Son jarocho, "El pájaro cu"

"El pájaro cu" is a very well-known son jarocho (a type of song from Veracruz) about a beautiful bird that serves as the messenger of love from a suitor to his adored one. Just as the adored one is perceived as beautiful in the song, so is the bird.

Central to the song is the word cu, which phonemically retains thesound of the classical Maya word for the quetzal, namely k’uk. Thus, the beautiful bird messenger is, from the perspective of ancient Mesoamerican linguistics, none other than the quetzal. This connection between the ancient k’uk’ and the modern cu is somewhat attenuated, but it is also reinforced by the fable of the pájaro cu, about a bird that is unsure of its identity and shape. An element of the fable is retained in the following lines:

Eres mi prenda querida,
mi prenda querida eres.
La adoración de los hombres y el amor de las mujeres.

Pajarito eres bonito y bonito de color.
Pero más bonito fueras si me hicieras el favor
de llevarle un papelito a la dueña de mi amor.
Dime como te llamas para quererte, para quererte,
porque yo no puedo amarte sin conocerte.

Aunque tú no me quieras morena mía tengo el
consuelo de saber que tú sabes que yo te quiero.
Mi pajarillo es aquel que canta en aquella lima.
Anda y dile que no cante, que mi corazón lastima.

To listen to the song in Quicktime click here.