Who speaks Europe’s oldest language?

Basque is the oldest living language in Europe

The Basque language, which is called Euskara by Basque speakers, is unique in Europe and the world. No linguist has ever found a connection between its grammar and original vocabulary and any other known languages.

Because the Basques have occupied the same region for so long and have continuously spoken their ancestral tongue, it’s believed that Basque is also Europe’s oldest living language. Though the Spanish dictator Franco (leader of Spain from 1939-1975) outlawed Basque, families spoke it secretly at home and kept it alive.

Today, street signs in Basque country are often in both French or Spanish and Basque. In the Basque Autonomous Region in northern Spain, students have classes in both Basque and Spanish.

The Basques may have reached North America before Columbus

Much of Basque country borders the sea, and in the Middle Ages, Basque shipbuilders and sailors were among the best in Europe. Even one of Christopher Columbus‘ three ships was Basque-built, and Basque sailors accompanied him on his famous journey in 1492.

But some historians believe that the Basques who sailed with Columbus weren’t the first of their people to see a land far across the Atlantic.

The Basques were big players in the huge European market for salted cod that existed in the Middle Ages – despite the fact that there’s no cod in the waters along their ancestral territory. Historian Mark Kurlansky, who has written books on both the Basques and cod, says it was a big mystery to European powers where the Basques were catching all their very valuable fish.

He believes evidence supports the idea that the Basques were catching cod off the coast of what’s today Newfoundland, Canada, and doing it over a hundred years before the area was officially „discovered“ by other Europeans. It’s possible the Basques found the way themselves or learned of it from Vikings – a group with settlements in modern-day Canada at least as far back as 1021 A.D.

Kurlansky suggests the Basques‘ discovery remained a secret for two main reasons. The first is that the Basques had no interest in settling the new continent and were interested in it purely as a seasonal fishing ground. The second is that they didn’t want anyone else to know about their hidden fishing spot so they wouldn’t have any competition for it.

Basque blood

Basques have some of the highest rates of the O blood type and Rhesus negative blood in the world. Before the mid-20th century, Rhesus negative mothers carrying Rhesus positive babies had very high risks of miscarriage.

It‘s possible this made it difficult for the Basque community to mix with others where Rhesus positive blood was more common, keeping the Basque community small and making it hard for Basques to successfully have families with non-Basques.

Learn more about the Basques

If you’re interested in more of the fascinating history of the Basques, you can learn a lot from Mark Kurlansky’s book The Basque History of the World. For anyone who enjoys learning about history, it’s written in a very readable style and is also great as an audiobook.

Vocabulary

Basques- Basken

ancestors – Ahnen

occupy – besetzen

century – Jahrhundert

millennia – Jahrtausend

unlike – entgegen

significant accomplishments – bedeutende Errungenschaften

grammar – Grammatik

vocabulary – Vokabeln

though – Obwohl

outlaw – verbieten

secretly – geheim

keep alive – am Leben erhalten

border – angrenzen

Middle Ages – Mittelalter

accompany – begleiten

historian – Historiker

sail – segeln

salted cod – gesalzener Kabeljau

despite – trotz

European powers – europäische Supermächte

valuable – wertvoll

evidence – Beweise

catch off the coast – vor der Küste fischen

Vikings – Wikinger

settlement – Ansiedlung

discovery – Entdeckung

main reasons – Hauptgründe

remain – bleiben

purely – rein

fishing ground – Fischfang

competition – Wettbewerb

miscarriage – Fehlgeburt