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Basque Violence: a Reappraisal of Culturalist Explanations

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 April 2008

Jan Mansvelt Beck  and
Jan D. Markusse
Jan Mansvelt Beck
Affiliation:
Senior researchers at the Amsterdam Institute of Metropolitan and Development Studies, University of Amsterdam. [J.Mansveltbeck@uva.nl]
Jan D. Markusse
Affiliation:
Senior researchers at the Amsterdam Institute of Metropolitan and Development Studies, University of Amsterdam. [J.Markusse@uva.nl]
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Abstract

David Laitin has explained the occurrence of Basque and Georgian nationalist violence as the outcome of language revival in a bilingual setting and a specific locale. Based on game theory, he has suggested that violence, as a rational nationalist strategy, will increasingly be used if specific thresholds levels in language choice for education are met. A critical reappraisal of his approach is made in which the conceptual and methodological limits to the empirical testing are highlighted. Subsequently, an extensive dataset of Basque municipalities in the Autonomous Community of the Basque Country is used to statistically verify Laitin’s model by multivariate analysis. In some areas of the Basque Country Laitin’s model seems to fit while in others not. With the help of both quantitative and qualitative data, alternative explanations for Basque ethnic violence are explored.

Résumé

David Laitin a voulu voir dans la violence au pays basque le produit du renouveau d’une langue régionale dans un contexte local bilingue. S’appuyant sur la théorie des jeux, il a considéré que la violence, en tant que stratégie nationaliste rationnelle, augmentait quand les systèmes scolaires outrepassent des seuils critiques en matière linguistique. L’article propose un réexamen critique, à la fois méthodologique et empirique du modèle. Une base de donnée importante a été constituée pour les municipalités des provinces basques d’Espagne. Certains résultats d’analyse multivariée vérifient le modèle de Laitin, d’autres nullement. Des éléments d’explication alternatifs sont avancés.

Zusammenfassung

Für David Laitin erklärt sich die Gewaltbewegung der Basken durch ein Aufleben der baskischen Sprache in einem zweisprachigen und noch dazu örtlich begrenzten Umfeld. Aufbauend auf der Spieletheorie schliesst er, dass Gewalt, als rationale, nationalistische Strategie, besonders dann zunimmt, wenn der Bildungsbereich gewisse Grenzen im sprachlichen Bereich überschreitet. Der vorliegende Aufsatz setzt sich kritisch mit dieser These auseinander, sowohl methodologisch als auch empirisch. Es wurde eine ausführliche, kommunale Datenbank des spanischen Baskenlandes erstellt, um Laitin’s Modell zu überprüfen. In manchen Gebieten stimmen die Ergebnisse überein in anderen jedoch nicht. Der Aufsatz gibt alternative Erklärungen für die baskische Gewaltwelle.

Type
Research Articles
Information
European Journal of Sociology / Archives Européennes de Sociologie , Volume 49 , Issue 1 , April 2008 , pp. 91 - 118
Copyright
Copyright © A.E.S. 2008

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