This May 17th, Día das Letras Galegas 2025 takes an extraordinary turn. For the first time in its history, this emblematic celebration of Galician language and culture is not dedicated to a single writer, poet, or intellectual—but to a powerful collective: the Cantareiras.
Who Are the Cantareiras?
The Cantareiras are the women who, for generations, have carried the oral traditions of Galicia through song. Rooted in rural life, their voices echoed across valleys, riverbanks, and village squares. These were not trained performers in concert halls, but everyday women—mothers, grandmothers, neighbors—who sang while they worked: doing laundry at the lavadoiro, harvesting in the fields, rocking babies to sleep.
They sang alalás, coplas, muiñeiras, and regueifas. They sang of love, of loss, of community, of resistance. They passed down language, melody, rhythm, and emotion—keeping Galician identity alive through centuries of hardship, migration, and repression. In many ways, they are the beating heart of Galician culture.
The 2025 Dedication: A Collective Tribute
This year’s honorees include groups like:
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As Cantareiras de Airiños da Freba, from O Corgo, Lugo – known for their preservation of traditional rhythms.
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As Cantadeiras de Limia, who have kept the vocal traditions of inland Galicia vibrant.
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Cantareiras de O Fiadeiro, a group that not only performs but teaches younger generations to carry on the legacy.
By recognizing these women, the Real Academia Galega affirms something profound: that literature isn’t only what’s written. It’s also what is sung, remembered, and shared in the voice of the people. This dedication redefines cultural authority and uplifts the role of oral tradition in shaping a region’s soul.
What Is Día das Letras Galegas?
Established in 1963, Día das Letras Galegas is Galicia’s annual tribute to the Galician language and its defenders. Every May 17th—chosen to commemorate the publication of Rosalía de Castro’s Cantares Gallegos—the region honors a figure who contributed to the survival and flourishing of Galician (galego) through literature, activism, or scholarship.
Traditionally, the day focuses on poets, novelists, linguists, and historians. But this year’s groundbreaking homage to the Cantareiras opens a new path: one that includes the collective, the feminine, and the oral. It honors not just those who write our culture—but those who carry it in their voice.
Why This Matters—Especially on the Camino
At Follow the Camino, we believe the Camino de Santiago isn’t just a physical journey—it’s a cultural, emotional, and even spiritual one. When you walk through Galicia, you don’t just pass through land—you pass through centuries of stories, melodies, and memory.
The Cantareiras are part of what makes this place so alive. Their songs are the soundtrack of Galicia: grounding, joyful, haunting, proud. They connect past and present, personal and communal. And they remind us that identity isn’t always printed on a page—it’s sung in a language that refuses to disappear.
Celebrating Their Legacy
So how can you honor the Cantareiras this year?
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Listen to recordings of traditional Galician songs. Let the language flow through you.
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Support women-led folk groups keeping this legacy alive.
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Learn a few verses of a muiñeira or an alalá. Let your voice carry the story.
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Walk the Camino with open ears and an open heart. Pay attention to the music that rises from the land itself.
Because to sing is to survive. To sing is to belong.
And this year, Galicia reminds us: the voices of women are not side notes in history—they are the chorus that holds us all together.
Día das Letras Galegas 2025
Día das Letras Galegas 2025 marks a turning point. It’s a bold declaration that culture lives not just in books, but in breath. That the women who sang while no one was watching—who preserved a language through lullabies and labor songs—deserve to be celebrated with the same reverence as any literary figure.
To the Cantareiras: thank you for singing us into being.
