Words related to Cuban history, racial mixing ( mestizaje ), and African religious traditions do not always have direct English equivalents.
Yes. Several anthologies include translations. The most respected is by in Man-Making Words: Selected Poems of Nicolás Guillén (University of Massachusetts Press, 2003). The translation provided in this article synthesizes Márquez’s academic rigor with a more contemporary poetic flow. el apellido nicolas guillen english translation
It stems from the Germanic name Wilhelm , composed of the elements wil (will/desire) and helm (helmet/protection). Words related to Cuban history, racial mixing (
The poem's dramatic climax occurs when the speaker demands the recovery of his other surname: "¡El apellido, entonces! ¿Sabéis mi otro apellido, el que me viene de aquella tierra enorme, el apellido sangriento y capturado, que pasó sobre el mar entre cadenas?" (The surname, then! Do you know my other surname, the one that comes to me from that enormous land, the bloody and captured surname, that crossed the sea in chains?). This poignant search is for a name that was "disuelto en tinta inmemorial" (dissolved in immemorial ink)—a metaphor for the systematic erasure of African identities and histories under slavery. The most respected is by in Man-Making Words:
During the 1930s, Guillén traveled extensively and established a famous friendship with the American poet Langston Hughes, a leader of the Harlem Renaissance. This cross-cultural exchange profoundly influenced both men, reinforcing the idea of a shared "Black Atlantic" identity. Guillén’s work consistently fought against racial discrimination, exploring the duality of being Cuban—Spanish marble and African baobab. "El Apellido" was written during a period of intense self-reflection, appearing in his later collections, specifically within Elegías (1948–1958), a book dedicated to poetic elegies that mourn loss while celebrating resilience.
Are you tracing a related to this surname?