An (, plural ) is a type of primary and secondary school in the
Basque Autonomous Community
The Basque Country (; eu, Euskadi ; es, País Vasco ), also called Basque Autonomous Community ( eu, Euskal Autonomia Erkidegoa, links=no, EAE; es, Comunidad Autónoma del País Vasco, links=no, CAPV), is an autonomous community of Spain. It ...
,
Navarre
Navarre (; es, Navarra ; eu, Nafarroa ), officially the Chartered Community of Navarre ( es, Comunidad Foral de Navarra, links=no ; eu, Nafarroako Foru Komunitatea, links=no ), is a foral autonomous community and province in northern Spain, ...
and (to a much lesser extent) the
French Basque Country
The French Basque Country, or Northern Basque Country ( eu, Iparralde (), french: Pays basque, es, País Vasco francés) is a region lying on the west of the French department of the Pyrénées-Atlantiques. Since 1 January 2017, it constitu ...
(see
Basque Country) in which pupils are taught either entirely or predominantly in the
Basque language. Ikastolak can be nowadays either private or public, divided into different networks.
The Basque language public network relies on state funding and management, allocated in Spain by the education institutions of the Basque Autonomous Community and Navarre in their corresponding territories, while in France the association Ikas-Bi in the public network advocates for bilingual education. Seaska is the private network of Basque language schools in the French Basque Country, closely linked to the similar network in the
Southern Basque Country
The Southern Basque Country ( eu, Hegoalde, Hego Euskal Herria; es, Hegoalde, País Vasco y Navarra, País Vasco peninsular) is a term used to refer to the Basque people, Basque territories within Spain as a unified whole.
Name
In Basque langu ...
. The private networks base their activity on the fees paid by parents, popular subscription (either directly or by means of annual massive festivals, e.g. ''
Herri Urrats
Herri Urrats (Basque for 'a people's step') is an annual festival held the second Sunday of May to reach out to the '' ikastolak'' ('Basque language schools') in the Northern Basque Country, France. In the Southern Basque Country (Spain), Basque ...
'', ''
Nafarroa Oinez
Navarre (; es, Navarra ; eu, Nafarroa ), officially the Chartered Community of Navarre ( es, Comunidad Foral de Navarra, links=no ; eu, Nafarroako Foru Komunitatea, links=no ), is a foral autonomous community and province in northern Spain, ...
'', ''
Araba Euskaraz
Araba Euskaraz is the festivity that ikastola-s (schools in which Basque language, Basque is the language of instruction) of Álava celebrate. The Ikastola-s' Association organizes it annually in mid-June, and it was first organized in 1981 in V ...
'', etc.) and the allowance provided by public educational institutions.
History
Although spoken more widely than in later times, there was very little schooling undertaken in Basque before the early 20th century revival in
Basque nationalism
Basque nationalism ( eu, eusko abertzaletasuna ; es, nacionalismo vasco; french: nationalisme basque) is a form of nationalism that asserts that Basques, an ethnic group indigenous to the western Pyrenees, are a nation and promotes the poli ...
. Spanish and French were mandatory in schooling at either side of the border. The first official ikastola was opened in 1914, and the movement to transfer the medium of education in the
Southern Basque Country
The Southern Basque Country ( eu, Hegoalde, Hego Euskal Herria; es, Hegoalde, País Vasco y Navarra, País Vasco peninsular) is a term used to refer to the Basque people, Basque territories within Spain as a unified whole.
Name
In Basque langu ...
from
Spanish
Spanish might refer to:
* Items from or related to Spain:
**Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain
**Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries
**Spanish cuisine
Other places
* Spanish, Ontario, Cana ...
to Basque became widespread in the late 20th century.
During the early 1930s, the seeds of the "Basque Schools" ( es, Escuelas Vascas) were sown in
Navarre
Navarre (; es, Navarra ; eu, Nafarroa ), officially the Chartered Community of Navarre ( es, Comunidad Foral de Navarra, links=no ; eu, Nafarroako Foru Komunitatea, links=no ), is a foral autonomous community and province in northern Spain, ...
by the Basque Nationalist Party, featuring an instruction where the teachings of the Christian doctrine were central. They were conceived as an attempt to counter increased laicization of state schools and the lack of focus ("the neutrality") on Basque matters in regular religious schooling. The first such educative institution was founded in November 1931 at Pamplona, followed by another one in
Estella-Lizarra
Estella (Spanish) or Lizarra (Basque) is a town located in the autonomous community of Navarre, in northern Spain. It lies south west of Pamplona, close to the border with La Rioja and Álava.
The town was founded in 1090 when the place, lying by ...
(1933) and Elizondo (1935).
Following the Republican defeat in the
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil War ( es, Guerra Civil Española)) or The Revolution ( es, La Revolución, link=no) among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War ( es, Cuarta Guerra Carlista, link=no) among Carlists, and The Rebellion ( es, La Rebelión, lin ...
, the public use of
Basque
Basque may refer to:
* Basques, an ethnic group of Spain and France
* Basque language, their language
Places
* Basque Country (greater region), the homeland of the Basque people with parts in both Spain and France
* Basque Country (autonomous co ...
was
made illegal, and all educational institutions were forced to teach entirely through the medium of
Castilian, to the complete neglect and persecution of Basque. There are, however, isolated examples of ikastolak which clandestinely continued to teach in Basque.
Since thousands of children were studying out of the authorized schools and hence forbidden to progress to higher education, in 1969 the Roman Catholic Church arranged with the parent associations the lawful Diocesan Federation of Ikastolas, later becoming a secular federation. With the return of democracy following the death of
Franco
Franco may refer to:
Name
* Franco (name)
* Francisco Franco (1892–1975), Spanish general and dictator of Spain from 1939 to 1975
* Franco Luambo (1938–1989), Congolese musician, the "Grand Maître"
Prefix
* Franco, a prefix used when ref ...
in 1975, large degrees of self-government were given to the
Basque Autonomous Community
The Basque Country (; eu, Euskadi ; es, País Vasco ), also called Basque Autonomous Community ( eu, Euskal Autonomia Erkidegoa, links=no, EAE; es, Comunidad Autónoma del País Vasco, links=no, CAPV), is an autonomous community of Spain. It ...
and
Navarre
Navarre (; es, Navarra ; eu, Nafarroa ), officially the Chartered Community of Navarre ( es, Comunidad Foral de Navarra, links=no ; eu, Nafarroako Foru Komunitatea, links=no ), is a foral autonomous community and province in northern Spain, ...
, and ikastolak sprang up all over the
Basque region in northern
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
.
For a time, the ikastolak operated along the public school system, the private schools publicly funded under a charter and the private schools. During his term as Basque minister for education, the
Socialist
Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes the e ...
Fernando Buesa
Fernando Buesa Blanco (29 May 1946 – 22 February 2000) was a Spanish politician in the Basque Christian Democracy and in the Socialist Party of the Basque Country–Basque Country Left (PSE-EE) branch of the social democratic Spanish Social ...
proposed the 1993 Law of the Basque Public School, prompting ikastolak to choose between full integration in the public system or operating under the rules for chartered private schools.
At the present time, tens of thousands of schoolchildren in the
Basque Autonomous Community
The Basque Country (; eu, Euskadi ; es, País Vasco ), also called Basque Autonomous Community ( eu, Euskal Autonomia Erkidegoa, links=no, EAE; es, Comunidad Autónoma del País Vasco, links=no, CAPV), is an autonomous community of Spain. It ...
and
Navarre
Navarre (; es, Navarra ; eu, Nafarroa ), officially the Chartered Community of Navarre ( es, Comunidad Foral de Navarra, links=no ; eu, Nafarroako Foru Komunitatea, links=no ), is a foral autonomous community and province in northern Spain, ...
attend ikastolak, but the status of ikastolak differs greatly depending on their location. They are firmly entrenched in the traditionally Basque-speaking areas of the Basque Autonomous Community (BAC), but less so in non-Basque speaking areas (i.e. the southern fringes). Basque language schools in the north of Navarre do not enjoy the same support from the regional government as they do in the BAC, but they are officially recognised and enjoy widespread local support (traditionally Basque speaking), unlike central and southern areas of Navarre, where they lack public recognition and funding, remaining in a legal limbo until 2007.
In the French Basque Country, the ikastolak developed later, but grew steadily, so much so that a network,
Seaska, is now widespread throughout the whole territory covering education up to the A levels.
See also
*
Basque education system Education in the Basque Autonomous Community is entirely free from the age of 3, and compulsory between 6 and 16 years. The majority of students are educated in the Basque language.
Levels of schooling
*Infant education
For children aged 3 years, ...
*
Breton language
Breton (, ; or in Morbihan) is a Southwestern Brittonic language of the Celtic language family spoken in Brittany, part of modern-day France. It is the only Celtic language still widely in use on the European mainland, albeit as a member of t ...
:
schools
*
*
Irish language
Irish ( Standard Irish: ), also known as Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Insular Celtic branch of the Celtic language family, which is a part of the Indo-European language family. Irish is indigenous to the island of Ireland and was ...
:
Gaelscoil
A Gaelscoil (; plural: ''Gaelscoileanna'') is an Irish language-medium school in Ireland: the term refers especially to Irish-medium schools outside the Irish-speaking regions or Gaeltacht. Over 50,000 students attend Gaelscoileanna at primary an ...
eanna
*
Welsh language
Welsh ( or ) is a Celtic language family, Celtic language of the Brittonic languages, Brittonic subgroup that is native to the Welsh people. Welsh is spoken natively in Wales, by some in England, and in Y Wladfa (the Welsh colony in Chubut P ...
:
Welsh-medium education
Education delivered through the medium of the Welsh language is known as Welsh-medium education ().
Welsh-medium education should be distinguished from the teaching of the Welsh language itself as an academic subject.
16% of pupils in Wales atte ...
*
Scottish Gaelic
Scottish Gaelic ( gd, Gàidhlig ), also known as Scots Gaelic and Gaelic, is a Goidelic language (in the Celtic branch of the Indo-European language family) native to the Gaels of Scotland. As a Goidelic language, Scottish Gaelic, as well as ...
:
Scottish Gaelic medium education
Gaelic-medium education (G.M.E. or GME; gd, Foghlam tro Mheadhan na Gàidhlig) is a form of education in Scotland that allows pupils to be taught primarily through the medium of Scottish Gaelic, with English being taught as the secondary langua ...
*
Catalan language
Catalan (; autonym: , ), known in the Valencian Community and Carche as ''Valencian'' (autonym: ), is a Western Romance language. It is the official language of Andorra, and an official language of three autonomous communities in eastern Spa ...
:
*
Occitan language
Occitan (; oc, occitan, link=no ), also known as ''lenga d'òc'' (; french: langue d'oc) by its native speakers, and sometimes also referred to as ''Provençal'', is a Romance languages, Romance language spoken in Southern France, Monaco, Ital ...
:
*
German language
German ( ) is a West Germanic languages, West Germanic language mainly spoken in Central Europe. It is the most widely spoken and Official language, official or co-official language in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, and the Ita ...
: Illegal in
Italian Tyrol
Italian(s) may refer to:
* Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries
** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom
** Italian language, a Romance language
*** Regional Ita ...
.
*
Greek language
Greek ( el, label=Modern Greek, Ελληνικά, Elliniká, ; grc, Ἑλληνική, Hellēnikḗ) is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages, native to Greece, Cyprus, southern Italy (Calabria and Salento), southern Al ...
: () in
Ottoman Greece
Most of the areas which today are within modern Greece's borders were at some point in the past part of the Ottoman Empire. This period of Ottoman rule in Greece, lasting from the mid-15th century until the successful Greek War of Independence t ...
*
Galician language: in the
Spanish autonomous community of
Galicia
References
External links
{{commonscat, Ikastolak, lcfirst=yes
Official site of th
Federation of Ikastolak(Basque)
Basque culture
Education in Spain
Education in France
Minority schools
Education in the Basque Country