Saudade

''Saudade'' (, , , ; plural ''saudades'') is an emotional state of melancholic or profoundly nostalgic longing for something that one loves despite it not necessarily being real. It often carries a repressed knowledge that the object of longing may never be had again or attained in one's lifetime. It is the recollection of feelings, experiences, places, or events (often illusive) that once are thought to have somehow brought excitement, pleasure, or well-being, but now trigger the painful sense of separation from the perceived joyous sensations. It derives from the Latin word for solitude.

Nascimento and Meandro (2005) cite Duarte Nunes Leão's definition of saudade: "Memory of something with a desire for it."

In Brazil, the day of ''Saudade'' is officially celebrated on 30 January. It is not a widely acknowledged day in Portugal.

History

''Saudade'' ultimately derives from the Latin ''solitās, solitātem'', meaning "solitude". The word ''saudade'' was used in the Cancioneiro da Ajuda (13th century), in the Cancioneiro da Vaticana and by poets of the time of King Denis of Portugal (reigned 1279–1325).
Some specialists argue that the word may have originated during the Great Portuguese Discoveries, expressing and giving meaning to the sadness felt about those who departed on journeys to unknown seas and often disappeared in shipwrecks, died in battle, or simply never returned. Those who stayed behind—mostly women and children—suffered deeply in their absence. However, the Portuguese discoveries only started in 1415, and since the word has been found in earlier texts, this does not constitute a very good explanation. The Reconquista also offers a plausible explanation.

The state of mind has subsequently become a "Portuguese way of life": a constant feeling of absence, the sadness of something that's missing, wistful longing for completeness or wholeness and the yearning for the return of what is now gone, a desire for presence as opposed to absence—as it is said in Portuguese, a strong desire to ''matar as saudades'' (lit. ''to kill the saudades'').

In the latter half of the 20th century, ''saudade'' became associated with the longing for one's homeland, as hundreds of thousands of Portuguese-speaking people left in search of better futures in South America, North America, and Western Europe. Besides the implications derived from a wave of emigration trend from the motherland, historically speaking ''saudade'' is the term associated with the decline of Portugal's role in world politics and trade. During the so-called "Golden Age", synonymous with the era of discovery, Portugal rose to the status of a world power, and its monarchy became one of the richest in Europe. But with the competition from other European nations, the country went both colonially and economically into a prolonged period of decay. This period of decline and resignation from the world's cultural stage marked the rise of ''saudade'', aptly described by a sentence in Portugal's national anthem: ''Levantai hoje de novo o esplendor de Portugal'' (Lift up once again today the splendour of Portugal).

Definition

The '' Dicionário Houaiss da Língua Portuguesa'' defines ''saudade'' (or ''saudades'') as "A somewhat melancholic feeling of incompleteness. It is related to thinking back on situations of privation due to the absence of someone or something, to move away from a place or thing, or to the absence of a set of particular and desirable experiences and pleasures once lived."

The Dictionary from the Royal Galician Academy, on the other hand, defines ''saudade'' as an "intimate feeling and mood caused by the longing for something absent that is being missed. This can take different aspects, from concrete realities (a loved one, a friend, the motherland, the homeland...) to the mysterious and transcendent. It is quite prevalent and characteristic of the Galician-Portuguese world, but it can also be found in other cultures."

Related words

Saudade is a word in Portuguese and Galician that claims no direct translation in English. However, a close translation in English would be "desiderium." Desiderium is defined as an ardent desire or longing, especially a feeling of loss or grief for something lost. Desiderium comes from the word desiderare, meaning to long for. Connections between desiderium and nostalgia have also been drawn; the former can be seen as expressing the latter for things that can’t be experienced any more, or things that someone may have never experienced themselves.

In Portuguese, "''Tenho saudades tuas''" or "''Estou com saudades de ti/você''" translates as "I have (feel) ''saudade'' of you" meaning "I miss you", but carries a much stronger tone. In fact, one can have ''saudade'' of someone whom one is with, but have some feeling of loss towards the past or the future. For example, one can have "saudade" towards part of the relationship or emotions once experienced for/with someone, though the person in question is still part of one's life, as in "Tenho saudade do que fomos" (I feel "saudade" of the way we were). Another example can illustrate this use of the word saudade: "Que saudade!" indicating a general feeling of longing, whereby the object of longing can be a general and undefined entity/occasion/person/group/period etc. This feeling of longing can be accompanied or better described by an abstract will to be where the object of longing is.

Despite being hard to translate in full, ''saudade'' has equivalent words in other cultures, and is often related to music styles expressing this feeling such as the '' blues'' for African-Americans, '' Sehnsucht'' in German, ''dor'' in Romania, '' Tizita'' in Ethiopia, '' Hiraeth'' in Welsh, or ''Assouf'' for the Tuareg people, appocundria in Neapolitan. In Slovak, the word is ''clivota'' or ''cnenie'', and in Czech, the word is ''stesk''. In Turkish, the word ''Hasret'' meaning longing, yearning or nostalgia has similar connotations, as does the Polish “tęsknota”.

The similar melancholic music style is known in Bosnia-Herzegovina as sevdalinkah (from Turkish sevda: infatuation, ultimately from Arabic سَوْدَاء sawdā' : 'black ile, translation of the Greek µέλαινα χολή, mélaina cholē from which the term melancholy is derived).

Elements

''Saudade'' is similar but not equal to nostalgia, a word that also exists in Portuguese.

In the book ''In Portugal'' of 1912, A. F. G. Bell writes:

A stronger form of ''saudade'' may be felt towards people and things whose whereabouts are unknown, such as old ways and sayings; a lost lover who is sadly missed; a faraway place where one was raised; loved ones who have died; feelings and stimuli one used to have; and the faded, yet golden memories of youth. Although it relates to feelings of melancholy and fond memories of things/people/days gone by, it can be a rush of sadness coupled with a paradoxical joy derived from acceptance of fate and the hope of recovering or substituting what is lost by something that will either fill in the void or provide consolation.

To F. D. Santos, ''Saudade'' as a noun has become a longing for longing itself:

Music

As with all emotions, ''saudade'' has been an inspiration for many songs and compositions. "Sodade" (''saudade'' in Cape Verdean Creole) is the title of the Cape Verde singer Cesária Évora's most famous song. Étienne Daho, a French singer, also produced a song of the same name. '' The Good Son'', a 1990 album by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, was heavily informed by Cave's mental state at the time, which he has described as ''saudade''. He told journalist Chris Bohn: "When I explained to someone that what I wanted to write about was the memory of things that I thought were lost for me, I was told that the Portuguese word for this feeling was ''saudade''. It's not nostalgia but something sadder."

The usage of ''saudade'' as a theme in Portuguese music goes back to the 16th century, the golden age of Portugal. ''Saudade'', as well as love suffering, is a common theme in many villancicos and cantigas composed by Portuguese authors; for example: "Lágrimas de Saudade" (''tears of saudade''), which is an anonymous work from the ''Cancioneiro de Paris''. Fado is a Portuguese music style, generally sung by a single person (the ''fadista'') along with a Portuguese guitar. The most popular themes of fado are ''saudade'', nostalgia, jealousy, and short stories of the typical city quarters. Fado and ''saudade'' are intertwined key ideas in Portuguese culture. The word fado comes from Latin ''fatum'' meaning "fate" or "destiny". Fado is a musical cultural expression and recognition of this unassailable determinism which compels the resigned yearning of ''saudade'', a bitter-sweet, existential yearning and hopefulness towards something over which one has no control.

Spanish singer Julio Iglesias, whose father is a Galician, speaks of ''saudade'' in his song "Un Canto a Galicia" (which roughly translates as "a song/chant for Galicia"). In the song, he passionately uses the phrase to describe a deep and sad longing for his motherland, Galicia. He also performs a song called "Morriñas", which describes the Galicians as having a deeply strong ''saudade''.

The Paraguayan guitarist Agustin Barrios wrote several pieces invoking the feeling of ''saudade'', including ''Choro de Saudade'' and ''Preludio Saudade''. The term is prominent in Brazilian popular music, including the first bossa nova song, " Chega de Saudade" ("No more ''saudade''", usually translated as "No More Blues"), written by Tom Jobim.
Jazz pianist Bill Evans recorded the tune "Saudade de Brasil" numerous times. In 1919, on returning from two years in Brazil, the French composer Darius Milhaud composed a suite, ''Saudades do Brasil'', which exemplified the concept of ''saudade''. "Saudade (Part II)" is also the title of a flute solo by the band Shpongle. The fado singer Amália Rodrigues typified themes of ''saudade'' in some of her songs. J-Rock band Porno Graffitti has a song entitled "サウダージ", "Saudaaji" transliterated ("Saudade"). The city pop guitarist Masayoshi Takanaka has an album titled Saudade. The alternative rock band Love And Rockets has a song named "Saudade" on their album '' Seventh Dream of Teenage Heaven''. June 2012 brought Bearcat's release of their self-titled indie album that included a song called "Saudade".

The Dutch jazz/Rock guitarist Jan Akkerman recorded a composition called "Saudade", the centerpiece of his 1996 album ''Focus in Time''. The Belgian electronic music band Arsenal recorded a song called "Saudade" on their album ''Outsides'' (2005). The jazz fusion group Trio Beyond, consisting of John Scofield, Jack DeJohnette, and Larry Goldings released in 2006 an album dedicated to drummer Tony Williams (1945–1997), called '' Saudades''. Dance music artist Peter Corvaia released a progressive house track entitled "Saudade" on HeadRush Music, a sub-label of Toes in the Sand Recordings. New York City post-rock band Mice Parade released an album entitled '' Obrigado Saudade'' in 2004. Chris Rea also recorded a song entitled "Saudade Part 1 & 2 (Tribute To Ayrton Senna)" as a tribute to Ayrton Senna, the Brazilian three-times Formula One world champion killed on the track in May 1994. There is an ambient/noise/shoegazing band from Portland, Oregon, named Saudade. The rock band Extreme has a Portuguese guitarist Nuno Bettencourt; the influence of his heritage can be seen in the band's album '' Saudades de Rock''. During recording, the mission statement was to bring back musicality to the medium. "Nancy Spain", a song by Barney Rush, made famous by an adaptation by Christy Moore, is another example of the use of ''saudade'' in contemporary Irish music, the chorus of which is:

"No matter where I wander I'm still haunted by your name

The portrait of your beauty stays the same

Standing by the ocean wondering where you've gone

If you'll return again

Where is the ring I gave to Nancy Spain?"

American singer/songwriter Grayson Hugh wrote a song called "Saudade" that he performed with jazz guitarist Norman Johnson on Johnson's 2013 album "Get It While You Can".

Kingston-Upon-Hull IDM Electronica, Downtempo and Deep Groove legend, Steve Cobby, of Fila Brazillia, Solid Doctor, Heights of Abraham, the Twilight Singers debut notoriety and other musical incarnations and collaborations, released a 12 track album "Saudade" in March 2014 on DÉCLASSÉ Recordings.

Washington DC electronica duo Thievery Corporation released the studio album '' Saudade'' in 2014 via their Eighteenth Street Lounge Music label.

Brazilian singer Ana Frango Electrico released a song called "Saudade" as the opening track on their 2019 album "Little Electric Chicken Heart"

A. R. Rahman's soundtrack for the 2020 Hindi film Dil Bechara features an instrumental track called "The Horizon of Saudade".

Icelandic music producer Ólafur Arnalds released the single "Saudade (When We Are Born)" in 2021.

In 2022, Portuguese singer Maro released a song called " Saudade, saudade" and represented Portugal with it in the Eurovision Song Contest 2022 in Turin, Italy. The song placed 9th in the grand final.

Literature

The Portuguese author Fernando Pessoa's posthumous collection of writings ''The Book of Disquiet'' is written almost entirely in a tone of saudade, and deals with themes of nostalgia and alienation. Australian author Suneeta Peres Da Costa's novella ''Saudade'' follows Maria, a young girl from a Goan immigrant family, growing up in a political hierarchy of racism and colonialismSaudade, Peres Da Costa, Giramondo Publishing, March 2018 https://giramondopublishing.com/product/saudade/

Variations

''Saudade'' is also associated with Galicia, where it is used similarly to the word ''morriña'' (longingness). Yet, morriña often implies a deeper stage of ''saudade'', a "''saudade'' so strong it can even kill," as the Galician saying goes. Morriña was a term often used by emigrant Galicians when talking about the Galician motherland they left behind. Although ''saudade'' is also a Galician word, the meaning of ''longing for something that might return'' is generally associated with ''morriña''. A literary example showing the understanding of the difference and the use of both words is the song ''Un canto a Galicia'' by Julio Iglesias. The word used by Galicians speaking Spanish has spread and become common in all Spain and even accepted by the Academia.
morriña
'' in the Spanish-language '' Diccionario de la Real Academia''.

In Portugal, ''morrinha'' is a word to describe sprinkles, while ''morrinhar'' means "to sprinkle." (The most common Portuguese equivalents are ''chuvisco'' and ''chuviscar'', respectively.) ''Morrinha'' is also used in northern Portugal for referring to sick animals, for example of sheep dropsy, and occasionally to sick or sad people, often with irony. It is also used in some Brazilian regional dialects for the smell of wet or sick animals.

In Goa, India, which was a Portuguese colony until 1961, some Portuguese influences still remain. A suburb of Margão, Goa's largest city, has a street named Rua de Saudades. It was aptly named because that very street has the Christian cemetery, the Hindu ''shmashana'' (cremation ground) and the Muslim ''qabrastan'' (cemetery). Most people living in the city of Margão who pass by this street would agree that the name of the street could not be any other, as they often think fond memories of a friend, loved one, or relative whose remains went past that road.

In Cape Verdean Creole there is the word ''sodadi'' (also spelled ''sodade''), originated in the Portuguese ''saudade'' and exactly with the same meaning.

See also

* Grief
* Han
* Hiraeth
* Mono no aware
* Nostalgia
* Sehnsucht
* Good old days

References

Further reading

* Lourcenço, Eduardo (1999). ''Mitologia da saudade (Seguido de Portugal como destino)'' . São Paulo: Companhia das Letras. .
* Rappa, Antonio L. ''Saudade: The Culture and Security of Eurasians in Southeast Asia''. Ethos Books and Singapore Management University's Wee Kim Wee Centre, 2013.
* Ribeiro, Bernardim (Torrao, ~1482 – Lisboa, ~1552). ''Livro das Saudades'' .

External links

Emotion as Collective Identity: the case of Portuguese Saudade, Marcia Esteves Agostinho, Academia Letters, February 2021

Aesthetics of Saudade – Essay comprising the major theories and explaining the doubts surrounding the translation of saudade

"BBC Brasil": ''Saudade'' is the 7th most difficult word to translate
(in Portuguese), London: BBC, 23 June 2004.

saudade, dictionary.com

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Emotions
Portuguese words and phrases
Translation
Nostalgia
Melancholia
Love
Maritime culture
Words and phrases with no direct English translation