O Nordestino Lyrics Translation in English

Eu sou filho do nordeste

I am a son of the Northeast

Fui criado no sertão

I was raised in the backlands

Passei fome e passei sede

I suffered hunger and thirst

Mas adoro o meu torrão

But I love my homeland

Aguentei a seca forte

I endured the harsh drought

Que faz recrutar o chão

That parches the ground

Já vi boi correr gemendo

I've seen cattle run moaning

Com a língua seca e lambendo

With dry tongues licking

O fundo do ribeirão

The bottom of the stream

No nordeste a seca brava

In the Northeast, the fierce drought

Era um Deus nos acuda

Was a cry for help

Nordestino bom de raça

Good-natured Northeasterner

Come o pão que o diabo amassa

Eats the bread the devil kneads

Mas o nordeste não muda

But the Northeast doesn't change

O Sol parecia fogo

The sun seemed like fire

Onde batia queimava

Where it shone, it burned

O cerrado virou lenha

The cerrado turned into firewood

Nenhuma folha restava

No leaf was left

Os bichos que ia morrendo

The animals that were dying

No chão se esturricava

Became scorched on the ground

Onde eu pescava de anzol

Where I used to fish with a hook

Vi peixe morrer no Sol

I saw fish die in the sun

No barro que ressecava

In the parched mud

No nordeste a seca brava

In the Northeast, the fierce drought

Era um Deus nos acuda

Was a cry for help

Nordestino bom de raça

Good-natured Northeasterner

Come o pão que o diabo amassa

Eats the bread the devil kneads

Mas o nordeste não muda

But the Northeast doesn't change

Embaixo de um céu de bronze

Under a bronze sky

Em cima de um chão queimado

On burnt ground

Joguei meu plantio na terra

I sowed my crops in the earth

Não nasceu, ficou torrado

They didn't grow, they remained scorched

Passei no fio da navalha

I walked on the razor's edge

Aguentei tudo calado

I endured everything in silence

Mas aqui estou em pé

But here I am standing

E ainda tenho fé

And still have faith

De ver meu sertão molhado

To see my backlands soaked

No nordeste a seca brava

In the Northeast, the fierce drought

Era um Deus nos acuda

Was a cry for help

Nordestino bom de raça

Good-natured Northeasterner

Come o pão que o diabo amassa

Eats the bread the devil kneads

Mas o nordeste não muda

But the Northeast doesn't change