This seventh season of Simple Stories in Spanish is updating some of my favorite episodes. Today’s remake is from Season 3, episode 5: La Leyenda del Quetzal. In the middle of the Guatemalan flag there is a beautiful green bird with a bright red chest and a long flowing tail. It is the quetzal, a symbol of liberty and a nahual, or spirit guide, of the Maya and Quiché people. There are many legends surrounding this stunning and elusive bird and today’s story shares one of them.    This story is in the past tense. Repeated words and phrases include “tribu” (tribe), “cacique” (chieftan), “guerreros” (warriors), “pecho” (chest), and the verbs “iba” (was going), “era” (was), and “fue” (was/went). No matter where you are in your language journey, stories will help you on your way. You can find a transcript of the story and read along at https://smalltownspanishteacher.com/2022/10/09/simple-stories-in-spanish-la-leyenda-del-quetzal/  Support the show

La Leyenda del Quetzal - updated

Simple Stories in Spanish is a weekly production of the Small Town Spanish Teacher. Listen along as she tells easy to understand stories to help you learn or practice the Spanish language. Wherever you are in your language journey, Simple Stories will help propel you forward. You can find transcripts of the stories at smalltownspanishteacher.com. You can support the creation of these stories by buying me a coffee (or taco!) https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SpanishTeacher

Arts

Literature

Performing Arts

Design

Food

Fashion & Beauty

Visual Arts

Education

Training

Language Courses

Higher Education

K-12

Educational Technology

Fiction

Language Learning

Many kings and queens are given nicknames along with their titles. Juana was the third child of Isabel and Fernando “the Catholics”. Her nickname, “la loca”, or “the crazy one” came from her dramatic outbursts, often related to her husband, Felipe “the Handsome”. The question remains, was Juana really loca? Or was she the victim of circumstances and manipulations well out of her control? 
 This story is told in the third person and the past tense. Important vocabulary in the story includes: “heredero” (heir), “nacimiento” (birth), “rey” (king), “reina” (queen) and “poder” (power). 
 No matter where you are in your language journey, stories will help you on your way. You can find a transcript of the story and read along at https://smalltownspanishteacher.com/2024/04/15/simple-stories-in-spanish-juana-la-loca/  Support the show

Juana "la Loca"

“Inca” or “Sapa Inca” is the title given to the kings of the Incan Empire. The incas did not have a written language, rather they had a rich oral tradition. Due to the lack of records, it is hard to know when exactly the Incan state, Tahuantinsuyo began. However, oral tradition tells of the Sun God, Inti, and his desire for a civilized people in the Andes mountains. He sent his son, Manco Capac, to make that dream a reality. Thus Manco Capac became the first Inca. 
 This story is told in the third person and the past tense. Important vocabulary in the story includes: “gente” (people), “hundir” (to sink), “tierra” (earth), “enseñó” (taught) and “venerar” (to worship). 
 No matter where you are in your language journey, stories will help you on your way. You can find a transcript of the story and read along at https://smalltownspanishteacher.com/2024/03/12/simple-stories-in-spanish-el-primer-inca/  Support the show

El primer Inca

Sign Language is a beautiful form of communication. For many years, the Deaf community was denied education, in large part because of Aristotle. Thankfully, many people recognized the ability of deaf people to communicate using signs. Sign Language became documented and standardized. However, due to dictatorship and revolution, in 1980s Nicaragua, sign language didn’t really exist. So, a group of deaf students created their own language from nothing. 
 This story is told in the third person and the past tense. Important vocabulary in the story includes: “lengua de señas/lenguaje de signos” (sign language), “sordo” (deaf), “alfabetización” (literacy), and “labios” (lips).

No matter where you are in your language journey, stories will help you on your way. You can find a transcript of the story and read along at https://smalltownspanishteacher.com/2024/02/27/simple-stories-in-spanish-el-nacimiento-de-una-lengua/  Support the show

El nacimiento de una lengua

In their attempts to convert the native peoples of the Americas to Christianity, Catholic missionaries destroyed many elements of preHispanic cultures, including their books. The mayan culture in particular had hundreds, if not thousands, of books and documents concerning mythology, astronomy, history and religion. Thankfully, one person thought to record this information and hid it. That book, El Popol Vuh, was found and preserved by a sympathetic friar. Today you can even read it online. 
 This story is told in the third person and the past tense. Important vocabulary in the story includes: “códice” (codex/ancient text), “fray” (friar), “lengua” (language/tongue), and “lo” (it). 
 No matter where you are in your language journey, stories will help you on your way. You can find a transcript of the story and read along at https://smalltownspanishteacher.com/2024/02/14/simple-stories-in-spanish-el-popol-vuh/  Support the show

El Popol Vuh

Puerto Rico is an anomaly. After being visited by Christopher Columbus in 1493, it fell under Spanish rule. England, Portugal, and France attempted invasions, but Puerto Rico did not break free from Spain until 1898 when the Treaty of Paris ended the Spanish-American war and gave Puerto Rico to the United States. Today it remains an unincorporated territory of the US, but that could change in the near future.  
 This story is told in the third person and the present and past tense. Important vocabulary in the story includes: “ciudadano” (citizen), “estadounidense” (American/of the United States), “derecho” (right), and “guerra” (war).

No matter where you are in your language journey, stories will help you on your way. You can find a transcript of the story and read along at https://smalltownspanishteacher.com/2024/01/30/simple-stories-in-spanish-la-ciudadania-de-puerto-rico/  Support the show

La Leyenda del Quetzal - updated

Download our free app to listen on your phone