Basque-American

Infobox Ethnic group
group = Basque American


caption = Notable Basque Americans: Florence Bascom,Ted Williams, Jose Iturbi, John Garamendi
flagicon|Basque Country flagicon|United States
poptime = Basque 57,793 Americans
-
popplace = California, Idaho, Nevada, Washington, Oregon
langs = American English, Basque, Spanish, French
rels = Roman Catholicism with secular minorites
related = Other groups of the Basque diaspora

Basque-Americans, or (Amerikanuak) in Basque, are citizens of the United States who are of Basque ancestry. According to the 2000 US census, there are 57,793 Americans of full or partial Basque descent. The states with the largest Basque-American populations are California (20,868), Idaho (6,637), Nevada (6,096), Washington (2,665) and Oregon (2,627).

Ties to Early American history

Referring to the historical ties that existed between Euskal Herria (the Basque Country) and the United States, some authors stress the admiration felt by John Adams, second president of the US, for the Basques' historical form of government. Adams, who on his tour of Europe visited Biscay, was impressed. He cited the Basques as an example in "A defense of the Constitution of the United States", as he wrote in 1786:

"In a research like this, after those people in Europe who have had the skill, courage, and fortune, to preserve a voice in the government, Biscay, in Spain, ought by no means to be omitted. While their neighbours have long since resigned all their pretensions into the hands of kings and priests, this extraordinary people have preserved their ancient language, genius, laws, government, and manners, without innovation, longer than any other nation of Europe. Of Celtic extraction, they once inhabited some of the finest parts of the ancient Boetica; but their love of liberty, and unconquerable aversion to a foreign servitude, made them retire, when invaded and overpowered in their ancient feats, into these mountainous countries, called by the ancients "Cantabria"…"

"…It is a republic; and one of the privileges they have most insisted on, is not to have a king: another was, that every new lord, at his accession, should come into the country in person, with one of his legs bare, and take an oath to preserve the privileges of the lordship". [ [http://www.constitution.org/jadams/ja1_04.htm A Defense of the Constitutions of Government of the United States of America, Letter VI] , John Adams.]

Authors such as Navascues, and the Basque-American Pete T. Cenarrusa, former Secretary of the State of Idaho, agree in stressing the influence of the Forua of Biscay [code of laws in Biscay] on some parts of the US Constitution. John Adams traveled in 1779 to Europe to study and compare the various forms of government then found on the Old Continent. The American Constitution was approved by the first thirteen states on 17 September 1787.

Migration and sheepherding

Basque names were so prominent in the western sheep business that a non-Basque expert regarded the Basques in 1858 as its founders. When the present-day states of California, Arizona and New Mexico were annexed by the US after the Mexican-American War (1848), there were thousands of Basques of Spanish/Mexican origin living and contributed to settlement in the region. Already in the 1850s there were Basque sheepherders working in Cahuenga Valley (today Hollywood). Following years of sacrifice, some of them became rich owners. By the 1860s the Basques were established in southern California. In the 1870s, the Los Angeles and Inland Empire land rush attracted thousands of Basques from Spain, Mexico and Latin America, there is still a Basque-American community in San Bernardino to this day. By the 1880s they were in the central and northern zones, from where they spread to Nevada, Idaho, Oregon, Utah, Montana, Wyoming, Arizona, New Mexico, and other western states also reaching Texas. By 1895 there were approximately ten thousand Basque-Americans in the United States.

Basque clubs

There are nearly fifty such clubs in the US, the oldest of which is the "Central Vascoamericano" (founded 1913), today New York's "Euzko Etxea" situated in Brooklyn. In the west, in 1907 there were efforts made to set up a club in Stockton, California. In 1914, the Basque Club of Utah was founded in Ogden, while in 1960 [ [http://www.basqueclub.com/history.htm] the first Zazpiak Bat Club was started in San Francisco. In 1938, the Basques in the Bakersfield area founded the Kern County Basque Club. Even though there are Basques in each of the fifty states, according to the most recent census, Basque clubs are only found in New York, Florida, California, Nevada, Idaho, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming. However, there is a significant Basque population in Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Montana, New Jersey, and New Mexico. Basque-American clubs have connections with other Basques around the world (across Europe, Canada, Mexico, Bolivia, Peru, Puerto Rico, Chile, Argentina, Australia, South Africa and the Philippines) to unite and consolidate a sense of identity in the global Basque diaspora.

Idahoan-Basques

No U.S. state is more associated with Basque people and culture than Idaho. Basques today are an integral part of the state's social fabric, especially in Boise. Prominent Basque-American elected officials in Idaho include longtime Secretary of State Pete T. Cenarrusa, his successor and the incumbent Ben Ysursa, both Republicans, as well as Democrat David H. Bieter, the current Boise mayor.

Since 1990, Boise and Gernika have been sister cities. Idaho achieved statehood in 1890 along with the first Basques arriving there around the same time. By 1912, some of the pioneers, such as John Achabal, Jose Bengoechea, Benito Arregui, John Echebarria, and Juan Yribar, were already settled and had property in the state. [ [http://www.vancouver.wsu.edu/crbeha/ba/ba.htm Historical Overview: Basque Americans in the Columbia River Basin ] ]

North American Basque organizations

In March 1973 a group of Basque-Americans met in Reno, Nevada with a questionable proposal, especially considering Basque history. The group hoped to forge a federation and create a network within the larger Basque community of the United States. The Basques had never been united, neither in the Old Country nor in the New World. The Basque country, or "Euskal Herria," had never been "Zazpiak-Bat" (the seven provinces are one) representing a unified, self-conscious political community. Euskal Herria most often referred to just the local region.

This detachment of Basques was reflected in the Basque communities of the United States. Basques of Biscayne descent in parts of Idaho and Nevada interacted little with the Basques of California which were largely northern or "French Basque." When delegates from the Basque clubs of Los Banos, San Bernardino, California; and San Francisco, California; Boise and Emmett, Idaho; Elko, Ely and Reno, Nevada; Salt Lake City, Utah; and Ontario, Oregon gathered together, they were well aware that there was little if any communication between the various Basque clubs of the American West. They were attempting to cross the divide – real and imagined – between Basque-Americans. Seventeen years later "French" Basques and "Spanish" Basques joined a federation to work together. Individual clubs set aside competition in an effort to preserve and promote their shared heritage.

The North American Basque Organizations, Inc., commonly referred to by its acronym N.A.B.O., is a service organization to member clubs that does not infringe on the autonomy of each. Its prime purpose is the preservation, protection, and promotion of the historical, cultural, and social interests of Basques in the United States. NABO's function is to sponsor activities and events beyond the scope of the individual clubs, and to promote exchanges between Basque-Americans and the Basque country.

Future of Basques in the US

The new generations exhibit the natural process of Americanization. To be Basque or to be part of the Basque phenomenon is an option today that may or may not be exercised. Those who wish may strengthen their ties via cultural elements such as dances and customs, while in some there is also the desire to travel to Spain and study Euskara, Spanish, or French. In recent years there has been the resurgence of Basque language classes, facilitated by new courses via the Internet. With succeeding generations the mode of being Basque has adapted to a new environment, and the concept of Basque-ness has altered.

Notable Basque-Americans

The following is a list of Notable Basque-Americans of either full or partial Basque descent.

*Leon Aberasturi, current District Court Judge Third district, 2nd department in Nevada
*Joe Ansolabehere, Animation screenwriter and producer
*Adam Archuleta, NFL safety
*David Archuleta, American Idol Contestant
*John Ascuaga, founder of John Ascuaga's Nugget Casino Resort, Sparks, Nevada
*Earl W. Bascom, American painter and sculptor, father of modern rodeo
*Florence Bascom, first woman hired by USGS
*David H. Bieter, mayor of Boise, Idaho
*Frenchy Bordagaray, Major League Baseball Player 1934-1945
*Bryant B. Brooks, governor of Wyoming 1905-1911
*Pete T. Cenarrusa, Former Secretary of State of Idaho
*Marisol Deluna, American fashion designer of Basque decent.
*Pete Ernaut, State Assemblyman, Nevada
*Robert F. Erburu, former President and CEO of the Times Mirror Co.
*John Etchemendy, Provost of Stanford University
*John Garamendi, Lieutenant Governor of California
*Galen Gering, Movie actor.
*Jimmy Heuga, former ski racer, 1964 Olympic medalist, advocate for multiple sclerosis
*Rafael Anton Irisarri, 21st century composer, musician
*Jose Iturbi, composer, conductor, and pianist.
*Leon Ichaso, Hollywood director of El Cantante, Sugar Hill, Pinero, etc.
*Paul Laxalt, U.S. Senator and former governor of Nevada
*Robert Laxalt, writer
*Ron Parraguirre, Nevada Supreme Court Justice
*Frederic Remington, painter, illustrator, and sculptor
*John Sevier, member of First United States Congress, governor of the State of Franklin, first governor of Tennessee
*Jedediah Smith, early American explorer
*Benny Urquidez, known as Benny the Jet - Martial Artist appearing in Jackie Chan films
*Ted Williams, Baseball Hall of Famer
*Ben Ysursa, Current Secretary of State of Idaho

References

* [http://www.euroamericans.net/basque.htm Euroamericans.net: The Basque in America]
* [http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/QTTable?_bm=y&-geo_id=01000US&-qr_name=DEC_2000_SF3_U_QTP13&-ds_name=DEC_2000_SF3_U U.S. Census]

External links

* [http://basque.unr.edu/ Center for Basque Studies, University of Nevada, Reno]
* [http://www.basqueclubs.com/ NABO (North American Basque Organization)]
* [http://www.basqueheritage.com/ (Amerketako euskaldunei buruzko webgunea)]
* [http://www.buber.net/Basque/ Buber's Basque Page]
* [http://www.epodunk.com/ancestry/Basque.html Epodunk] , Basque Ancestry Map of the United States
* [http://www.euskonews.com/0243zbk/kosmo24302.html "Kaletarrak eta Baserritarrak: East Coast and West Coast Basques in the United States"] by Gloria P. Totoricagüena.
* [http://www2.library.unr.edu/journals/Nvhsq/interstitial.pdf "Interstitial Culture, Virtual Ethnicity, and Hyphenated Basque Identity in the New Millennium"] by William A. Douglass.

European Americans