PARADOKS POLITYKI TOŻSAMOŚCIOWEJ W HISZPANII AMBIWALENCJA KOŚCIOŁA WOBEC ODMIENNOŚCI JĘZYKOWEJ BASKÓW ZA RZĄDÓW FRANCO
THE PARADOX OF IDENTITY POLICY IN FRANCO’S SPAIN: THE CHURCH’S AMBIVALENCE IN REGARD TO THE LINGUISTIC DISTINCTNESS OF THE BASQUES

Summary/Abstract: This article provides an analysis of the disparity between the Church’s official posi- tion and its pragmatic activities in regard to the Basque minority in Spain under General Franco’s regime. Linguistic distinctness has been a key factor enabling the Basque com- munity to maintain its hermetic character and strong social ties in spite of systematic state-building measures based on the idea of a single Spanish nation. Contrary to general belief, the Church not only worked for but also against the national idea. The author argues that on the one hand it provided moral support for Spanish centralism and notions of a single nation and thus legitimized political activities aimed at assim- ilating the minority, but on the other hand, at the grassroots level in the Land of the Basques, it contributed to preserving the Basque language (the basis for maintaining ethnic distinctness and continuity), contrary to ideals of national unification.

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