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08/02/2023Welcome to the Basque village!
One of Getaria's most important heritages is the Basque language, which is essential for getting to know our culture and feeling like one of the locals. Basque has a special value for the people of Getaria, as it is a reflection of our identity, culture and history.
Basque is one of the oldest living languages in the world, but we still do not know its origin, it is a language unknown even to researchers; they say that it is genetically isolated and that it is one of the few languages that has no relatives. The Indo-European languages (Germanic, Romance, Slavic, etc.) dominated the whole of Europe, yet Basque has not disappeared.
Ways of recovering the Basque language
In the last 35 years, Basque has gained more than 300,000 speakers in Euskadi; the language that originated in the homes and streets has today recovered all areas of everyday life, such as administration, education and the media.
At a time when the use of Basque was forbidden, and although the number of bilinguals has increased, the process of Basque language recovery is an international benchmark for the revitalisation processes of many other languages. In recent years, the Basque language has benefited from legal protection, language policy and the will of the citizens, thus promoting and encouraging the use of the Basque language.
On the streets of Getaria, look at the posters, information and stickers, have you seen how different the two languages are?
Small dictionary in Basque
Do you dare to say a few words in our language? Delve into our culture and try to get into the lives of the people of Getaria to speak to them in Basque. Here is a small dictionary to help you achieve this goal.
Other aspects of our culture
Rural sports
The well-known ‘Herri kirolak’ (rural sports) are traditional sports, the result of the work that has been carried out in rural areas. For example, the famous sport of ‘harrijasotzailes’ (stone-lifting) is based on the work of moving large stones for construction.
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Basque dances
Dance is also the basis of our culture, and nowadays it is very much alive, especially in our festivals, where many of the dances that are danced have more than 400 years of history. In Getaria we celebrate the Euskal Jaiak day in May, a perfect excuse to delve into our culture and learn a couple of steps.
Bertsolaritza
Bertsolaritza has recently been named as intangible heritage of the Basque Country, as it is one of the most curious disciplines that can be found in Basque culture. What does bertsolaritza consist of? Bertsolaritza means making up a verse by singing it on the spot, respecting the rhymes and melodies. You can find bertsolaris at local festivals, in cider houses and, of course, in championships. Over the years, bertsolaritza schools have also been set up to professionalise and stabilise bertsolaritza.
Irrintzia
The mythical cry of the Basque Country is the Irrintzi, a loud, high-pitched and long neigh. This means above all joy, and it is usually done at celebrations. In Getaria, on the day of Euskal Jai, the Irrintzi contest is held, highlighting this particular ‘cry’ of ours, because it is not as easy as it seems, do you dare to try it?
THE BASQUE LANGUAGE OF GETARIA
The predominant language of Getaria is Basque and the Getariarra dialect is a similar language of the neighbouring villages of Zarautz and Zumaia. Two different languages can be distinguished in the village: that of the street fishermen and that of the baserritarras (farmers), which are closer to the language of the surrounding villages.
In the Ahotsak (voices) project, the testimony of the Getaria dialect is collected.