American in Spain

Singing in Basque

March 23, 2012

Singing in Basque (thumbnail)Several weeks ago, when we were on our way to run some errands, Nora started singing something. It sounded like gibberish to me – and she does often sing and talk gibberish – but it was slightly more structured than her normal babble. Also, she repeated it verbatim a few times. I inquired as to what she was singing, and she told me that it was a song that her Tí­a Belén had taught her. At this point I realized it must be a song in Basque. I asked my wife what it meant, as she understands but really no longer speaks Basque, the language she was taught with at school as a child. Roughly it's along the lines of "I'm a little girl, and I'm walking through the forest to go see my sick grandmother". I remarked that that sounds a lot like the plot of a certain story that is Nora's favorite tale of all, and Nora confirmed, "Yes, it's about Little Red Riding Hood!"

Enjoy…it's all Euskera to me.