The integration of Leonard Cohen’s songs into Spanish culture through Xabier Lete’s translations
Summary
Translation has played a key role in the reception of Leonard Cohen’s songs in Spanish popular culture. Decade after decade, it has become one of the most significant means of integrating the Canadian musician’s work, bridging cultures between the native and target languages and culture systems. Based on the Leonard Cohen_ESP (1972-2019) corpus, this article offers an overview of Cohen’s songs that have been translated into Basque. It also includes a descriptive-comparative analysis of Xabier Lete’s translations of “Suzanne” and “Bird on a Wire” (“Txoriak kaiolan”), as the translation techniques employed make them subjects of special interest.
