'Arikala', an innovative research project to promote the use of colloquial Basque among students
'Arikala', an innovative research project to promote the use of colloquial Basque among students
'Arikala', an innovative research project to promote the use of colloquial Basque among students
This is a new and original project that will provide students with tools and strategies to develop informal language in Basque. After implementation, the impact of the various interventions will be evaluated.
On March 9, the Federation of Basque Schools, the Faculty of Humanities and Education Sciences of Mondragon University, and Euskaltzaindia, the Royal Academy of the Basque Language, presented an innovative initiative: a research project that aims to promote the use of colloquial Basque among students (hereafter, Arikala). The presentation took place at the ‘Luis Villasante’ Basque Research Center, with Federation of Basque Schools General Director José Luis Sukia, Mondragon University Faculty of Humanities and Education Sciences Dean Nagore Ipiña, and Euskaltzaindia Research Section Head and Academy Representative in Gipuzkoa Miriam Urkia in attendance.
Although informal language comprises around 80% of the oral communication of young people, it is an area that has been studied little to date. Therefore, the Arikala project will design didactic materials to carry out systematized and sustainable interventions both in formal settings and in the leisure settings of the different schools. Next, the implementation of those materials and their impact on students’ linguistic habits will be analyzed. Thus, based on the results of this study, it will be possible in the future to transfer these materials to new linguistic contexts and expand the areas of influence of the interventions.
In her speech, the Euskaltzaindia Representative in Gipuzkoa, Miriam Urkia, underlined the importance of this collaboration, recalling that in this project the Academy has had “good and faithful travel companions.” In Urkia’s words, “Euskaltzaindia is dedicated to the standardization of Basque, and euskara batua or unified Basque has been and continues to be one of its main objectives, but it is not our only objective. The Academy not only researches, protects and promotes the Basque language, but also works in both formal areas and in the informal registers of the language. One example of this is the Mintzola project that the Academy took on in January of 2022 and that encompasses Arikala”.
José Luis Sukia, General Director of the Federation of Basque Schools, also expressed his satisfaction with the results of the collaboration: “In the Federation of Basque Schools, we aim to educate Basque speakers comprehensively, with the aim of teaching people to be able to use the Basque language effectively and with sufficient skill in any area of life. For this purpose, it is imperative to address the range of linguistic registers that each person has: in addition to the formal linguistic register that is generally used in teaching areas, students must be taught the use of everyday language, a living and essential register for informal situations, variants that complement each other. The Arikala project will make a very interesting contribution in this sense. Research is essential to provide us with knowledge so that we will be able to take effective steps in our task.”
Finally, Mondragon University Faculty of Humanities and Education Sciences Dean Nagore Ipiña emphasized that this research action will have a positive impact on society and on the standardization of Basque: “Given the importance of oral communication in today’s society, the analysis of informal oral language and participation in this research-based project are significant. Additionally, relying on research action will allow us to develop linguistic strategies, influence the linguistic habits of students, and create new pedagogical materials and contexts that respond to the challenges of the future.”
Beginning in the 2022-2023 academic year, Arikala will be implemented over the course of three academic years in a total of 10 schools in the Basque Country: in the 2022-2023 academic year, in the 4th level of Primary Education; in 2023-2024, in the 5th level; and in 2024-2025, in the 6th level of the same educational cycle. The following schools will participate in the project: Haurtzaro and Irura (Gipuzkoa); Abusu and San Nikolas (Biscay); Jaso and Lizarra (Navarre); Assa and Laudio (Alava); and Kimua and Garazi (Northern Basque Country).
Arikala, linked to the Mintzola project
Since January of 2022, Euskaltzaindia has been leading the Mintzola project, which is dedicated to research on and the dissemination and promotion of oral activity in Basque.
Most of the conversations and interactions that we call ‘everyday language’, which take place primarily in informal settings, account for the majority of our oral activity. The main objectives of the Mintzola project are to analyze this type of language and to develop tools to work on expressiveness.
Full information about the project can be found at: https://www.euskaltzaindia.eus/mintzola