"Waka Waka Esto Es África" by Shakira, English translation of Spanish version
"Waka Waka This is Africa"
Official song of FIFA World Cup South Africa 2010; June 11 - July 11
Style: Upbeat, cheerful
Country: Colombia
Listen:
Hear the FIFA World Cup 2010 official song at YouTube here. Note that Shakira has an official English version called "Waka Waka This Time for Africa." This, however, is the translation of the Spanish version. It's interesting to compare how different parts of the world will think of the FIFA 2010 song, since the lyrics are not completely the same.
[Expand embedded video]
Translation:
Llego el momento,
Caen las murallas,
Va a comenzar
La única justa de la batallas.
The moment has come,
The walls fall,
It is going to begin,
The only one of the battles that is just.
No duele el golpe,
No existe el miedo,
Quítate el polvo,
Ponte de pie,
Y vuelves al ruedo.
The hit doesn't hurt,
Fear doesn't exist,
Dust yourself off, [*lit. Take the dust off yourself]
Get on your feet,
And you return to the arena.
Y la presión
Que sientes,
Espera en ti,
¡Tu gente!
And the pressure
That you feel,
They put their hope on you, [*lit. They hope on you]
Your people!
Ahora vamos por todo
Y te acompaña la suerte.
Za mina mina Zangaléwa.
Porque esto es África.
Now we go for everything
And luck accompanies you.
"Za mina mina Zangaléwa."
Because this is Africa.
Za mina mina ¡eh! ¡eh!
Waka waka ¡eh! ¡eh!
Za mina mina Zangaléwa.
Porque esto es África.
Because this is Africa.
[Music bridge]
Oye tu dios y
No estarás solo.
Llegas aquí
Para brillar.
Lo tienes todo.
Hear your god and
You will not be alone.
You come here
To shine.
You have it all.
La hora se acerca.
Es el momento.
Vas a ganar
Cada batalla,
Ya lo presiento.
The hour draws near.
It is the time.
You are going to win
Every battle,
I can feel it. [*lit. I already foresee it.]
Hay que empezar
De cero
Para tocar
El cielo.
One must begin
From zero
To touch
The heavens.
Ahora vamos por todo
Y todos vamos por ellos.
Za mina mina Zangaléwa.
Porque esto es África.
Now we go for everything
And everyone goes for them. [*alt. And we all go for them; "everyone" is inclusive]
"Za mina mina Zangaléwa."
Because this is Africa.
Za mina mina ¡eh! ¡eh!
Waka waka ¡eh! ¡eh!
Za mina mina Zangaléwa
Ana wam ah ah
Za mina mina ¡eh! ¡eh!
Waka waka ¡eh! ¡eh!
Za mina mina Zangaléwa
Porque esto es África.
Because this is Africa.
Aguelah majoni
Biki biki mah mah wa ¡eh to zed! [A to Z]
Matis tu za la majoni
Biki biki mah mah from East to West matji
Waka waka ma ¡eh! ¡eh!
Waka waka ma ¡eh! ¡eh!
Jan es es zuma zujune [*This whole stanza is phonetically transcribed by me.]
'Cause this is Africa!
Africa...
Africa...
(Za mina mina... ana wam ah ah)
(Za mina mina...)
(Za mina mina... ana wam ah ah)
Za mina mina ¡eh! ¡eh!
Waka waka ¡eh! ¡eh!
Za mina mina Zangaléwa
Ana wam ah ah.
Za mina mina ¡eh! ¡eh!
Waka waka ¡eh! ¡eh!
Za mina mina Zangaléwa
Porque esto es África.
Because this is Africa.
Jango eh eh
Jango eh eh
Za mina mina Zangaléwa
Ana wam ah ah.
(x2)
Porque esto es África. (x2)
Because this is Africa. (x2)
We're all Africa... (x2)
Translation Notes:
Some parts of the song I could not find transcribed anywhere. I took a shot at it, as much as I could. The new transcriptions are phonetical and obviously full of mistakes. If you understand those parts, please comment!
I compiled what I could find:
Jango eh eh.
Za mina mina ¡eh! ¡eh!
Waka waka ¡eh! ¡eh!
Za mina mina Zangaléwa.
Ana wam ah ah.
Wait! Eh! Eh!
Come! Come! Eh! Eh!
Do it! Do it! Eh! Eh!
Come! Come! Who sent you? / Who asked you to come?
It is mine, yes.
I put this in the translation notes since it's not actually my own translation and I cannot verify it. I just researched it online.
Wikipedia says that it is a reference to a 1986 hit song from Cameroon. Apparently, it is a popular song for training and rallying in Africa. That sounds right for the FIFA World Cup.
This website has an alternative translation for some of the lines.
Finally, this blog attempts to track the origins of the original song and how it spread across countries and cultures: Around the World... Waka! Waka! Hey! Hey!
Official song of FIFA World Cup South Africa 2010; June 11 - July 11
Style: Upbeat, cheerful
Country: Colombia
Listen:
Hear the FIFA World Cup 2010 official song at YouTube here. Note that Shakira has an official English version called "Waka Waka This Time for Africa." This, however, is the translation of the Spanish version. It's interesting to compare how different parts of the world will think of the FIFA 2010 song, since the lyrics are not completely the same.
[Expand embedded video]
Click to viewTranslation:
Llego el momento,
Caen las murallas,
Va a comenzar
La única justa de la batallas.
The moment has come,
The walls fall,
It is going to begin,
The only one of the battles that is just.
No duele el golpe,
No existe el miedo,
Quítate el polvo,
Ponte de pie,
Y vuelves al ruedo.
The hit doesn't hurt,
Fear doesn't exist,
Dust yourself off, [*lit. Take the dust off yourself]
Get on your feet,
And you return to the arena.
Y la presión
Que sientes,
Espera en ti,
¡Tu gente!
And the pressure
That you feel,
They put their hope on you, [*lit. They hope on you]
Your people!
Ahora vamos por todo
Y te acompaña la suerte.
Za mina mina Zangaléwa.
Porque esto es África.
Now we go for everything
And luck accompanies you.
"Za mina mina Zangaléwa."
Because this is Africa.
Za mina mina ¡eh! ¡eh!
Waka waka ¡eh! ¡eh!
Za mina mina Zangaléwa.
Porque esto es África.
Because this is Africa.
[Music bridge]
Oye tu dios y
No estarás solo.
Llegas aquí
Para brillar.
Lo tienes todo.
Hear your god and
You will not be alone.
You come here
To shine.
You have it all.
La hora se acerca.
Es el momento.
Vas a ganar
Cada batalla,
Ya lo presiento.
The hour draws near.
It is the time.
You are going to win
Every battle,
I can feel it. [*lit. I already foresee it.]
Hay que empezar
De cero
Para tocar
El cielo.
One must begin
From zero
To touch
The heavens.
Ahora vamos por todo
Y todos vamos por ellos.
Za mina mina Zangaléwa.
Porque esto es África.
Now we go for everything
And everyone goes for them. [*alt. And we all go for them; "everyone" is inclusive]
"Za mina mina Zangaléwa."
Because this is Africa.
Za mina mina ¡eh! ¡eh!
Waka waka ¡eh! ¡eh!
Za mina mina Zangaléwa
Ana wam ah ah
Za mina mina ¡eh! ¡eh!
Waka waka ¡eh! ¡eh!
Za mina mina Zangaléwa
Porque esto es África.
Because this is Africa.
Aguelah majoni
Biki biki mah mah wa ¡eh to zed! [A to Z]
Matis tu za la majoni
Biki biki mah mah from East to West matji
Waka waka ma ¡eh! ¡eh!
Waka waka ma ¡eh! ¡eh!
Jan es es zuma zujune [*This whole stanza is phonetically transcribed by me.]
'Cause this is Africa!
Africa...
Africa...
(Za mina mina... ana wam ah ah)
(Za mina mina...)
(Za mina mina... ana wam ah ah)
Za mina mina ¡eh! ¡eh!
Waka waka ¡eh! ¡eh!
Za mina mina Zangaléwa
Ana wam ah ah.
Za mina mina ¡eh! ¡eh!
Waka waka ¡eh! ¡eh!
Za mina mina Zangaléwa
Porque esto es África.
Because this is Africa.
Jango eh eh
Jango eh eh
Za mina mina Zangaléwa
Ana wam ah ah.
(x2)
Porque esto es África. (x2)
Because this is Africa. (x2)
We're all Africa... (x2)
Translation Notes:
Some parts of the song I could not find transcribed anywhere. I took a shot at it, as much as I could. The new transcriptions are phonetical and obviously full of mistakes. If you understand those parts, please comment!
I compiled what I could find:
Jango eh eh.
Za mina mina ¡eh! ¡eh!
Waka waka ¡eh! ¡eh!
Za mina mina Zangaléwa.
Ana wam ah ah.
Wait! Eh! Eh!
Come! Come! Eh! Eh!
Do it! Do it! Eh! Eh!
Come! Come! Who sent you? / Who asked you to come?
It is mine, yes.
I put this in the translation notes since it's not actually my own translation and I cannot verify it. I just researched it online.
Wikipedia says that it is a reference to a 1986 hit song from Cameroon. Apparently, it is a popular song for training and rallying in Africa. That sounds right for the FIFA World Cup.
This website has an alternative translation for some of the lines.
Finally, this blog attempts to track the origins of the original song and how it spread across countries and cultures: Around the World... Waka! Waka! Hey! Hey!