• Chavela Vargas

    Soledad → English translation→ English

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Soledad

Soledad… 1
It was a starless night
when departing from me you left me
so much pain and so much evil.
 
Soledad…
Since the day you left
in the village there’s only
conventual silence.
 
Soledad…
The streams are dry
and in the streets thousand echoes
call you night and day.
 
Soledad... come back now
to take away your songs.
The crepe, which casts a shadow
over my loneliness, will stay forever. (repetition of the whole stanza)
 
Soledad... come back now...
And it comes back now... my loneliness...
 
  • 1. Soledad is the name of a woman, meaning solitude.
Original lyrics

Soledad

Click to see the original lyrics (Spanish)

Comments
roster 31roster 31
   Tue, 09/10/2018 - 16:13

'Soledad' se fue; 'la soledad', quedó,

AldefinaAldefina
   Tue, 09/10/2018 - 17:36

Wow, that would be an idea!

roster 31roster 31
   Tue, 09/10/2018 - 17:40

A mi entender, Soledad (a woman) se fue y le dejó solo, en soledad.

AldefinaAldefina
   Tue, 09/10/2018 - 16:59

Rosa, aún no entiendo la diferencia sobre soledad y "la soledad". Para mi soledad es simplemente soledad y la frase Soledad... vuelve ya a quitar con tus canciones es en Indicativo.

Me parece que si fuera Imperativo debería ser Soledad... vuelve ya a quitar con sus canciones. Sus - canciones de aquella que le dejó. Si la soledad volviera no quitaría "las canciones". ¿No te parece?

AldefinaAldefina
   Tue, 09/10/2018 - 17:06

Algo más: Cuando leo:

Soledad...
Fue una noche sin estrellas
cuando al irte me dejaste
tanta pena y tanto mal.

entiendo que no soledad le dejó “tanta pena...”, sino alguna mujer. ¿Correcto?

AldefinaAldefina
   Tue, 09/10/2018 - 17:44

Una mujer llamada Soledad.

roster 31roster 31
   Tue, 09/10/2018 - 18:04

Efectivamente.
Yo lo escribí con dos puntos y, por lo tanto, sólo te di el nomtre.

AldefinaAldefina
   Tue, 09/10/2018 - 18:19

Mas yo no lo entendí. Sólo ahora todo es claro.

AldefinaAldefina
   Tue, 09/10/2018 - 17:14

Jami, I must say after discussing it with Emilia first and now with Rosa I'm completely confused. And I thought I translated everything correctly... :(

Can you tell me in detail what should be corrected in my translation?

BTW, apart from Emilia's and mine translations no one has ever translated this song and I think I know why. ;)

AldefinaAldefina
   Tue, 09/10/2018 - 17:35

Thanks, but that doesn't bring me any further. I still do know what to do.

Do you also think that "vuelve" is in imperative?

ϕιλομαθήςϕιλομαθής
   Tue, 09/10/2018 - 17:39

If the girl's name is Soledad, leave her name untranslated with a footnote explaining the meaning. On the very last line, I would translate the lower case "soledad" as loneliness. Think about this as you listen again and it will make sense.

roster 31roster 31
   Tue, 09/10/2018 - 17:52

I agree, and I was going to say to Andrzej:
If you, finally, accept the suggestion, leave "Soledad" (name) as is, and at the end use 'solitude' with a footnote explaining the double meaning of the word, in Spanish. (I took for granted you knew it).
And have in mind that in the verse "que ensombrecen mis horas", she actually says "mi soledad".

AldefinaAldefina
   Tue, 09/10/2018 - 17:55

Ya he hecho. Gracias por la ayuda. :)

roster 31roster 31
   Tue, 09/10/2018 - 18:34

Yo habría usado "Soledad" y "solitud" para hacer clara la relación de las dos palabras.

AldefinaAldefina
   Tue, 09/10/2018 - 18:44

Vale, hecho. Si te gusta más... :)

AldefinaAldefina
   Tue, 09/10/2018 - 19:11

Rosa, algo me pasó por alto. Mira otra vez a dos últimos versos. Los corregí. ¿Correcto?

ϕιλομαθήςϕιλομαθής
   Tue, 09/10/2018 - 19:31

In English, solitude has a positive connotation. Was her leaving a good thing?

AldefinaAldefina
   Tue, 09/10/2018 - 19:53

So would you prefer to say "loneliness", as I wrote earlier?

On the other hand using "solitude" makes this song more mystical with a play on words and that was the reason why I was unable to understand it correctly, so maybe it would be better to leave "solitude".

Okay, perhaps I'm thinking the Polish way. We have only one word for Spanish "soledat". English dictionaries translate it both way without showing the nuances of the meaning, that I was never aware of.

ϕιλομαθήςϕιλομαθής
   Tue, 09/10/2018 - 19:58

It's your translation. I think loneliness is closer to the feeling the song expresses. Spanish also has only one word for being alone. English has two: Solitude brings peace; loneliness brings sorrow.

AldefinaAldefina
   Tue, 09/10/2018 - 20:19

The play on words is gone. In fact it was an interpretation that Rosa suggested me and not a literal translation, so perhaps I shouldn't worry too much. :D

roster 31roster 31
   Tue, 09/10/2018 - 20:10

No digas "it". It is a repetition: 'come back now, come back now".

¿Corregiste el original?

AldefinaAldefina
   Tue, 09/10/2018 - 20:35

Sí, ya corregí otra vez. Mira:

Soledad... come back now...
And it comes back now... my loneliness...

Me parece que eso va bien con toda la traducción. Es la ironía - él (así que Chavela Vargas) pide a Soledad que se vuelva, pero en vez de Soledad vuelve soledad. Me gusta mucho lo que ahora escribí y creo que no necesito cambiarlo.

Déjalo así se te gusta, peri yo repetiría la llamada:
"Come back now
come back now... my loneliness::.

Punto final.

SarasvatiSarasvati
   Tue, 09/10/2018 - 19:42

No porque se queda sola y ella la amaba

AldefinaAldefina
   Tue, 09/10/2018 - 20:00

¿"Vuelve ya... mi soledad..." o "mi Soledad"? Me parece que es el substantivo y no el nombre.