The Basque Government has opened the file for the special protection of the Basque language as intangible heritage

The Department of Culture and Language Policy of the Basque Government has initiated a file to protect the Basque language as an asset of intangible cultural heritage, and has opened a 20-day public information period for those wishing to submit allegations. The file was launched via a resolution dated August 24, 2026, signed by the Vice Minister of Culture, Andoni Iturbe Amorebieta, and was published by the Official Gazette of Bizkaia on September 24, 2026, in issue number 183, with the official reference BOB-2026a183-(III-147).

The resolution is based on the Ley 6/2019, de 5 de mayo, de Patrimonio Cultural Vasco regulation, and the process has been initiated according to the procedure contained therein. According to the text, the Basque language is not merely a communication tool, but the essential means used by the Basque-speaking community to create, interpret, and keep its heritage alive. Therefore, the resolution justifies the need to protect this heritage element because the language has been cataloged as “vulnerable” by UNESCO.

Legal basis and procedure of the file

• Ley 6/2019, de 9 de mayo, de Patrimonio Cultural Vasco is the regulation governing the procedure.
• Article 148.1.16 of the Constitution and Article 10.19 of the Statute of Autonomy grant the Basque Autonomous Community exclusive competence over cultural heritage.
• Articles 82 and 83 of the Ley 39/2015, de 1 de octubre regulation are applied in the public information process.
• UNESCO’s 2003 Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage and the 2005 Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions are mentioned in the justification.

What is recognized and in which category

• Category: oral traditions and expressions, including the language itself as an asset of intangible heritage.
• Geographical area: the entire Basque Autonomous Community.
• The territorial area is currently divided into three administrative demarcations: the Basque Autonomous Community, the Chartered Community of Navarre, and the Basque Urban Area-Communauté d’Agglomération Pays Basque.
• The element also maintains strong links with communities established in the Diaspora.

Public information and processing

• The period for submitting allegations and documentation is 20 days, starting from the day following the publication of the resolution in the Official Gazette of the Basque Autonomous Community.
• The file is available for viewing at the Basque Autonomous Community Cultural Heritage Center, Donostia-San Sebastián street 1, Vitoria-Gasteiz.
• The resolution has been notified to the provincial councils of Araba, Bizkaia, and Gipuzkoa, and to EUDEL.
• Publication will be made in the Official Gazette of the Basque Autonomous Community and in the official gazettes of the three historical territories to ensure general knowledge.

Risks and protection measures

• The main risk is not the weakening of intergenerational transmission, but rather the imbalance between language knowledge and actual use.
• Globalization, digitalization, and cultural homogenization reduce the community spaces for recreating heritage.
• As a measure, the Cultural Heritage Center of the Basque Autonomous Community proposes declaring the element as an Asset of Special Protection of Intangible Cultural Heritage.
• The text highlights the historical contribution of women to transmission and the involvement of people who are not originally Basque speakers.

The initiation of the file activates special legal protection immediately and provisionally, in accordance with the regime provided for assets of special cultural protection by the regulations of Law 6/2019. This recognition has an impact on Basque society as a whole, as it positions the language as a heritage element and opens a public debate regarding its transmission, use, and future protection measures.

Fuente: Official Gazette of Bizkaia, number 183, September 24, 2026, section III, pp. 1-6 (official reference: BOB-2026a183-(III-147)).