Irene Arrarats, a new full member of Euskaltzaindia, will deliver her inaugural lecture on Saturday, June 20th, in the plenary hall of the Hernani town hall. As announced by the Academy, the linguist will address journalistic language and the ideological manipulation of language.
The event will commence at 11:30 AM. Initially, musician Joxan Goikoetxea will perform 'Haize hegoa'. Following this, the president of Euskaltzaindia, Andres Urrutia, and the mayor of Hernani, Xabier Lertxundi, will offer welcomes. After remarks from Miren Agur Meabe, the Academy's secretary, and Erramun Osa, the deputy secretary, Arrarats will read her lecture titled 'Hitzak haizean, hitzak erauntsietan' (Words in the wind, words in downpours).
In the first part of her lecture, Arrarats will examine the influence of journalistic language on the language itself and the evolution reflected within this discourse. She will highlight the importance of daily newspapers and style guides as testing grounds for standard Basque in normalization efforts, and emphasize the collaboration between Euskaltzaindia and media outlets for the societal integration of linguistic norms.
The second part will focus on the ideological manipulation and propaganda of language. Subsequently, Miriam Urkia, Euskaltzaindia's representative for Gipuzkoa, will respond to Arrarats. Finally, the new academician will take her oath of office and receive the medal, diploma, and insignia of a full member from the president of Euskaltzaindia.
Irene Arrarats Lizeaga (born in Hernani, 1967) holds a degree in Geography and History. She has worked at Euskaldunon Egunkaria (1991-2003) and later at Berria (since 2003), serving as a style corrector, translator, and head of Basque language. She is one of the co-authors of Egunkaria's style guide and is the director of Berria's style guide.
She has been involved with Euskaltzaindia since 2007, participating in various committees, including the Unified Dictionary working group, the Exonomastics committee, the Euskaltzaindia Dictionary working group, and the Manual of Unified Basque Committee. Her long-standing objective has been to act as a bridge between the Basque press and Euskaltzaindia.
