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Valparaiso, Chile.  Philologist and Basque culture scholar, Vanesa Arozamena has recently been in Valpariso, where she is carrying out a study on the local Basque community.  Arozamena got her undergrad degree in English Literature at the University of Deusto, in the Basque Country, and afterwards got her Ph.D. at the University of Minnesota with her thesis topic being Basque literature, oral and written, entitled “The Interaction between Orality and Literacy in the Basque Country.” Her work deals with the phenomenon of how written and oral arts interact in modern Basque society, which Arozamena continues to research, this time in Valparaiso.

Her contact with the Chilean city goes back to old university friends and in addition, Vanesa travels to Buenos Aires once a year, with her husband on a business trip.  Thanks to the book Arrojos, dichas y nostalgias: Vascos en el Valparaiso del siglo XX,  by Rubila Araya Ariztia, Arozamena found out about the Euskal Etxea in Valparaiso, and on her last trip, she was able to meet with club president, Archibaldo Uriarte, and other members.

Arozamena has concentrated her current research on the Basque community in Chile especially that in Valparaiso, as it represents, for her, “a rich cultural zone and a surprising amount of Basque migration from Euskadi in various eras.”  During her stay, she met with Rubila Araya, winner of the Andres de Irujo Award in 2005 for the aforementioned book, and exchanged view points on her research.  The approach proposed by the Basque researcher relates to new generations of Basques born in Chile: “I want to see how they maintain memory, traditions, culture and the Basque language, as well as see what role the Basque club plays in this.”

That is why she not only interviewed club president, Archibaldo Uriarte, who also made available all the institutional background needed for her study, but also visited with young club members like Francisco Javier Pineo, and Valezka Rojas, who are descendants of important immigration stories.

After spending several days in the city, Vanvesa Arozamenta returned to the states, leaving link of mutual cooperation in terms of research on Basque culture and has agreed, and ensures that “my visit to the Eusko Etxea Valparaiso was a pleasant and productive experience; I hope to visit again and meet more members in the future, to expand my project.”

Archibaldo Uriarte also said “this type of exchange and rapprochement between people and institutions in different parts of the Diaspora are always welcome and represent a contribution to the common goal of rescuing the memory and give continuity to the culture.”