Basque ethnography at a glance

Grazing flock of sheep and lambs. Akaitze Kamiruaga. Labayru Fundazioa Photographic Archive.

The provision of in-kind aid to neighbours was commonly known as lorra in some Basque-speaking communities. It more properly concerned situations where a family in need, for whatever reason, was helped by neighbours, providing them with material support. The terms totoa and totoarena have likewise been found to designate the same concept.

If a shepherd lost his entire flock to disease, he would ask each of his fellow shepherds for a young sheep, which they would immediately present him with. In the surroundings of Oiz Mountain the provision of sheep was known as bildots-lorra, bildots being Basque for ‘yearling sheep’. The custom was also observed in other regions, although not given a particular name.

The initiated reciprocated positive responses to his request with a meal. In appreciation for their solidarity, one of our respondents claimed to have rewarded his benefactors with a meal consisting of white bean and salt fish soup. In some areas of Navarre the mentioned repast was called axuri-bazkaria, literally ‘lunch of the lambs’.

More expressions of neighbourly support have been reported. Namely, in the extraordinary case of a farmer in need of manure, his neighbours would promptly deliver him a cart-load of it for free, known as sats-lorra or simaur-lorra. In return they were invited over to eat and drink. Similar situations included the provision of fern —ira-lorra— or straw to be used as bedding of farm animals —azpigarri-lorra—.

The same principle applied in the event of a family losing their home in a fire, every neighbour contributing a large tree trunk to rebuild it. The said aid in the form of timber was referred to as etxe errearen lorra or zur-lorra. And aid in carrying the dead was called gorpu-lorra.

The last testimonies to the above-mentioned customary practices date back to the 1950s.

Segundo Oar-Arteta – Etniker Bizkaia – Etniker Euskalerria Groups

Translated by Jaione Bilbao – Ethnography Department – Labayru Fundazioa