The Basque host country?
To be honest, I don't know why I'm writing this. In today’s hostile environment, opinions of this kind are not well received. Perhaps LUZ will not publish this because it does not correspond to the opinions they have published so far (but if they have finally decided to publish it, I have to thank them for accepting the different opinions).
Not long ago I read an opinion published in this magazine that defended the Basque host country. As respectable as this opinion may seem, I must admit that I cannot fully agree with it, and I would like you to explain why. The notion of the Basque host country defends a nation that accepts immigrants and at the same time lives in Basque. However, I am not at all sure that such a thing could exist.
Looking at the history of the Basque Country, the decline of the Basque language began in the 19th century. For what reason? Because of the massive immigration carried out by industrialization and coming mainly from Spain. That is, workers came from all over Spain to work in factories in the Basque Country, workers who did not see the need to learn Basque and, as a result, the Basque language began to decline. Even today, if we look at the linguistic map of the Basque Country, we can see that the cities that received the most immigration due to industrialization (Bilbao, Vitoria, Barakaldo, Portugalete, Irún...) have a much lower level of Basque compared to other cities that were not industrialized. It is something that is happening today in the North; although sociolinguistic surveys indicate that the number of Basques is increasing, the percentage does not increase because the immigration that the region receives is greater than the increase in Basque.
Let’s start by exploring how we can be a host country and at the same time strengthen the Basque language. We must have this debate as a society, with mutual respect and respect for different opinions.
The emphasis on this data is not fascist. This has nothing to do with the color of the immigrant’s skin, but with the language. What’s more, I don’t blame immigrants, I put myself in their place: I have traveled a long and dangerous way from another country to the Basque Country and, coming here, I have to learn the language of the place to communicate with witnesses, to find the profession... On the contrary, in the Basque Country there are two languages (Basque and Spanish or Basque and French, depending on the place), so I have to choose between the two. Which will be more useful to me? What language will I be able to communicate with the most people? What language is used in other countries as well, so that if I have to emigrate again, I can go to one of them? The answer is simple on both sides of the Pyrenees: In the south it is Spanish and in the north it is French. These two languages have more speakers than Basque, they are also spoken in other countries and it is also much easier to find resources to learn. As a result, the migrant coming to the Basque Country will choose the largest language for the loss of the Basque language.
Needless to say, this is generalization, there are migrants who decide to learn Basque. However, they are minimal. Take the Bilbao Metro and look at the language used by all the migrants there, how much Basque will you listen to? Walk through the streets of Bayonne and the same. Immigration, when it is massive and attempts to integrate with the local minority language are not made, seems to be a loss of minority languages.
So I present the question: how can we have a Basque host country? Perhaps we should guarantee the primacy of the Basque language before it becomes the host country, so that immigrants can see that the Basque language is the main language and decide to learn it. We can't, but wait so long, the immigration emergency is happening now. Today, more and more migrants are coming to the Basque Country, when Basque continues to be a minority language. So I ask again: how can we have a Basque host country?
We must have a discussion about this question and look for a migration model that does not diminish the Basque language any more. It is very nice to repeat that “The Basque Country is the host country” and ignore the problems that can come with migration. It is very difficult, on the other hand, to present this debate without someone saying that you are racist or fascist. That is why we are still in the same situation and the problem is not solved. Let’s start by exploring how we can be a host country and at the same time strengthen the Basque language. We must have this debate as a society, with mutual respect and respect for different opinions.
Pictures of Aritz Arrieta
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