Fieldwork Archive
Aserrín aserrán
Performed by Giselle Rodriguez.
Recorded September 14, 2024 in Sherman, Connecticut.
Learned as a youth in Argentina.
This is one of the more gruesome variants of a well-known children's song sung throughout Latin America. It is often sung as a lullaby and sometimes associated with the Nativity of St. John the Baptist. It is speculated to originate from an old Spanish divination game, rocotín rocotán or recotín recotán (nowadays this game is recognized in some parts of Latin America as a children's game). It may have undergone a Christianization in concurrence with pagan summer solstice (midsummer) festivals.
Aserrín, aserrán,
los maderos de San Juan
piden pan, no les dan;
piden queso, les dan hueso
y le cortan el pescuezo.
los maderos de San Juan
piden pan, no les dan;
piden queso, les dan hueso
y le cortan el pescuezo.
Wood chips, wood chops,
the lumberjacks of Saint John
ask for bread, they don't get any;
ask for cheese, they get a bone
and get their necks cut off.
the lumberjacks of Saint John
ask for bread, they don't get any;
ask for cheese, they get a bone
and get their necks cut off.
Variants
639 · Riqui ran, los maderos de San Juan1643 · Aserrín, aserrán (Wood Chips)