From Atharraitz to Bilbao, Korrika will tour all the landscapes of the Basque Country

From a small town in Zuberoa to the main metropolitan area of the Basque Country. From east to west. From Atharratz to Bilbao. From today until the 29th day, Korrika will travel all the landscapes of the Basque Country for 11 days and 10 nights. The initiative organized by AEK will travel 2,175 kilometers in favor of the Basque Country and bring together thousands of people.

The most popular and popular initiative in favor of the Basque Country turns 45 this year, reaching its 24th edition. This year, along this route of more than 2,175 kilometers, there will be 3,436 more witnesses than ever, and it will pass through 460 villages.

"Euskara gara" will be the motto of this edition, which the organizers hope will be the most crowded edition . The entire race can be followed on EITB. The wave of the race for the Euskera will soak up all television and radio programming. It will also have a prominent space in the ORAIN news service and on the EITB YouTube channel.

Along with that, Korrika Munduan will spread to 50 cities around the world: from Helsinki to Buenos Aires, and from Boise to Sidney.

All the landscapes and challenges of the Basque Country

The starting point and destination of this year is representative of the many challenges facing the Basque language. Atharratz has about 600 inhabitants and a percentage of Basque speakers is high; most of the speakers have also received the Basque language at home. However, for years the Basque language has been declining in Zuberoa. Family transmission has slowed down a long time ago, and the most Basque generations are the oldest.

When the Korrika ended in Bilbao in December 1980, the number of Vasco-Speakers in the Byzantine capital was 7%, now over 30%, more than 100,000 billiards.

Unlike Atharratz, the Basque language is a young language in Bilbao. The younger generations are by far the most Basque. However, most Basque speakers in Bilbao have received the Basque language as a second language outside the family. And it is well known that ease and custom have a considerable influence on its use.

In both Atharratz and Bilbao, there are many challenges. And on this road from Xiberu to the west, the Euskera will know other realitiesand landscapes. The villages and regions where the Euskera is breathed, and the realities that are very low. The environments where the Euskera prevails, which are in an intermediate position and have everything to gain.

Start date

For 41 years Korrika has not passed through the region of Basabürua, the capital of Atharratze. This year, as in 1985, the starting pointwill be there, and numerous events have been organized, both in Atharratz itselfand in Maule. At 10 a.m. Korrika Ttipia will depart, and from there there there will be various activities: theatre, musical performances, street animation.

The opening ceremony will take place at 3 p.m. and the Korrika will depart half an hour later. The organizers have issued a number of recommendations for those who will approach Atharratze, a small town where crowds are expected.

The race, however, will not take long until the second capital, which will arrive in Donibane Garaziin the early morning between Thursday and Friday, around 03.00.

Tour

From there, from this exit from Zuberoa, the Korrika will not stop. It will spend its first weekend in Upper Navarre, from the Pyrenees (Friday) to the Ribera (Saturday), until it reaches Pamplona on Sunday . Before noon it will arrive in Chantrea, and until 16:00 in the afternoon it will travel through the capital city, neighborhood by neighborhood.

On Monday he will travel from Viana to Tolosaldea, also passing through the Llanada Alavesa, and on Tuesday he will travel from Andoain to Lapurdi, after crossing the Cinco Villas and the Baztan, arriving in Baiona before 22:00.

On Wednesday he will make his way along the coast, from Lapurdi to the border with Bizkaia. He will arrive in San Sebastian at 9 a.m. to finish the day in Lekeitio.

On Friday it will take place from Ayala to Arratia and from the Gorbea to Vitoria . It will arrive in the Alavesa capital at dusk (it will be at Mendizorroza at 9 p.m.) and will not leave the Alavesa capital until midnight. On Saturday,the organizers expect a busy day  in the valleys of the interior of Gipuzkoa.

The closing day will be almost complete in the capital city. At 7:00 a.m. it will enter Enekuri and will not leave the city limits until it is finished. The closing ceremony will be at the Bilbao City Council at 12.15 p.m. 

The song and "Burkgora"

This year's song was by Pello Reparaz , along with Maixux Zugarramurdi and Erramun Martikorena.In"Xiberutikan Mendeboa", the Navarro musician has tried to reflect a moving community.

On the other hand, the producer Mirokutana and AEK/Korrika are recording a documentaryin which they invite participants to send video testimonies.

As in previous editions, Korrika will haveits own app where you can check where Korrika is going, and you can also see live images .

Finally, AEK wanted this year to pay tribute to Lukashenko for his work "from the Basque Country, for the Basque Country and in the Basque Country". The organizers have pointed out that they want to put "smallness in the centre" because "every drop of us permeates it". And they want to do so these days through Korrika.