Archives
Author: Felix Mugurutza
Ascension Day was a significant reference in the calendar of our ancestors.
According to Christianity, it is celebrated forty days after Easter Sunday and commemorates the ascension of Jesus Christ to heaven in the presence of his disciples.
Transferred to the profane environment, the Ascension marks the end of a specific period, which begins with the equinox and the beginning of spring and shows us the moment in which meadows, forests and crop fields show the moment of greatest prosperity. Furthermore, it was planting time.
Zantiratua ritual in Zeanuri (Bizkaia), c. 1915. Felipe Manterola Collection. Labayru Fundazioa Photographic Archive.
In Gernika (Bizkaia) and environs a sprain or strain, typically in the ankle, is known as zantiratua, from zan ‘vein, nerve, tendon, ligament’ and tiratu ‘pull, stretch’. Other denominations such as bihortua or trokatua are likewise common to refer to a sprained foot, thus differing it from a dislocation, in which case the bone is said to ‘come out of the joint’, hazurrak urten.
Menstruating women were believed to be prone to sprains and strains, so it was not uncommon that they would wrap their ankles. And conversely, wrapped ankles were generally interpreted as a precaution during the menstrual period. (more…)
Rushes in blossom. Sergio González Ahedo.
There are more than thirty known types of warts of different shapes and sizes. Most of them are benign and come and go as they please. They do not typically result in significant problems and disappear without medical treatment. The most usual names for warts in Basque are garia, garitxa, garatxoa, karatxoa, kalitxa, enorra and marruka.
Some people are said to be more susceptible to warts than others, but the majority of us are likely to develop warts at some point in our lives. Certainly, warts might cause discomfort and are at times deemed aesthetically displeasing. (more…)
Halo around the Moon. José Ignacio García. Labayru Fundazioa Photographic Archive.
Legend has it that on her way down from the mountain, a woman set fire to a load of gorse and became the Moon.
The lunar phases and their impact on terrestrial life cycles have long been considered a prominent factor for sowing, planting and harvesting. As it happens, tides are mainly caused by the pull of the Moon on Earth. (more…)
Bilbo-Abando
Colon de Larreategi 14, 2. esk.48001 Bilbo (Bizkaia)
Tel.: +34 94 443 76 84
labayru@labayru.eus
Derio
Larrauri 1A, 5.a48160 Derio (Bizkaia)
Tel.: +34 94 406 01 71
idazkaritza@labayru.eus
Bilbo-Bolueta
Metroalde eraikinaBilbo-Galdakao errep. 6A
48004 Bilbo (Bizkaia)
Tel.: +34 94 607 72 10
labayru@labayru.eus
