BASQUE COUNTRY / NAVARRA
HOW TO IMPROVE YOUR ENGLISH
WITHOUT REALLY TRYING!
Has a Bilbo bar got the answer?
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| Bart Peters and Eamonn Byme are from California and Ireland respectively Bart has lived in Greater Bilbao forjust a few months, while Edinonn came here a couple of years ago Both of them teach English, and both of them are happy with theirjobs and the way of life here However, there is more to life than just English teaL-hing (and teaming'), Regular visitors to The Dubhners Irish pub in Plaza Moyua on Tuesday and Wednesday nights wili know that for these two lads* well Tuesday evening is English-speaking night, and Bart is there to help liven up* the conversation Then on Wednesday nights, Bart is question-master at the Dubhners' table quiz - a trivia competition This quiz is based on the puh qui?7cs popular in Britain and Ireland Groups of friends form teams and compete against other teams to win points and prizes It you come alone it's easy to form a new group or join an existing one The questions are in English - so make sure you have at least one English speaker on your team' There are some English and Irish players, but most competitors are local people Bart asks a variety of questions - from "How long does it take Pluto to go round the sun7" to "What position did Pope John Paul II play in the Polish amateur team1'*" If you know the answer to either of these questions, why don t you have a go*7 The quiz starts at 9 30 Eamonn Byrne -"make sure you get my name right"- teaches set dancing (square dani-mg to the | Americans), in the Dubliners on Tuesday nights from about half past nine onwards Eamonn says this style of traditional Irish dance has many similarities with Basque dances - not surprisingly as many folk dances in Europe have their origins m the court dances which were popular centuries ago He says that for some people here it is "strange Basque dancing" Another thing 1'amonn has noticed is that many of the tunes* they play here are popular in Ireland too, so it isn't difficult for people to relate to them "It's a great way to socialise, learn a little about another culture, exercise, and have a good night out And dancing involves physical contact, which might be "taboo' m another context You can touch members of the opposite sex'" Eamonn gives instructions m English, so it's also a good way to leam English 'sublimmally' - but don't worry, if you don't understand, he'll tell you in Spanish' In the future, Eamonn would like to form a group, bringing Irish and Basque dancers together, and to produce a show But before that, there are other things to organise An Irish music night is planned for March 16, and on Saturday 18 March (the day after St Patrick's) from about four o'clock there is a fiesta in the Dubliners, with live Irish and Basque music and dancing Not to be missed' (I) | |||
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ARE BISCAYANS HAPPY WITH THEIR NAMES?
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The new law allowing people to change the order of their surnames has had
little effect in its first few days in Bilbao. A week after the new law came
into force*, only six people had asked to have their mother's surname put first
instead of their father's. Parents of new bom babies can now change the order
of their children's surnames as well. If they do this, any more children they
have will have to maintain the same surname order. In the first few days of the
new law, no parents had decided to reverse the order of their new-bom baby's
surnames. If someone wants to change their surname it is still necessary to ask
permission from the government office in Madrid. A large Bilbao family asked
for their name to be changed to Cordon from Condon. A simitar case happened
with a family whose surname was Regadera. (E) |
The most popular first names for children in the Basque Autonomous Community are Ane and Jon, according to data released by Eustat, the Basque Statistics Unit The information refers to children bom from 1996 to 1998. Ane is followed by Leire, Maria, Ainhoa and Nerea in the case of girls; and AJtor, Ander and Iker are favourites after Jon for the boys. Unlike in Britain, the registry office only allows up to two first names. However, most parents nowadays only choose one. For boys Jon Ander and Francisco Javier are the most popular 'compound' names, while the custom of giving girls two first names beginning with Maria is fast disappearing. Othe popular girl's names are Andrea, Laura, Maider, Amaia, Sara, Paula and Irene. For boys, Asier, Julen, Xabier, Inigo, Eneko, Gorka Adrian and Gorka are prevalent. Around 1,000 different names for girls and 900 for boys appear in the register. Almost 600 appear only once, including Chinesi African, Arabic, Italian and Anglo-Saxon names.(E) |
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