The Normalisation of Basque Language in a Diverse Context. The Educational Guide of the Sakana Region: The Immersion in Basque, the Best Option

Mikel Galartza, Councillor of the City Council of Urdiain and member of the Basque Language Board of Sakana County Council, Navarre

One of the most important challenges that social organisations and public institutions in the field of the normalisation of Basque language are confronted with is how to manage current cultural and linguistic diversity in the Basque Country. Many immigrants do not know about the country and are unaware about the existence of the Basque language. It is as urgent as necessary to incite favourable attitudes –or, at least, respectful ones– towards the Basque language, towards the task of promoting the language of recent immigrants and to incorporate them into the process of linguistic normalisation.

In the struggle against social exclusion and for the welcoming of new citizens arriving in Sakana, it is extremely important and positive that they can learn Basque and that they perceive this acquisition as useful; not only from the point of view of their working or educational insertion, but also for the simple fact that the Basque language is an element of social cohesion. Having knowledge of Basque helps also to the process of its survival and recovery.

The harshness of the cultural shock that the majority of newcomer migrants experiment is very strong. Moreover, many are unaware that there is a minority language besides Spanish. Thus, it is important to find common points so that immigrants can join in with the process of normalization of the Basque language. However, it is crucial to recognize them as different subjects from the social and cultural point of view, and to act together against their discrimination and exclusion situations.

The restrictive immigration policies and the policies of exclusion from access to rights of citizenship and nationality, the segmentation and instability of the job market and the increase of xenophobe attitudes make the value of identity, culture, language and religion, on the one side, and the networks of solidarity of the group of reference, both here and in the place of origin, on the other side, to acquire a influential role for immigrants.

It is necessary to claim the rights of citizenship and nationality —including linguistic rights— for the Basque society and for the migrants. The challenge that we have in Sakana and in the whole of the Basque Country is to be able of channelling the diversity that immigration represents as an element that plays in favour of the process of linguistic normalization of the Basque language.