Pernando Amezketarra

Fernando Bengoetxea Altuna (1764 - 1823), commonly known as Pernando Amezketarra or—not so often—Fernando Amezketarra,^[1] was a bertsolari and humorist in the Basque region of Spain.

He was born in the village of Amezketa (Gipuzkoa), specifically in the farm named Espizaltxe, on October 10, 1764.^[2] Since he was a child he was known for his wit. He became an indispensable character in every celebration. He worked as a shepherd, as most people in his village in those days. He married Maria Joxepa Sagastume, and they had 9 children, while they lived in Ixpille and Azentzin Txikia farms where he died.

He was honoured in many occasions.^[3] His anecdotes were collected and published by Gregorio de Mújica under the title of Pernando Amezketarra, a successful book many times reissued.

In the 1990s, ETB 1 broadcast a TV serial about this character.^[4]

References

1. Although "Pernando Amezketarra" is the standard spelling of his name (see, for example, the "Amezketarra, Pernando" entry in the Harluxet Basque Encyclopaedic Dictionary), he is mentioned as "Fernando Amezketarra" in the book Fernando Amezketarra bertsolaria (Amezketarra, Fernando [editor: Antonio Zavala], Fernando Amezketarra bertsolaria, Tolosa, Auspoa, 1966), which compiles his anecdotes; and that book is cited as one of the sources for sample phrases and examples in the Basque-English Dictionary by Gorka Aulestia (Aulestia, Gorka, Basque-English Dictionary, Nevada, University of Nevada Press, 1989 — see the quoting page in Google Books).
2. Anniversaries of Basque personalities, from Euskonews, a website of Eusko Ikaskuntza (the Basque Studies Society).
3. See, for example, the bust in his home town, featured in the Auñamendi Basque Encyclopaedia.
4. See the initial images and audio of the chapters of this series on YouTube.

External links

• Antonio Bengoechea: "Fernando Bengoechea Altuna," Auñamendi Basque Encyclopaedia.