Renowned Basque literary scholar Gorka Aulestia continues his path-breaking study of the literary heritage of the Basque people. In this collection of fourteen essays, he considers the legacy of great Basque poets and their contributions to the tradition, influence on successive poets, and their place in the world's poetry scene. Examining these poets and their work in the context of Basque cultural traditions and concurrent European literary movements, Aulestia sheds light on the colorful world of Basque poetry.

Improvisational Poetry from the Basque Country introduces the Basque bertsolari to the English-speaking world and provides an understanding of an interesting cultural phenomenon - the artist in Basque society who is capable of improvising verse on any subject spontaneously and setting it to music. The tradition is at least several centuries old and runs the gamut from amateurish efforts to periodic national championship competitions. These competitions draw thousands of listeners and pack theaters while many other thousands tune their radios to the broadcasts of the performances. A performance consists of a bertsolari, a live audience, and a challenge to put a specific theme into song. Within seconds the bertsolari is expected to create beautiful verse, set to music. The bertsolari's impromptu verses demonstrate his knowledge of the Basque language and history, as well as his ability to captivate an audience with fresh verse. Aulestia takes a scholarly and in-depth look at the art of the bertsolari. In a fascinating text, the author examines the history of a tradition that is truly unique and completely Basque. He introduces and analyzes the performing styles of great bertsolariak, including Xabier Amuriza and Jon Azpillaga. From the bertsolari's roots in the old Basque Country to the social phenomenon it is today, Aulestia's look at the improvisational oral literature of the Basques is an essential addition to their written history.

This is the most comprehensive Basque-English dictionary; it incorporates all six major dialects of the revitalized language. With skill and precision, Gorka Aulestia has tackled the difficult problem of translating the non-Indo-European Basque language into English. Nearly 50,000 entries in six major dialects are included in this comprehensive dictionary. A concise introduction combines the basics of Basque verb forms, and each entry provides essential information such as part of speech and dialect markers. Special attention is given to words relating to modern society, contradicting the old adage that Basque is a rural-based language. Many of these terms do not appear in existing Basque-Spanish or Basque-French dictionaries. A formal guide to writing speech, this dictionary will be of interest to scholars, students, Basque Americans, Old World Basques learning English, and libraries around the world.

With over 25,000 English entries and their Basque equivalents in six major dialects, this volume is the most complete reference to the Basque language to date for English-speaking people. This useful resource is the very first of its kind to become available to both the casual student and the serious scholar of the Basque language. The Biscayan, Guipuzcoan, Labourdin, Low Navarrese, Zuberoan, and Batua dialects are included in order to cover all the different regional and formal dialects used in the body of Basque literature, both written and oral, and to present the language in a form familiar to American Basques who may know little of Batua. Whenever possible, the authors also include words relating to modern society.