ANCIENT CULTURE
Art | Traditions | Sports | History | LanguageThe Basques are a people found in the western part of the Pyrenees and the surrounding areas. The region includes four provinces in Spain (Guipuzcoa, Vizcaya, Alava, and Navarre) and three provinces in the department of the Atlantic Pyrenees in France (Soule, Labourd, and Basse-Navarre). Known by the Spanish as "vascos" and by the French as "basques", the Basque call themselves "euskaldunak" and their country "País Vasco" or 'Euskal Herria.'
The population of the Basque Country is near to 3 million people, with an extension of 20.644 square kilometre.
The origin of the Basques is still a mystery. Their language is not related to any other Indo-European language. Their religion is predominantly Roman Catholic. Worth mentioning is their attachment to their customs and a tradition that differentiates their sports, games, and dances from those of their surroundings.
The Basques were traditionally a farming and fishing people, characterized by their enterprising spirit, strong personality, and nobility of character. In the middle ages they were known as experienced ship builders, brave whale hunters, and cod anglers. The characteristic settlement is the Caserío or Basque farmhouse. The growth of towns is a relatively recent phenomenon in response to the growing industry and commerce in the Basque region.
A large number of Basques have emigrated to North and South America. Historically this emigration has been partly the result of adverse political and economic circumstances, partly the result of the succession rule known as primogeniture, through which the first-born inherits the family farm. The youngest children have generally sought work in coastal settlements as labourers or fishermen, or have emigrated to the New World, often finding work as sheepherders.
Isolated by mountains, the Basques resisted the invasions of the Romans, the Germanic tribes, the Muslims, and other cultures until the 18th century. They lost their autonomy in France after the French Revolution (1789), and in Spain at the beginning of the 19th Century as a result of the Carlist Wars. After several periods the Basques of Spain were granted autonomy in 1980 with the creation of the Autonomous Community of the Basque Country, as well as the Regional Community of Navarre.
