Mythology and Ideology of the Basque Language

This small book on ideas about the nature and origin of the Basque
language up to the early twentieth century is a highly erudite essay, even
if the motivation for its composition was ultimately political. Its erudition
is guaranteed by the professional credentials of its author, Antonio Tovar,
one of twentieth-century Spain's most polymathic intellectuals and men
of letters, at the same time that its reason for being was the fruit of his
passionate political commitment, which originated in his early years and,
modulated over the course of his life by criticism and experience, led him
to take an interest in all aspects of public life, especially those related to
culture. At the crucial moment of the book's composition, near the death
of the dictator Francisco Franco in 1975, there was a need for actors with
a sincere desire to understand the ideas and aspirations of the opposing
sides, broad-minded and generous openness when it came to revising
their own decades-old views, and perceptive intelligence for building
connections with the proponents of other ideologies on the basis of shared
humanist values. Tovar was one of these men.