Federico Baraibar y Zumárraga (28 May 1851 – 25 February 1918) was a Spanish academic and politician. He translated several

Greek classics Ancient Greek literature is literature written in the Ancient Greek language from the earliest texts until the time of the Byzantine Empire. The earliest surviving works of ancient Greek literature, dating back to the early Archaic period, are ...

into Spanish and laid the foundations for modern archaeology in the province of

Álava Álava ( in Spanish) or Araba (), officially Araba/Álava, is a province of Spain and a historical territory of the Basque Country, heir of the ancient Lordship of Álava, former medieval Catholic bishopric and now Latin titular see. Its ca ...

. As a politician, he served as the first 20th-century mayor of

Vitoria Vitoria or Vitória may refer to : People * Francisco de Vitoria (c. 1483–1546), a Spanish Renaissance theologian * Alberto Vitoria (1956–2010), Spanish footballer * Rui Vitória (born 1970), Portuguese retired footballer * Steven Vitória (b ...

and as President of the Deputation of Álava.

Biography

Federico Baraibar was born in

in 1851. He spent most of his youth in other cities of Northern Spain such as Logroño and

Burgos Burgos () is a city in Spain located in the autonomous community of Castile and León. It is the capital and most populated municipality of the province of Burgos. Burgos is situated in the north of the Iberian Peninsula, on the confluence of t ...

, but graduated from highschool in Vitoria. In 1870 he obtained a degree in law from the University of Zaragoza. He then returned to Vitoria, and in 1871 obtained a degree in philosophy and philology from the local Literary University. He served as an interim professor in that university until its closure in October 1873. Upon his return to Vitoria, he became a prominent member of the city's cultural circles, giving conferences and promoting the local cultural heritage. In 1876, he became professor of Spanish and

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

in the local highschool, succeeding Julián Apraiz Sáenz del Burgo (father of architect ). He also served as director of the highschool from 1909 until his death. He authored a grammar of Latin, and translated numerous works from

Ancient Greek Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic peri ...

into Spanish. As a philologist, he compiled several word lists documenting the dialectal vocabulary used in

. He was a candidate for membership in

Euskaltzaindia Euskaltzaindia (; often translated Royal Academy of the Basque Language) is the official academic language regulatory institution which watches over the Basque language. It conducts research, seeks to protect the language, and establishes stand ...

(the Basque language academy), but died before becoming a member. As an amateur archaeologist, he made important contributions to the field in the province of Álava. He was the first to excavate the in 1879, which he bought and donated in 1913 to the to avoid its dismantling. As a politician, he served as mayor of

from 1897 to 1903 and as President of the Deputation from 1909 to 1913, with support from the conservatives. During his time as mayor, he promoted several construction projects in the city. These included a new marketplace which opened on 31 December 1899, and a permanent building for the Lantern Museum.

References

External links

*
Works translated by Federico Baraibar
at One More Library {{DEFAULTSORT:Baraibar, Federico 1851 births 1918 deaths People from Vitoria-Gasteiz 19th-century Spanish archaeologists 20th-century Spanish archaeologists 19th-century translators 20th-century translators Spanish translators 19th-century Spanish lawyers 20th-century Spanish lawyers Hellenists Basque-language scholars Basque politicians 19th-century Spanish politicians 20th-century Spanish politicians Deputies General of Álava Mayors of Vitoria-Gasteiz University of Zaragoza alumni