On the afternoon of the 4th February, on the eve of the Santa Águeda Festival ("Deun Agate" in Basque), many choirs, dressed in traditional costumes, invade the streets and villages of the Basque Country, to the sing the traditional song in honour of the Martyr Saint. This is a very deep rooted tradition in the Basque Country as the Saint is found in many of the legends and traditional songs.

Today it is quite common to find the streets full of children and adults that sing in choirs, accompanying the verses with rhythmical blows with their sticks on the ground, which give force and emotion to their songs. Tradition has it that the choirs sing from house to house, in front of each of the doorsteps, generally receiving a small quantity of money in exchange.

Santa Águeda is one of the first western martyr saints. She was born in Sicily in the year 230 and was martyred in Catania on the 5th February 251 for wanting to preserve her virginity against the proposal of marriage from the Governor Quinciano. Faced with her denial, the governor forced her to stay in a brothel for a month, but nothing or anybody managed to break her oath of virginity and purity to God. Given her stubbornness the governor ordered that she be flogged cruelly and that her breast be hacked with a machete. Like other martyrs, Santa Agueda was named the Patron Saint of the Basque Country and now her day is commemorated in many parishes and chapels.