B1 · Intermediate • Canción guajira / Cuban folk • Cuba · 1929 · Lyrics: José Martí (1891)
Guantanamera
Cuban patriotic folk song · Lyrics from Versos Sencillos by José Martí (public domain, 1891)
One of the most recognised songs in the world. The melody originated in Cuba around 1929, but its lyrics are drawn from Versos Sencillos — a celebrated poetry collection by Cuban independence hero José Martí, written in 1891 and firmly in the public domain. Pete Seeger’s 1963 Carnegie Hall recording brought it to global audiences and is considered the definitive version. Uniquely rich for language learners: the vocabulary is elevated and poetic, the grammatical structures are varied, and every line carries real literary weight.
LYRICS · LETRA
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Guantanamera, Guajira Guantanamera, Guantanamera, Guajira Guantanamera.
Guantanamera, Guajira Guantanamera, Guantanamera, Guajira Guantanamera.
Yo soy un hombre sincero,De donde crece la palma,Yo soy un hombre sincero,De donde crece la palma.Y antes de morir yo quieroEchar mis versos del alma.
I am a sincere man,From where the palm tree grows,I am a sincere man,From where the palm tree grows.And before I die I wantTo cast my verses from the soul.
Guantanamera, Guajira Guantanamera, Guantanamera, Guajira Guantanamera.
Guantanamera, Guajira Guantanamera, Guantanamera, Guajira Guantanamera.
Mi verso es de un verde claro y de un carmin encendido,Mi verso es de un verde claro y de un carmin encendido.Mi verso es un ciervo heridoQue busca en el monte amparo.
My verse is light greenand bright crimson,My verse is light greenand bright crimson.My verse is a wounded deerSeeking refuge in the mountains.
Guantanamera, Guajira Guantanamera, Guantanamera, Guajira Guantanamera.
Guantanamera, Guajira Guantanamera, Guantanamera, Guajira Guantanamera.
Cultivo la rosa blanca,En junio como en enero,Cultivo la rosa blanca,En junio como en enero.Para el amigo sinceroQue me da su mano franca.
I cultivate the white rose,In June as in January,I cultivate the white rose,In June as in January.For the sincere friendWho gives me his open hand.
Guantanamera, Guajira Guantanamera, Guantanamera, Guajira Guantanamera.
Guantanamera, Guajira Guantanamera, Guantanamera, Guajira Guantanamera.
Y para el cruel que me arrancaEl corazon con que vivo,Y para el cruel que me arrancaEl corazon con que vivo.Cardo ni ortiga cultivo,Cultivo la rosa blanca.
And for the cruel one who tears outThe heart with which I live,And for the cruel one who tears outThe heart with which I live.I cultivate neither thistle nor nettle,I cultivate the white rose.
Guantanamera, Guajira Guantanamera, Guantanamera, Guajira Guantanamera.
Guantanamera, Guajira Guantanamera, Guantanamera, Guajira Guantanamera.
Con los pobres de la tierraQuiero yo mi suerte echar,Con los pobres de la tierraQuiero yo mi suerte echar.El arroyo de la sierraMe complace mas que el mar.
With the poor of the earthI want to cast my lot,With the poor of the earthI want to cast my lot.The mountain streamPleases me more than the sea.
Guantanamera, Guajira Guantanamera, Guantanamera, Guajira Guantanamera.
Guantanamera, Guajira Guantanamera, Guantanamera, Guajira Guantanamera.
KEY VOCABULARY · VOCABULARIO CLAVE
sincero/a
sincere, honest (adjective)
“Yo soy un hombre sincero”
echar versos del alma
to cast verses from the soul
poetic: to share one’s deepest feelings
verso
verse, line of poetry (noun)
“Mi verso es de un verde claro”
ciervo herido
wounded deer (noun phrase)
metaphor for vulnerable, heartfelt poetry
rosa blanca
white rose (noun phrase)
“Cultivo la rosa blanca en junio como en enero”
mano franca
open / generous hand (noun phrase)
franca = frank, open — a hand offered freely
suerte echar
to cast one’s lot (verb phrase)
“Con los pobres… quiero mi suerte echar”
arroyo
mountain stream, brook (noun)
el arroyo de la sierra — more honest than the sea
GRAMMAR FOCUS · NOTA GRAMATICAL
Poetic word order & the present tense of ser
“Yo soy un hombre sincero” gives you ser (to be) in the first person: soy = I am. Spanish often drops yo (I) in everyday speech since the verb ending already signals the subject — including it here adds emphasis and dignity. The song also demonstrates a powerful poetic device: repetition. Each verse states its image twice before resolving into a final couplet. This structure makes the vocabulary stick effortlessly. Notice also “antes de morir” (before dying) — the preposition antes de + infinitive is a pattern used constantly in everyday Spanish.
ABOUT THE POEM · SOBRE EL POEMA
The lyrics come from Versos Sencillos (Simple Verses), a poetry collection published by Cuban independence hero José Martí in 1891, firmly in the public domain. Martí wrote them during a period of exile in the Catskill Mountains of New York State. Pete Seeger first heard the melody in 1962 at a children’s summer camp in the Catskills — the same mountains where Martí had written the poems decades earlier. Seeger fitted Martí’s verses to the melody and performed it live at Carnegie Hall in 1963, describing it as the definitive union of poem and song. The song has since been recorded by Celia Cruz, Joan Baez, Julio Iglesias, the Sandpipers, the Buena Vista Social Club, and hundreds of others.
STUDY TIPS · CONSEJOS
- The chorus (“Guantanamera, guajira Guantanamera”) repeats after every verse — sing it out loud each time. Because it has no translatable meaning beyond a place name, your brain is free to focus entirely on pronunciation and rhythm.
- The white rose verse (“Cultivo la rosa blanca en junio como en enero”) is one of the most beautiful sentences in Spanish poetry. Learn it by heart — it is immediately recognisable to any native speaker and makes an impressive conversation piece.
- Verse 2 introduces literary metaphor: “Mi verso es un ciervo herido” (my verse is a wounded deer). Practice swapping the noun — mi corazon es un ciervo herido, mi alma es un ciervo herido — to build confidence using the verb ser with metaphors.
- “Con los pobres de la tierra quiero yo mi suerte echar” is inverted poetic word order. The standard prose version would be: “Quiero echar mi suerte con los pobres de la tierra.” Recognising and reversing poetic word order is a key skill for moving from B1 to B2.
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