Home › Untranslatable Words

Duende

Meaning: A mysterious quality in art or performance that moves you to your core — a dark, soulful, transcendent power that can't be taught, only felt.

Language: Spanish

Literally: goblin / spirit

Category: Emotion

Origin: Spanish; theorised by poet Federico García Lorca in 1933 as the spirit behind flamenco.

← Back to Untranslatable Words

Loading the full interactive collection…