Euskera For Visitors

Summer is here and soon thousands of visitors will be enjoying the tourist attractions that Nabarra offers so, here you have a handy crash curse into the Basque Language:

Useful information about the Basque Language (Euskara)

We mention here some useful words for visitors when they visit Gipuzkoa. Obviously, the idea is not to teach "Euskara in 10 lessons".

The Baskon language is used for everyday activities

Euskara is not difficult to pronounce, and we point out here some of the most important differences in relation to Castilian.

* g: ge and gi like gue and gui in Castilian, respectively. For example, in Gipuzkoa.
* tx: like ch in Castilian; for example, "coche" (car).
* ts: similar to tx, but softer.
* tz: similar to zz in Italian, in pizza.
* x: similar to sh in English, in show.
* z: s sibilant.

It is useful to remember that because Euskara is an inflected language, the words we list here may have different suffixes depending on the case in which are used, for example:

* etxe ............home / house
* etxearen ........belongs to the home / belongs to the house
* etxea ...........the home / the house
* etxeko ..........of the house
* etxean ..........at home / in the house
* etxetik .........from the house
* etxera ..........go home
* etxerantz .......towards the house

Courtesy Vocabulary

# Adiós, saludo, hola,...Agur............. Good-bye, greetings, (hello.. )
# Hola...............Kaixo................... Hi
# Qué tal?............Zer moduz?.............. How are you?
# Buenos días.........Egun on................. Good morning
# Buenas tardes........Arratsalde on........... Good afternoon
# Buenas noches.......Gabon................... Good evening
# Hasta mañana........Bihar arte............... See you tomorrow
# Hasta luego.........Gero arte................ See you later
# Por favor...........Mesedez.................. Please
# Perdón!............Barkatu!................. Sorry!
# Gracias..........Mila esker, eskerrik asko.. Thank you
# De nada..........Ez horregatik......... You are welcome, my pleasure
# Sí.................Bai........................ Yes
# No................Ez......................... No

To Understand Signs (in alphabetic order)

# Afaria................Cena ..................... Dinner
# Albergea..............Albergue .................. Hostal
# Alokatzen da..........Se alquila .................. To let, to hire, to rent
# Aparkalekua...........Aparcamiento................ Car park
# Autobus geltokia....Estación de autobuses ...... Bus station
# Badabil...............Funciona ................... In running order
# Bazkaria..............Comida .................... Lunch
# Botika................Farmacia ................... Chemist
# Bulegoa...............Oficina .................... Office
# Eliza.................Iglesia ..................... Church
# Emakumeak, Andreak....Señoras .................... Ladies
# Enparantza............Plaza ...................... Square
# Etorbidea.............Avenida .................... Avenue
# Ez dabil..............No funciona ................. 0ut of order
# Ez erre...............No fumar ................... No smoking
# Gizonak...............Hombres ................... Gentlemen
# Gosaria...............Desayuno .................. Breakfast
# Har eta Jan.........Restaurante autoservicio .... Self service restaurant
# Hondartza.............Playa ......................Beach
# Hotela................Hotel ..................... Hotel
# Irekita...............Abierto .................... Open
# Irteera...............Salida ..................... Exit
# Itxita................Cerrado ................... Closed
# Jatetxea..............Restaurante ................. Restaurant
# Kaia..................Puerto ..................... Port
# Kalea.................Calle ....................... Street
# Kontuz!...............Cuidado! ................... Caution!, look out!
# Komuna................WC ........................ Toilets
# Liburudenda...........Librería ..................... Book shop
# Liburutegia...........Biblioteca .................... Library
# Ospitalea.............Hospital ...................... Hospital
# Pasealekua............Paseo ........................ Promenade
# Posta bulegoa.........Correos ...................... Post Office
# Sarrera...............Entrada ...................... Way in
# Salgai (dago).........Se vende ..................... For sale
# Tren geltokia.........Estación de tren ............... Railway station
# Turismo bulegoa.......Oficina de turismo ............. Turist Office
# Udaletxea.............Ayuntamiento .................. Town Hall
# Udaltzaingoa..........Policía Municipal .............. Municipal Police
# Zabalik...............Abierto ....................... Open
# Zinema................Cine ......................... Cinema

In Bars (how to order)

# Ardoa.............. Vino....................... Wine
# Ardo beitza........ Vino tinto ................ Redwine
# Ardo beitza bat.... Un vino tinto............. A red wine
# Beltza bat.......... Un tinto................... A wine
# Bi ardo gorri...... Dos claros ................ Two rosés
# Hiru ardo txuri ... Tres blancos.............. Three whaes
# Lau garagardo .... Cuatro cervezas .......... Four beers
# Bost-kafesne...... Cinco cafés con leche .... Five white coffees
# Esnea.............. Leche....................... Milk
# Kafe utza ......... Café solo .................. Black coffee
# Kafe ebakia....... Café cortado............... Coffee with a little milk
# Patxarana......... Pacharán............. Pacharán(afnuityanis)
# Sagardoa.......... Sidra........................ Cider
# Tea................ Té............................ Tea
# Txakolina ........ Txakoli ......... Txakoli (sharp-tasting Basque white wine)
# Ura................ Agua........................ Water
# Ur minerala....... Agua mineral ............. Mineral water
# Zuritoa ........... Vasito de cerveza.......... Small glass of beer

Baskon Vocabulary In Place-Names

Many of the place-names mentioned here have to do with their physical description. Therefore, it could be useful to know some of the words most frequently used.

# .aga ................. lugar de ................. place of
# Aitz or haitz ........ Peña..................... Rock
# Aran................. Valle..................... Valley
# Aritz ................ Roble .................... Oak tree
# Baserri ............. Caserio................... Basque farmstead
# Berri................ Nuevo..................... New
# Borda............... Cabaña................... Hut
# Ereñotz............. Laurel..................... Laurel
# Erreka............... Arroyo................... Stream
# .eta.................. lugar de ................... place for
# Etxe................. Casa........................ House/home
# -gain................ sobre, encima............. On, over, upon
# Gorri................ Rojo, pelado.............. Red
# Herri ................ Pueblo ................... Small town
# Ibai.................. Río......................... River
# Iturri................. Fuente.................... Fountain
# Korta................ Pasto...................... Pasture
# Langa................ Puerta rústica, portilla......... Rustic door
# Lizar................. Fresno ................... Ashtree
# Mendi................ Monte..................... Mountain
# Pago................. Haya...................... Beechtree
# .pe(an).............. debajo..................... under
# Zabal ................ Amplio, abierto.......... Wide, broad,open
# Zarra,Zaharra....... Viejo..................... Old
# Zubi.................. Puente.................... Bridge

For example, Aizkorri: a bare mountain; Etxeberria: a new house.

.... ... .