15 Must-Read Spanish Poems

(Poems 1-15)

Spanish poetry has an impressive history, ranging from Spain’s Golden Age poets like Garcilaso de la Vega and Luis de Góngora to Federico García Lorca and the existential reflections of Antonio Machado. A vast collection of Spanish poems have captivated readers with their lyrical beauty.

Spanish poetry embraces themes of love, nature, and social justice, often intertwining them with religious and political undertones. It is a testament to the enduring power of language and the human spirit.

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Romance Sonámbulo

by Federico García Lorca

‘Romance Sonámbulo’ by Federico García Lorca is a mournful and beautiful dream sequence in which the poet longs for something unattainable.

As a renowned Spanish poet, Lorca's work is deeply rooted in the traditions and influences of Spanish poetry. 'Romance Sonámbulo' embodies elements of Spanish poetry, such as its powerful imagery, lyrical language, and exploration of themes related to passion, desire, and human emotions. Lorca's contributions to Spanish poetry have left an indelible mark on the literary landscape, influencing subsequent generations of poets. This poem should be regarded as one of the poet's best and one of the best poems by any Spanish poet.

Green, how I want you green.

Green wind. Green branches.

The ship out on the sea

and the horse on the mountain.

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Spanish

Themes:

Desire

Love

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Loving Someone You Can't Have

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Gacela of Unforseen Love

by Federico García Lorca

‘Gacela of Unforseen Love’ explores the relationship between love and despair through a remembered romance which has run its course.

Lorca is perhaps Spain's greatest poet, perhaps even the greatest in the Spanish language. This poem demonstrates his range and ability to select images to translate inner despair. This poem should be regarded as one of the poet's best, through his use of language, and incredibly compelling imagery. The piece is also a great demonstration of Lorca's style of verse generally.

No one understood the perfume

of the dark magnolia of your womb

Nobody knew that you tormented

a hummingbird of love between your teeth.

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There May Be Chaos Still Around The World

by George Santayana

‘There May Be Chaos Still Around The World’ by George Santayana describes a speaker who has escaped the world at large and is only existing within his own mind.

This is a well-known poem by Spanish poet George Santayana, one of the best poets the country ever saw. This is a great fourteen-line poem that focuses on a a speaker entirely consumed by his mental landscape. This subject matter is tacked incredibly skillfully by Santayana and in such a way that readers aren't soon to forget the poem's words. This piece should be regarded as a highly important Spanish poem.

There may be chaos still around the world,

This little world that in my thinking lies;

For mine own bosom is the paradise

Where all my life’s fair visions are unfurled.

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Sonnet Of The Sweet Complaint

by Federico García Lorca

‘Sonnet Of The Sweet Complaint’ describes the freeing and revelatory love experienced between a speaker and his listener.

Never let me lose the marvel

of your statue-like eyes, or the accent

the solitary rose of your breath

places on my cheek at night.

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The Guitar

by Federico García Lorca

‘The Guitar’ is a melancholy exploration of the power of music and its relationship to our experience of the world around us.

Lorca is perhaps Spain's greatest-ever poet, and this poem, like many of his works, is rooted in the traditions and landscape of his native Andalusia. The style of guitar playing is unique to this region and is one of many examples of Lorca's interest in the folk traditions of Spain, which he felt were the most authentic ways of experiencing his cultural history. As Spain's most famous poet, this poem and others by Lorca are deeply embedded in the nation's literary and cultural history.

The weeping of the guitar

begins.

The goblets of dawn

are smashed.

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Ballad of the Moon Moon

by Federico García Lorca

‘Ballad of the Moon Moon’ by Federico Garcia Lorca is a brilliant and dreamlike depiction of the moon descending to Earth in the form of a woman.

Written by arguably Spain's greatest-ever poet, this poem is rooted in the history of Southern Spain, where Lorca grew up. The evocation of the gypsies helps situate the poem in or around Lorca's home of Granada, and the poetic style is reminiscent of the ballads of the Spanish past. Moreover, Lorca's poetry is the finest work originating from the nation in this period, and his death is irrevocably entwined with the story of the nation.

Moon came to the forge

in her petticoat of nard

The boy looks and looks

the boy looks at the Moon

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Mont Brevent

by George Santayana

‘Mont Brevent’ by George Santayana looks up in awe and finds solace in the sight of a majestic mountain peak.

One of the interesting aspects of this poem is that Santayana, a Spanish poet, dedicated this poem to one of his experiences outside of his home country. A not uncommon feature for European writers but still notable. He clearly had a high regard for nature, especially as a means of elucidating his sentiments and beliefs about the world around him.

O dweller in the valley, lift thine eyes

To where, above the drift of cloud, the stone

Endures in silence, and to God alone

Upturns its furrowed visage, and is wise.

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The Little Mute Boy

by Federico García Lorca

‘The Little Mute Boy’ by Federico García Lorca explores the extent to which one little boy will go to keep their voice from being manipulated by those who’ve ensnared it.

Lorca was an immensely famous and vocal writer who lived in Spain and was assassinated in 1936 by Nationalist forces at the onset of the Spanish Civil War. Both his plays and poetry are regarded as some of the greatest to emerge from the Generation of '27. Poems like this one reveal both the personal and social themes that emerge in his work.

The little boy was looking for his voice.

(The king of the crickets had it.)

In a drop of water

the little boy was looking for his voice.

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Nationality:

Spanish

Theme: Death

Topics: Life, Peace, Suffering

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The Poet’s Testament

by George Santayana

‘The Poet’s Testament’ by George Santayana explores a speaker’s learned peace in death. He is content with his final contribution to the planet.

I give back to the earth what the earth gave,

All to the furrow, none to the grave,

The candle's out, the spirit's vigil spent;

Sight may not follow where the vision went.

#10

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A Toast

by George Santayana

‘A Toast’ by George Santayana is a passionate poem that gives thanks to wine’s euphoric effects.

Santayana was a famous writer and philosopher of the 20th century. Poems like this one underscore the enduring ways his poetry has remained especially affecting through the decades. This is thanks in no small part to his eye for sumptuous imagery and the vitality with which he elicits the hidden wonder of things we might take for granted.

See this bowl of purple wine,

Life-blood of the lusty vine!

All the warmth of summer suns

In the vintage liquid runs,

#11

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Slowly The Black Earth Gains

by George Santayana

‘Slowly The Black Earth Gains’ by George Santayana is a poem that expresses great admiration for the persevering toil of a farmer.

Considered a highly influential Spanish writer and philosopher, this poem reveals the poignant introspections that often comprise Santayana's poetic works. These were often consumed by an attempt to understand and unearth elements of human nature made self-evident through close observation of either other people or nature itself.

Slowly the black earth gains upon the yellow,

And the caked hill-side is ribbed soft with furrows.

Turn now again, with voice and staff, my ploughman,

Guiding thy oxen.

#12

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The Shout

by Federico García Lorca

‘The Cry’ by Federico García Lorca is a moving poem that illustrates the mystic but immensely tangible effect that song can have on the individual.

A famous and talented artist from Spain whose life was cut tragically short in 1936, Lorca was one of the many casualties of the Spanish Civil War. Today, his plays and poetic works have resulted in a legacy and influence that stretches beyond his home country, thanks to the many translations of his writings.

The ellipse of a cry

travels from mountain

to mountain.

#13

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Decima

by George Santayana

‘Decima’ by George Santayana is a beautiful poem that contemplates the lessons to be gleaned from nature.

As one of the more prominent Spanish writers and philosophers of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Santayana was renowned for his work. Both his prose and poetry sought to capture and elucidate his beliefs. One common motif found in either is also apparent here: appearing as a reverential treatment of nature as a teacher of sublime truths.

Silent daisies out of reach,

Maidens of the starry grass,

Gazing on me as I pass

#14

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I would I might Forget that I am I

by George Santayana

‘I would I might Forget that I am I’ by George Santayana is a despairing sonnet that grapples earnestly but in vain with the constraining conditions of mortality.

Santayana is renowned as one of the great Spanish poets of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Poems like this one underscore the reason for that fame: its verses are disarmingly revelatory in regard to universal human experiences. Honing in on the languishing limitations of what it means to be a mortal individual woefully aware of that fact.

I would I might forget that I am I,

And break the heavy chain that binds me fast,

Whose links about myself my deeds have cast.

What in the body’s tomb doth buried lie

#15

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Slow and reluctant was the long descent

by George Santayana

‘Slow and reluctant was the long descent’ by George Santayana elucidates the bittersweetness of undertaking a solo journey and finding solace in one’s tranquil environment.

Regarded as a greatly influential Spanish writer and philosopher, this poem is an interesting glimpse into his early writings, which were often consumed by an exploration of human nature and existence. However, they also often included themes involving nature and religious symbols.

Slow and reluctant was the long descent,

With many farewell pious looks behind,

And dumb misgivings where the path might wind,

And questionings of nature, as I went.

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15 Must-Read Spanish Poems

(Poems 1-15)

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15 Must-Read Spanish Poems

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