Great Bertsolari Championship

Basque contest of improvised poetry

The Great Bertsolari Championship (Bertsolari Txapelketa Nagusia) is a championship among bertsolaris from all over the Basque Country. It is contested every four years and the current 2022 champion is Maialen Lujanbio.[1]

## History

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It was first organized by Euzko Gaztedi in 1935 and 1936. Then there was a hiatus of the Spanish Civil War and its subsequent repression. Euskaltzaindia took some years of organizational responsibility in 1960, 1962, 1965, and 1967. The next, with a thirteen-year break, were held in 1980 and 1982, and Xabier Amuriza won both. Although he was a Biscayan, he sung in Standard Basque, breaking the mold, and since then established the bases for modern bertsolaritza. Since 1986, the Basque Association of Friends of the Basque Country has organized the championship every four years.[2]

## Winners

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Year  | Winner

|

1935 | Inazio Eizmendi Manterola "Basarri"
1936 | Jose Manuel Lujanbio Retegi "Txirrita"
1960 | Inazio Eizmendi Manterola "Basarri"
1962 | Manuel Olaizola Urbieta "Uztapide"
1965
1967
1980 | Xabier Amuriza Sarrionandia
1982
1986 | Sebastian Lizaso Iraola
1989 | Jon Lopategi Lauzirika
1993 | Andoni Egaña Makazaga
1997
2001
2005
2009 | Maialen Lujanbio Zugasti
2013 | Amets Arzallus Antia
2017 | Maialen Lujanbio Zugasti

## References

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1. ^ "Lujanbio: txapela bete indar, mingaina dantzari". Naiz (in Basque). Retrieved 2022-12-19.
2. ^ Vasca, EiTB Radio Televisión Pública (12 December 2017). "Sebastián Lizaso será el encargado de enfundar la txapela al triunfador en la final". www.eitb.eus (in European Spanish). Retrieved 2017-12-20.

## External links

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* http://www.rtve.es/alacarta/videos/fiesta/fiesta-bertsolaris-poetas-populares-vascos/3706444/
* https://www.bertsozale.eus/eu/bertsolari-txapelketa-nagusia

This article incorporates text available under the CC BY-SA 3.0 license.