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Glite Dictionary
🎶 A religious song 🏹 An arrow
saeta

saeta

9.9
A traditional Spanish religious song sung during the week before Easter
  • noun
  • /sɑˈeɪtə/
  • Literature
translation icon : saeta
  • The saeta filled the air with emotion, reflecting the deep devotion of the singers during the Easter celebrations.

Examples

  • The title of the series was most likely inspired by the Spanish saeta, a piercing lament in flamenco style sung in Andalusia during the religious processions of Holy Week.

    Academic text (2015)

  • During the Holy Week procession, the crowd was moved by the haunting melody of a saeta sung from the church balcony.

  • As the sun set over Seville, a traditional saeta echoed through the streets, captivating everyone present at the religious event.

Synonyms

spiritual
vssaeta
10 6.3

A religious song from the American South often sung with strong feeling

people sing it in Spanish Holy Week processions and it lacks US call-and-response style
religious song
vssaeta
1 2.1

A song sung as part of religious worship or ceremonies

people sing it in Spanish Holy Week processions with strong public devotion

Surface Forms

saeta singular
saetas plural

Etymology

Saeta comes from the Latin sagitta meaning 'arrow'. A helpful way to remember the religious sense is to think of the song as an 'arrow' of feeling that pierces the heart during Holy Week, so a saeta is a short, powerful song of devotion.