Idaho Matters

A recent archaeological find sheds new light on the Basque language

The isolated Basque language has puzzled scholars for centuries. For many years, it was believed to only be spoken, and showed up in writing about 500 years ago. Julie Luchetta reports on a new discovery, announced in November, that has rocked the Basque community in Idaho and across the world.

Broadcast on:: 29 Dec 2022

Set on a white background, the bronze hand is laid out with fingers facing down. It has a blue-greenish tint from oxidation. The words etched into it in dots are traced over the picture. A red and black scale next to it shows the hand is life-sized. — The writing on the Mano de Irulegi was not immediately apparent when it came out of the ground and only revealed itself to researchers after they (Sociedad de Ciencias Aranzadi / www.aranzadi.eus)

The Basque language is a non-Indo European language in Western Europe, spoken by people living in the mountains between France and Spain.

The isolated language has puzzled scholars for centuries. For many years, it was believed to only be spoken and showed up in writing about 500 years ago. Julie Luchetta reports on a new discovery, announced in November, that has rocked the Basque community here and across the world.