Cumpleaños – Bilingual Lyrics Spanish/English

• By: Antonio Aguilar

Lyrics & Translation

Immerse yourself in the warmth of Mexican culture with Antonio Aguilar's "Cumpleaños." This iconic song is more than just a birthday tune; it's an invitation to celebrate life's milestones with heartfelt melodies and a rich cultural heritage. Learn the Spanish greetings and express your joy through this timeless classic.

[English]

At your doorstep

We come to sing to you

On this joyful day

That God has let you reach

...

If you're sleeping, wake up

Leave that deep dream now

Because today is the day

You came into this world

The bells of the church now

Ring out loud and clear

They're asking you to get up

And thank God now

The roosters are already singing

Announcing your new day

Look out your window

And you'll see how much joy there is

The little birds are singing now

In forests and gardens

Sweet aromas are wafting

From carnations and jasmine

Their scents are spreading too

All the flowers in the field

To perfume your house today

On this day of your saint

We all come with our hearts

To wish you many, many happy returns

Come on, everyone, all of you

May your day be full of happiness

And filled with joy

With everyone in your house

And all your friends

...

[Spanish]

En la puerta de tu casa

Te venimos a cantar

En este día venturoso

Que Dios te dejó llegar

Si estas dormida despierta

Deja ese sueño profundo

Porque en este día es la fecha

Que llegaste a este mundo

Las campanas del santuario

Ya van con sonora voz

Te piden que te levantes

Y le des gracias a Dios

Ya están cantando los gallos

Anuncian tu nuevo día

Asómate a tu ventana

Y verás cuanta alegría

Ya cantan los pajarillos

En los bosques y jardines

Ya están despidiendo aromas

Los claveles y jazmines

También tendían sus aromas

Todas las flores del campo

Para perfumar tu casa

En este día de tu santo

Todos venimos con el corazón

A desearte muchas, pero muchas felicidades

Hora muchachos, todos, todos

Que pases tu día contenta

Llena de felicidades

Con todos los de tu casa

Y todas tus amistades

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
casa /ˈkasa/ A1	noun - house
día /ˈdi.a/ A1	noun - day
felicidades /feliθiˈðaðes/ A2	noun - congratulations
gracias /ˈɡɾasjas/ A1	noun - thanks
cantar /kanˈtaɾ/ A1	verb - to sing
alegría /aleˈɣɾi.a/ A2	noun - joy
flores /ˈfloɾes/ A1	noun - flowers
santo /ˈsanto/ A2	noun - saint
ventana /benˈtana/ A2	noun - window
campanas /kamˈpanas/ A2	noun - bells
aromas /aˈɾomas/ B1	noun - aromas
nuevo /ˈnweβo/ A2	adjective - new
despertar /despeɾˈtaɾ/ B1	verb - to wake up
desear /deˈseaɾ/ B1	verb - to wish
contenta /konˈtenta/ B1	adjective - happy
pajarillos /paxaˈɾiʎos/ B2	noun - little birds

Key Grammar Structures

• Que Dios te dejó llegar

  ➔ Past participle used as an adjective (dejó) with infinitive (llegar)

  ➔ 'Dejó' is the past tense of 'dejar' (to leave/permit), used here as an adjective describing 'Dios'.

• Te vemos a cantar

  ➔ Present tense of 'ver' (vemos) + infinitive (a cantar) to indicate ongoing action

  ➔ 'Vemos' is the first person plural of 'ver' (to see), and 'a cantar' is an infinitive indicating the action of singing.

• Que pases tu día contenta

  ➔ Subjunctive mood ('pases') following 'que' to express wishes or desires

  ➔ 'Pases' is the present subjunctive form of 'pasar' (to pass/to spend time), used here to express a wish for the person's day to be good.

• Ya están cantando los pajarillos

  ➔ Present continuous tense (están cantando) indicating an ongoing action

  ➔ 'Están' is the present tense of 'estar' (to be) + gerund ('cantando'), expressing an ongoing action of birds singing.

• Las campanas del santuario ya van con sonora voz

  ➔ Use of 'van' (they go) + preposition 'con' (with) + noun phrase to describe a musical quality

  ➔ 'Van' is derived from 'ir' (to go), indicating movement, and 'con sonora voz' describes the quality of the sound—loud and resonant.

• Y verás cuanta alegría

  ➔ Future tense ('verás') indicating what will be seen

  ➔ 'Verás' is the second person singular of 'ver' in the future tense, expressing something that will be visualized or experienced.