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It seems a lot of Basque Americans are interested in learning more about Basque mythology. While Catholicism is strongly entrenched in Basque American communities, before the Basque Country was Christianized (around the 16th century) the Basques had a long history of paganism.

The Basques had their own myths and legends involving unique deities and creatures to explain natural phenomena, passed down through an impressive oral tradition. These stories go back to prehistory and provide an interesting look into how pagan Basques saw and explained the world and their connection to nature.

Once you start looking into it, it’s a fascinating subject. So I want to make it a little easier for those of you who are interested to get started in learning about these ancient Basque tales.

1. Amaroa

This is the website to explore if you want to go deep into the subject without investing in a book. Amaroa provides a comprehensive library of Basque mythology, including a glossary of terms and key deities. They also have several legends in English, and countless more in Spanish.

Visit the site here.

 

2. Buber’s Basque Page

My favorite resource online for all things Basque, you can count on Buber to have a section on Basque mythology. They have a page dedicated to Basque mythology that includes an overview of key elements and a list of mythological figures and significant places collected by the scholar José Miguel de Barandiaran.

Visit the site here.

Also check out their numerous links to different Basque legends under Myths and Legends here. And while you’re at it, there’s a lot of information on there about Basque folklore and traditions.

Buber’s got a little bit of everything.

 

3. Wikipedia

 

 

 

I hate to default to Wikipedia, but there is so much information on there, I can’t ignore it! It’s a good place to start if you just want to get lost clicking link after link about this Basque deity and that Basque legend.

Start your journey down the rabbit hole here for a list of Basque mythological deities, spirits, and creatures, or here for an overview of Basque mythology and how it relates to Christianization.

 

4. Selected Books

While online resources can give you a good general overview of Basque mythology and its main characters, you can go much deeper into the subject by reading a few books about it.

Here are a few I found online that look pretty interesting.

Basque Mythology Books for Adults:

• Legends and Popular Tales of the Basque People by Mariana Monteiro

• Basque Legends by Wentworth Webster

Basque Mythology Books for Children:

• Tales of Basque Mythology for Children by Bakarne Atxukarro, Izaskun Zubialde, and Asun Egurza

• Basque Mythology: Stories for Kids by Bakarne Atxukarro Estomba, Izaskun Zubialde Grajirena, Aitziber Alonso, and USAC University Studies Abroad Consortium

• Galtzagorriak and Other Creatures: Stories Inspired by Basque Folklore by Caryn Larrinaga and Carina Barajas

 

5. YouTube

There aren’t many videos on YouTube about Basque mythology in English, and I even found one that was pretty inaccurate. But this one seems to give a good overview of some of the characters of Basque mythology:

Happy exploring!

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