15 May 2025
Bilbao Campus San Sebastian Campus
The University of Deusto will actively participate in Euskaraldia, a social initiative that will take place from 15 to 25 May under the motto "Elkar mugituz egingo dugu" (Let us make it happen by motivating one another). Over the course of eleven days, the university community is invited to reflect on and change their language habits to promote the use of Basque across all areas of daily life.
Throughout these days, both staff and students will be able to join the initiative by wearing the "ahobizi" badge (I will speak in Basque with those who understand it) or the "belarriprest" badge (You can talk to me in Basque) as a sign of their language commitment. In this edition, Deusto will further strengthen its commitment to the language with an extensive programme of activities and exhibitions that will take place on the Bilbao and San Sebastian campuses, in collaboration with Euskararen Etxea.
Exhibitions
In this regard, the cloister of the Bilbao campus will host the exhibition "Euskararen Etxea Plazara" from 14 May to 27 June. The exhibition is organised by Euskararen Etxea and the Department of Basque, Culture, and Sport of the Biscay Provincial Council, and the collaboration of Deusto's Basque and Plurilingualism area. This travelling exhibition, designed as an open and versatile house, addresses the history of the Basque language, its current situation, and future challenges — such as digitalisation and artificial intelligence — as well as the richness of Basque cultural production.
Alongside it, the exhibition “Euskararen bidea Deustuko Unibertsitatean 1965-2025: 11 mugarri” (The Path of Basque language at the University of Deusto 1965-2025: 11 Milestones), which reviews six decades of the University's commitment to the Basque language, will also be on display. Other notable milestones include the creation of the Basque Culture Seminar in 1967, the launch of the Institute of Basque Studies in 1974, the establishment of the Vice-Rector’s Office for Basque Language in 1986, and the beginning of university studies in Basque in 1993.
The official opening of both exhibitions will take place on Thursday, May 15, at 12:30, in the cloister of the Auditorium at the Bilbao campus, with the participation of Deusto’s rector, Juan José Etxeberria; the regional deputy Leixuri Arrizabalaga; the director of Euskararen Etxea, Iurdana Acasuso; the vice-rector, Xabier Riezu; and the director of the area, Sara Muniozguren.
A favourable climate for the Basque language
On this occasion, Euskaraldia will be an excellent source of inspiration for embarking on the path set out this year by the University of Deusto's new Master Plan for Language Policy concerning the Basque language. In fact, the key to this movement is to drive change in people's language behaviours and practices by creating a favourable climate that encourages speakers to extend communication in Basque across classrooms, offices, laboratories, cloisters, and cafeterias.
Previous editions have shown us that Euskaraldia has an impact on language habits, leading many interactions to shift to Basque or become bilingual. Furthermore, during these eleven days of Euskaraldia, an extensive programme of activities related to the Basque language will take place on both the Bilbao and San Sebastian campuses.
In addition to visiting the two main exhibitions at the Cloister of the Auditorium on the Bilbao campus and at the Larramendi building in San Sebastian, there will be daily guided tours in Bilbao (from 10:45 to 11:15), an exhibition on books published in Basque at the libraries of both campuses, and an online game titled "The Hidden Word”.
On Friday the 16th, from 10:00 to 12:00, a dynamic activity will be held, led by the Euskararen Etxea team, in the cloister of the Auditorium on the Bilbao campus, followed by a coffee talk between Ahobizis and Belarriprests at 10:45. Likewise, on Wednesday the 22nd, also on the Bilbao campus, a networking lunch for participants will be held, featuring a language-based game inspired by the Pasapalabra quiz format, starting at 13:30.
With this new edition of Euskaraldia, Deusto renews its commitment to the everyday use of Basque, promoting a climate of trust, inclusiveness, and linguistic coexistence across all areas of the university.
Full programme for both campuses: Agenda Bilbao / Agenda San Sebastian
