Basque ethnography at a glance
Tribute of the Three Cows at the Stone of St Martin chasm. Roncal Valley, c. 1930. Ojanguren Archive.
On a map borderlines mark the limits between regions and states. They are drawn tracing an imaginary line that connects a series of boundary markers and separates native land from foreign. What seemingly might be a mere distinction between cultures, from an ethnographic point of view is not quite that simple. Borderland cultures are never clear-cut and offer a whole range of possibilities. Multiple signs and symbolic rituals originate in border areas and develop to acquire solid tactical and human dimensions. (more…)
Light offerings to Saint Wilgefortis. Urduliz, 2005. Akaitze Kamiruaga. Labayru Fundazioa Photographic Archive.
The feast of St Marina (popularly referred to as santa Mariñe) is celebrated on 20 July at the hermitage situated on the cliffs bearing the name of the saint and lying on the border between the towns of Urduliz and Sopela in Bizkaia. It is the only hermitage in Urduliz. Its location is unique as it was built on the rock itself, at the highest point of the town, about 350 metres away from the parish church. (more…)
Interior of the cave described herein. Carranza, 2016. Luis Manuel Peña. Labayru Fundazioa Photographic Archive.
Shepherding is an age-old occupation. José Miguel de Barandiaran already realised traditional pasture lands coincided with areas of highest concentration of dolmens, a fact that suggests such funerary constructions might have been built by people dedicated to animal husbandry. (more…)
An extended family. Artea (Bizkaia), c. 1930. Felipe Manterola Collection. Labayru Fundazioa Fotographic Archive.
The most common word to refer to a household in the Basque-speaking regions of Bizkaia is etxekoak. Although polysemous, that is its main meaning. The term familia makes particular reference to the offspring, and hence the phrase “Familia euki dabe” is to be understood as “They have started a family”. Senideak alludes more specifically to blood relatives and erantsiak to relatives by marriage, near relatives and close friends. (more…)
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