Sanctuary of Arantzazu

The Sanctuary of Our Lady of Arantzazu [aˈɾants̻as̻u] is a Franciscan church located in Oñati, Basque Country, Spain. The church is a much-loved place among Gipuzkoans, as the Virgin of Arantzazu is the shrine’s namesake and patron saint of the province, alongside Ignatius of Loyola.

It is built on the site where the Virgin of Arantzazu reportedly appeared to the shepherd Rodrigo de Balanzategui in 1468. Legend has it the figure of the Virgin was in a thorn-bush, and the boy exclaimed "Arantzan zu?!" (Thou, among the thorns?!), giving rise to the name of the place. A linguistic explanation is the name stems from arantza + zu meaning “place abounding in hawthorn”. Pope Leo XIII granted a Canonical coronation to the image on 6 June 1886.

Arantzazu is a female name in Spain in the forms Arantza and Arantzazu (especially in Biscay and Gipuzkoa), along with Arancha (Spanish spelling) or Arantxa (Basque spelling), in line with Spanish phonetics.

The place benefits from the highland silence and peaceful atmosphere of the Aizkorri mountain range along with good road infrastructure, so it is frequently visited by pilgrims and tourists. It is also a starting point for well-signalled mountains trails and circuits for hikers that provide access to the meadows of Urbia and on to the Aizkorri, the massif Aloña and the lands south and east of the shrine.

A replica with the same title was brought to the Philippines in 1705 during the Spanish colonial era, and is unique for showing the Virgin standing. On 31 May 2017, Pope Francis granted a Canonical coronation to the Philippine image, venerated at the National Shrine and Parish of Our Lady of Aránzazu in San Mateo, Rizal.