En Algun Lugar – Bilingual Lyrics Spanish/English

• By: Duncan Dhu

Lyrics & Translation

[Spanish]

[English]

En algún lugar de un gran país

Somewhere in a great country

...

...

Olvidaron construir

They forgot how to build

...

...

Un hogar donde no queme el sol

A home where the sun doesn't burn

...

...

Y al nacer, no haya que morir

And at birth, no one has to die

Y en las sombras mueren genios sin saber

And in the shadows, geniuses die without knowing

De su magia

Of their magic

Concedida sin pedirlo

Granted without asking

Mucho tiempo antes de nacer

Long before they're born

...

...

No hay camino que llegue hasta aquí

There's no path that leads here

Y luego prentenda salir

And then they try to leave

Con el fuego de el atardecer

With the sunset’s fiery glow

Arde la hierba

The grass burns

...

...

En algún lugar de un gran país

Somewhere in a great country

Olvidaron construir

They forgot how to build

...

...

Un hogar donde no queme el sol

A home where the sun doesn't burn

Y al nacer, no haya que morir

And at birth, no one has to die

...

...

Un silbido cruza el pueblo y se ve

A whistle crosses the town and is seen

Un jinete

A rider

Que se marcha con el viento

Whose journey is with the wind

Mientras grita que no va a volver

While shouting he won't return

Y la tierra aquí es de otro color

And the earth here is of a different color

El polvo no te deja ver

The dust blinds you

Los hombres ya no saben si lo son

People no longer know if they are who they are

Pero, lo quieren creer

But they want to believe

Las madres que ya no saben llorar

Mothers who no longer know how to cry

Ven a sus hijos partir

Watch their children leave

La tristeza aquí no tiene lugar

Sadness here has no place

Cuando lo triste es vivir

When living itself is sorrow

Nananananá-nana, nananananá

Nananananá-nana, nanananá

Nana-nanana-ná

Nana-nanana-ná

Nananananá-nana, nananananá

Nananananá-nana, nanananá

Nana-nanana-ná

Nana-nanana-ná

Nananananá-nana, nananananá

Nananananá-nana, nanananá

Nana-nanana-ná

Nana-nanana-ná

Nananananá-nana, nananananá

Nananananá-nana, nanananá

Nana-nanana-ná

Nana-nanana-ná

...

...

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
lugar /luˈɣaɾ/ A1	noun - place
país /paˈis/ A1	noun - country
hogar /oˈɣaɾ/ A2	noun - home
morir /moˈɾiɾ/ A2	verb - to die
sombra /ˈsombɾa/ B1	noun - shadow
magia /ˈma.xi.a/ B1	noun - magic
camino /kaˈmi.no/ B1	noun - path
fuego /ˈfwe.ɣo/ B1	noun - fire
tierra /ˈtjera/ B1	noun - earth/land
hombre /ˈom.bɾe/ B1	noun - man
madre /ˈma.ðɾe/ B1	noun - mother
tristeza /tɾisˈteθa/ B2	noun - sadness
silbido /silˈβi.ðo/ B2	noun - whistle
jinete /xiˈnete/ B2	noun - horseman/rider
color /koˈloɾ/ B2	noun - color
partir /paɾˈtiɾ/ B2	verb - to leave/depart

Key Grammar Structures

• En algún lugar de un gran país Olvidaron construir

  ➔ Impersonal 'se' construction (passive)

  ➔ While not explicitly present, the idea that *someone* forgot to build is implied without specifying *who*. 'Olvidaron construir' acts in a passive manner, since there is not an explicit subject. One might expect 'Se olvidó construir' which is also gramatically correct. However, using the third-person plural as such is a very common construction in Spanish to express a passive, impersonal idea.

• Un hogar donde no queme el sol

  ➔ Subjunctive mood in adjective clauses.

  ➔ The subjunctive mood ('queme') is used because the existence of a home where the sun *doesn't* burn is uncertain or hypothetical. The adjective clause 'donde no queme el sol' modifies 'hogar' (home).

• Y al nacer, no haya que morir

  ➔ Impersonal expression + Subjunctive.

  ➔ 'Haya que morir' is an impersonal expression meaning 'it is necessary to die'. The subjunctive 'haya' is used because it expresses a subjective idea, a desire, or a lack of certainty that someone *must* die after being born. It follows the impersonal expression.

• Y en las sombras mueren genios sin saber De su magia

  ➔ Preposition 'sin' + infinitive.

  ➔ The structure 'sin + infinitive' ('sin saber') expresses 'without knowing'. It's a concise way to indicate a lack of knowledge or awareness.

• No hay camino que llegue hasta aquí

  ➔ Subjunctive in relative clauses with indefinite or uncertain antecedent.

  ➔ The subjunctive 'llegue' is used because the existence of a road that reaches here is uncertain. Since there isn't a road that we know exists with certainty, we use the subjunctive.

• Y luego prentenda salir

  ➔ Subjunctive after 'que' in clauses expressing purpose or consequence (implied)

  ➔ The subjunctive 'prentenda' is used here because the road is not necessarily successful in trying to leave. There's an implication of wanting to avoid this outcome (the road leaving).

• Mientras grita que no va a volver

  ➔ Future tense ('va a volver')

  ➔ 'Va a volver' is the periphrastic future, formed with 'ir a + infinitive'. It indicates a future action.

• Pero, lo quieren creer

  ➔ Use of the pronoun *lo* as a direct object pronoun

  ➔ The pronoun *lo* in this sentence replaces a concept or idea mentioned previously, the sentence literally translates to: "But, they want to believe it"