crawfish boil. Crayfish dish cooked in a kettle; a familiar and much-loved traditional meal prepared in the family, outside with friends, or on one’s own street.
eguzki-lore. The thistle; a protective talisman of Basque mythology. Its resemblance to the sun confers it protective powers against the creatures of the night, particularly against witches and their spells. It is placed on the doors of houses and stables to defend those places.
fifolet. False fire or Saint Elmo’s fire. Mythical blue lights that float above the Louisiana swamps; according to tradition they are the spirits of those who died in the swamps. An alternate version from the days of piracy in the region describes fifolets as spirits who guard treasure buried in the swamps by pirates.
gabon. “Good night” in Euskara.
Gaueko. In Basque mythology, the lord of darkness, the spirit of the night.
gauekoak. “Those of the night” in Euskara. Includes dark creatures as well as evil ones, from witches to elves, wandering spirits, and demons such as the inguma, a figure common to various cultures, the most ancient of which appeared in the Sumerian civilization. See The Legacy of the Bones, book two of the Baztán Trilogy.
gris-gris. A protective amulet in voodoo.
How’s your mamandem? Literally, “How’s your mama and them?” A common greeting in Louisiana, most frequently between friends in New Orleans, first asking about one’s mother and then about all others.
ipar. “North” in Euskara.
itxusuria. “The corridor of souls” in Euskara. The exterior space between the wall of a house and the line left in the ground by water dripping from the eaves. Traditionally the place where unbaptized infants were buried, for they weren’t accepted into Catholic graveyards. See The Legacy of the Bones, book two of the Baztán Trilogy.
jambalaya. Traditional Louisiana dish of stewed greens, shrimp, and ham; other variations are possible.
krewe. “Crew,” but in this case, all those aboard a Mardi Gras float in a Louisiana carnival parade, always captained by a madcap whose orders are strictly obeyed.
laissez les bons temps rouler. Traditional New Orleans phrase from Cajun French that has become the motto of the city: “Let the good times roll.”
loa. In the voodoo religion, a spirit intermediary between human beings and the supernatural entity known as Mawu or Bondye, a god inaccessible to humans. The loas are the minor gods in contact both with human beings and with the supreme god.
lutin. A mischievous spirit, usually a child who died before receiving baptism. A deep-rooted belief among the Cajun people of the swamps. Only those younger than two years can see them, though anyone can be subject to their pranks. They’re believed to carry out mischief and are particularly known for their delight in braiding the hair of sleeping individuals as well as the manes of horses and dogs’ fur.
mairu. “Unchristian” or “unbaptized” in Euskara. Ghosts of infants that are buried in the itxusuria; they are usually devoted to protecting the home. The infants’ bones are prized for the practice of sorcery because of their magic soporific powers.
maitia. “Darling” or “beloved” in Euskara.
maudit. “Cursed” in French.
rougarou. Creature of Cajun myth. Lives in the swamps and resembles a wolf-man (in metropolitan French, “loup-garou”).
Saints/Santos. The Saints are a New Orleans professional football team. The Superdome is their home stadium.
shotgun. Type of residence typical to Louisiana, especially in New Orleans, that is lengthy and narrow like the path of a bullet.
traiteur. Witch doctor, male or female, practicing Cajun magic; they heal with prayers, incantations, and the laying on of hands. They are regarded as saintly, profoundly spiritual men and women.
ttuku-ttuku. “Gossip” or “blather” in Elizondo, Baztán province.
zirimiri. “Gentle, constant rain” in Euskara; it’s typical of northwestern Spain and so fine that it’s almost invisible to the eye.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Photo © Alfredo Tudela
Dolores Redondo is an internationally bestselling author who studied law and the culinary arts before writing the Baztán Trilogy (The Invisible Guardian, The Legacy of the Bones, and Offering to the Storm). The successful crime series set in the Basque Pyrenees has sold over 2.5 million copies in Spanish, has been translated into more than thirty-five languages, and was adapted into a popular film series available worldwide on Netflix.
Twice nominated for the CWA International Dagger Award and a finalist for the Grand Prix des lectrices de ELLE, Redondo was the recipient of the 2016 Premio Planeta—one of Spain’s most distinguished literary awards—for her stand-alone thriller All This I Will Give to You. It has also been optioned for feature film and television development and will be translated into eighteen languages.
Readers who want to learn more about Dolores Redondo and her work can do so by visiting www.doloresredondo.com/en.
ABOUT THE TRANSLATOR
Photo © 2017 Steve Rogers
Michael Meigs reviews theater and translates literature from French, German, Swedish, and Spanish. He won the annual American-Scandinavian Foundation Translation Prize in 2011, as well as the biennial Lewis Galantière Translation Award of the American Translators Association in 2020 for his version of Dolores Redondo’s All This I Will Give to You. Since 2008 he has published the online journal CTX Live Theatre, which is dedicated to live narrative theater throughout Central Texas. He served for more than thirty years as a diplomat with the US Department of State and was assigned abroad with his wife, Karen, and their children in Africa, Europe, South America, and the Caribbean. He has graduate degrees in comparative literature, business, economics, and national security studies. He’s a board member of the Austin Area Translators and Interpreters Association and of Gilbert & Sullivan Austin, and a member of the American Translators Association, the American Literary Translators Association, the American Theatre Critics Association, and Swedish Translators in North America.