Urla Jacqueline. Reclaiming Basque: Language, Nation, and Cultural Activism

University of Nevada Press, 2012. — 318 p. — (The Basque Series). — ISBN10: 0874178754, ISBN13: 978-0874179651.The Basque language, Euskara, is one of Europe's most ancient tongues and a vital part of today's lively Basque culture. Reclaiming Basque examines the ideology, methods, and discourse of the Basque-language revitalization movement over the course of the past century and the way this effort has unfolded alongside the simultaneous Basque nationalist struggle for autonomy. Jacqueline Urla employs extensive long-term fieldwork, interviews, and close examination of a vast range of documents in several media to uncover the strategies that have been used to reclaim Euskara and analyze the controversies that have arisen among Basque-language advocates. Reclaiming Basque offers a new perspective on language activism as a dynamic and evolving social movement. It addresses the complex issue of what it means to speak Basque in the contemporary Basque Country, as well as the roles of minority languages, language policies, and cultural identity in a globalized world.