Euskera

1
Euskera

• Rai Furniss, Rosa Piñuel Vega, Mikel Galan
  Estefania, Laura Townsend, Sonia Moreno Pérez,
  Tara Lowe

2
Origins to Middle Ages Language

• Basque language is an inflected language whose
  origin is still a mystery.
• The Basques have occupied areas of northern Spain
  and southern France, extending further eastward
  and northwards into Gascony and the Pyrenees.
• The Basque language is thought to be a language
  isolate and its prehistory cannot be
  reconstructed by means of the comparative method
• There are hypotheses that try to explain its
  existence

3
Origins to Middle Ages Literature

• There was a rich oral literature thanks to the
  "bertsolarismo" which is the art of singing a
  song which is composed in an improvised manner
  and the pastorals.
• The Glosas Emilianenses
• Iziqui dugu we have lighted
• Guec ajutuez dugu we dont throw ourselves
• The first book written in Basque was Linguae
  Vasconum Primitiae written by Bernard Dechepare

4
Middle Ages to 1936

• A sense of separate cultural and political
  identity had existed in the area for many
  centuries
• Father Manuel de Larramendi (1690-1766)
• Augustin Chaho (1811-58)
• The Basque provinces had long kept their local
  laws and customary privileges intact, they were
  among the last regions of Spain to maintain their
  fueros.
• A small cultural revival took place in the Basque
  country before the emergence of nationalism. The
  renacimiento euskerista was centred in Navarre
  and Vizkaya.

5
Sabino Arana y Goiri

• He formulated its first political programme,
  coined its name, defined its geographical extent,
  founded its first political organisation, wrote
  its anthem and designed its flag
• Arana studied law in Barcelona at a time when
  Catalunya was experiencing a widespread cultural,
  economic and political revival.
• Arana and his followers werent trying to revive
  their language or encourage the spread of
  Euskara, but they tried to use it as an ethnic
  boundary.
• There had been a pride among many Basques in the
  unintelligibility of their language.

6
Basque language Nationalism The
Franco Years

• Great resurgence of the use of Euskera
• 1936 Autonomy Statute
• Robert P. Clark Of all the acts of suppression,
  however, symbolically the most damaging was the
  attempt of the occupation authorities to destroy
  the Basque language as a functioning
  communications medium. ( pg 81 )
• Policies of Francos government aimed at the
  Basque language
• 1937- mid 1950s Severe- aimed at nearly complete
  suppression of the language
• Early 1950s Ability to suppress its use starts
  to wane
• Early 1960s- regulation of its limited use,
  general slackening
• Number of native language speakers in the Basque
  region
• 1934- 570,000 of the Spanish Basque population of
  1.2 million 50
• Early 1970s- 455,000 of the Spanish Basque
  population of 2.1 million - 19.2

7
Basque nationalism under Franco

• Basque nationalism must be ruined, trampled
  underfoot, ripped out by its roots
• (General Gil Yuste, Spanish military governor of
  Alava (a Basque province) during the SCW)
• 1939 Law on Political Responsibility- Between
  4,000 7,000 Basque political prisoners at any
  given time
• Beginning in the early 1950s there were two
  distinct strategic approaches
• Approach one- the creation of Basque National
  Front
• Approach two fostered by Basque nationalist party
  (PNV)
• 1937- early 1950s dispersed, unorganized
• 1950s- durable, unified, co-ordinated

8
Basque after the Constitution of 1978

• Euskera is official depending on the local laws
  of each territory. It is spoken in Euskadi,
  Navarre and France.
• It is fully official in the Basque Country and
  the Basque-speaking part of Navarre.
• It is said to be partially official in Navarre.
• Euskera is also spoken in the Continental Basque
  Country which is located in France. French
  government only recognises French language as the
  official one.

9
Language planning measures put in place

• 1982, Basque Parliament,Ley Básica de
  Normalización y Uso del Euskera
• 1986, government of Navarre, Ley del Uso del
  Vascuence
• 1998, Basque government,Plan General de
  Promoción del Uso del Euskera
• These governments working with the Royal Academy
  of the Basque Language has resulted in the
  process of standardisation the Euskera batua
  (standard variety)

10
Pre-Industrialisation

• The unconquerable Vasconians
• Father Manuel de Larramendi and irredentism
• Augustín Chaho
• ...a history of national defence against outside
  encroachment.

11
Industrialisation

• The bourgeoisie and the wage workers
• Euskaros Euskalerriacos
• Sabino Arana y Goiri ?? Maybe take out?
• First Congress of Basque Studies The Basque
  Language Academy
• Nationalist Fragmentation

12
Density of Basque speakers
13
Education

• In the Basque Autonomous Community
• A model Everything in Spanish with Basque as a
  subject (19,7 )
• B model Spanish and Basque used in on a 50-50
  basis (22,9 )
• D model Everything in Basque with Spanish as a
  subject (57,3 )
• In Navarre
• A model Everything in Spanish with Basque as
  a subject (19,2 )
• B model Spanish and Basque used in on a 50-50
  basis (0,2 )
• D model Everything in Spanish with Spanish
  as a subject (22 )
• G model Everything in Spanish (no Basque
  subject) (58,6 )

14
Actual usage of Basque language

• Use of Basque in the whole Basque Country
  (C.A.V.NavarreNorthern Basque Country) 14
• Increase in the last 17 years 3,4
• Increase in the last 6 years 0,7
• Positive aspects
• There has been an increase in the use of Basque
  language between all age groups except in the 65
• The younger the speakers, the greater the use of
  Basque
•  Negative aspects
• There has been no increase in Basque in the
  biggest cities
• There has been little increase in the zones where
  Basque was lost
• In the territory of Biscay (Vizcaya) the usage
  has decreased even if it is a Basque speaking
  area.

15
Bibliography

• Conversi, D, The Basques, The Catalans and Spain
• http//taiwandna.com/BasquePage.html
• www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basque_language
• www.101languages.net/basque/history.html
• www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/55366/Basque-la
  nguage/75373/History-of-the-language
• Clark, Robert P. (Robert Paul), 1935- The
  Basques, the Franco years and beyond . - Reno,
  Nev University of Nevada Press, 1979 .