Event Calendar
41st Annual Reno Basque Festival
Reno
July 19, 2008
The Zazpiak Bat Reno Basque Club is holding its 41st Annual Festival at Wingfield Park in Reno (1st and Arlington) on July 19, 2008, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. (admission is free). Later in the evening, there will also be a Basque dance with live music by Amuma Says No from Boise, Idaho, at the Santa Fe Restaurant in downtown Reno (Lake Street), from 9 p.m. to 1 a.m.
The Reno Basque club was founded in 1966. As part of Reno's Artown events, Basques will celebrate their heritage and culture with improvisational poetry in their ancient language of Euskara (eh-oo-skára), folk-dancing, traditional music, and contests such as irrintzi (yodeling), children's bota juice-drinking, weight-carrying, and wood-chopping. A variety of typical Basque foods and beverages will be available for purchase: chorizo sandwich, lamb stew, beans, lomo with pimiento (loin pork with red pepper) sandwich, and cheese sandwich.
In the late 1800s, young men and women from the rural Basque Country came to the U.S. in search of work they could not find in their homeland, the area in northern Spain and southwestern France that straddles the Pyrenees. Restrictive farmstead inheritance customs, the military draft of governments hostile to the Basques, and limited employment opportunities sparked their immigration to the Americas. The 1849 California Gold Rush attracted many to the Far West. When mining declined, the Basques gained employment in dairy, ranching, and shepherding enterprises. Today, Basques in the West number over 50,000, with the greatest concentrations in California, Idaho, and Nevada. Yearly festivals take place throughout the U.S. from May to October. Reno-Sparks was the site of the original Western Basque Festival in 1959.
The Reno Basque club was founded in 1966. As part of Reno's Artown events, Basques will celebrate their heritage and culture with improvisational poetry in their ancient language of Euskara (eh-oo-skára), folk-dancing, traditional music, and contests such as irrintzi (yodeling), children's bota juice-drinking, weight-carrying, and wood-chopping. A variety of typical Basque foods and beverages will be available for purchase: chorizo sandwich, lamb stew, beans, lomo with pimiento (loin pork with red pepper) sandwich, and cheese sandwich.
In the late 1800s, young men and women from the rural Basque Country came to the U.S. in search of work they could not find in their homeland, the area in northern Spain and southwestern France that straddles the Pyrenees. Restrictive farmstead inheritance customs, the military draft of governments hostile to the Basques, and limited employment opportunities sparked their immigration to the Americas. The 1849 California Gold Rush attracted many to the Far West. When mining declined, the Basques gained employment in dairy, ranching, and shepherding enterprises. Today, Basques in the West number over 50,000, with the greatest concentrations in California, Idaho, and Nevada. Yearly festivals take place throughout the U.S. from May to October. Reno-Sparks was the site of the original Western Basque Festival in 1959.
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Phone: 775-762-3577
