colorado and to service the local mining activity. The city was named after the Mexican Durango by an ex-Governor of Colorado.
  • It isn’t clear where the name Durango comes from. One theory says it comes from the Latin Turanicus, from the times the Romans were in the area. Or, it could come from a number of Basque names such as Duranco, Urazango or Padurango. Until the 1500s, the Basque town was known as Uribarri de Durango, meaning the “new town of Durango.” Some references say that Durango comes from Urango meaning “water town” or “well watered place,” but it isn’t clear if this is a true etymology or an invention.
  • All three Durangos are sister cities.

A full list of all of Buber’s Basque Facts of the Week can be found in the Archive.

Primary sources: See the links in the article. See also  Durango. Auñamendi Encyclopedia, 2025. Available at: https://aunamendi.eusko-ikaskuntza.eus/en/durango/ar-45727/

Basque Fact of the Week, Euskara

Basque Fact of the Week: The Basque Alphabet and Orthography

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The most basic element of a written language is the alphabet. However, because Euskara wasn’t standardized until the 1970s, spelling of Basque names and words was all over the place, often borrowing from Spanish and French. With standardization, the chaos finally settled and now there is a common alphabet used in all parts of the Basque Country. Those who standardized the alphabet and orthography made some interesting choices – using the letter x to represent the ‘sh’ sound and tx to represent ‘ch’ – that I haven’t been able to find why. If anyone knows, please leave a comment!

A Basque dictionary by kukuxumusu, found on Beautiful Basque Country.
  • Formally, the Basque alphabet has only 23 letters – a b d e f g h i j k l m n ñ o p r s t u x z. The letters c q v w y do exist, but are typically only used in foreign words and names.
  • h is a bit interesting as some dialects of Basque use it, particularly in Iparralde, while others don’t. When Euskara was being standardized in the 1970s, it was decided to use the h in some words and not in others. It is voiceless in Batua – the unified standard Basque – but is vocalized in some dialects. The choice to include it in some words and not in others caused consternation for everyone.
  • Another interesting letter is x, which is pronounced like ‘sh’ in English.
  • z is also interesting. It represents the ‘s’ sound, much like (but subtly different) from the Basque letter s. However, because of the influence of Spanish, I’ve heard it pronounced more like ‘th,’ so that, for example, my grandmother’s surname Zabala, which should be pronounced like Sabala, is sometimes pronounced like Thabala.
  • There are also digraphs – pairs of letters that represent unique sounds – just like ‘ch’ or ‘th’ in English. In Basque, these are:
    • dd: this is a bit softer sound than normal d but doesn’t really have an English equivalent (as far as I can tell). Some dialects don’t have this sound.
    • ll: much like in Spanish, this sounds like ‘y’ in English
    • rr: this is trilled much like in Spanish
    • ts: this is pronounced much like the ‘ts’ in ‘rats’
    • tt: softer than ts or tz, but similar in spirit (again, I don’t know of an English equivalent)
    • tx: this is the ‘ch’ sound in English, like in the word ‘chair’
    • tz: this is a bit harder than ts and is pronounced like ‘ts’ in ‘gets’
  • ñ is like the ‘ni’ in ‘onion.’ The combination ‘in’ in Basque has a similar sound.
  • Because Basque was only standardized within the last century, before that words were written with either Spanish or French orthography. So, modern Basque Etxebarria would be Echevarria or Etchevarria.
  • Finally, it is interesting to look at where some of the letter choices come from. As the last example demonstrates, Basque uses tx for the ‘ch’ sound while the neighboring languages do not. Catalan also uses tx for the ‘ch’ sound. Maybe Basque took inspiration from Catalan? I can’t find anything that says anything about the origin of using tx to represent the ‘ch’ sound…

A full list of all of Buber’s Basque Facts of the Week can be found in the Archive.

Primary sources: Basque by Larry Trask, Buber’s Basque Page; Euskera, Wikipedia