If you were in the vicinity of the St. Ambrose Church social center, 1975 South 2300 East, in Sugar House on the evening of Saturday February 4, perhaps you heard some strange yelling--a combination of ‘a derisive laugh, the shrill neighing of a horse, a wolf’s howl, and the final notes of a donkey’s bray,’ better known as irrinzti, a festive Basque yell.
And, why not, since it was part of the fun and festivities taking place at the 29th Annual Basque Dinner Dance, a fund raising and cultural awareness event sponsored by the Basque Club of Utah.
The festivities included a dinner consisting of a variety of Basque dishes: leek soup, roast pork with red sauce, clams and rice, green beans, bread and dessert; a raffle; an irrinzti and ‘bota bag' (a traditional Spanish liquid beverage container made from animal skin) contest; and dancing by the UtahKo’ Triskalariak, a Basque Club ‘dance group [that] performs for various Basque and community activities throughout the western states,’ comprising both children and adults.
Who are the Basques?
The Basques are an ancient people inhabiting a region of approximately 8,000 square miles --about the size of Maryland --in the western Pyrenees, straddling the border between France and Spain. Most of the territory lies in Spain, however, where Basques live in an ‘autonomous community.’ There are roughly 2.8 million Basques throughout the entire area, but only 700,000 of the inhabitants are considered Euskadunak, i.e., those that speak the unique Basque language that is neither linguistically Latin nor Indo-European-based.
Most Basques first came to the United States during the California Gold Rush of 1849, though more ultimately earned a living as shepherds, rather than miners. According to Countries and Their Cultures, ‘Basques earned a reputation as the most diligent, conscientious, and capable ranch workers available.’ It was a lonely life though; most shepherds worked alone in isolated areas, often using the irrinzti as a means of communication between one another.
According to the 2010 Census, there are approximately 56,000 Basques throughout the United States. Basques reside in all fifty states, though California has the highest population of Basques. In Utah there are only about 50 Basque families.
Check out both the North American Basque Organization and the Basque Club of Utah for more information. The latter site includes other local fund raising and cultural awareness events in which the group participates, such as the Living Traditions Festival.
Sources:
North American Basque Organization
2010 US Census Data
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