É na Aruanda ê É na Aruanda a É na Aruanda ê É na Aruanda a Venho de longe Terra dos meus ancestrais Eu fui acorrentado Pra lá não voltar mais É na Aruanda É na Aruanda ê É na Aruanda a Numa casa de madeira Uma tumba flutuante sobre o mar Assim eu fui trazido Ao Brasil pra trabalhar É na Aruanda ê É na Aruanda a E na linguagem jeji Congagola e nagô Veio o povo Bantu Que no Brasil chegou É na Aruanda ê É na Aruanda a Trazendo sua cultura Sua história, seu axé Os mistérios ancestrais E a força do candomblé É na Aruanda ê É na Aruanda a
It’s in Aruanda, ê It’s in Aruanda, a It’s in Aruanda, ê It’s in Aruanda, a I come from afar Land of my ancestors I was chained So that I could not return It’s in Aruanda It’s in Aruanda, ê It’s in Aruanda, a In a wooden house A floating tomb over the sea That’s how I was brought To work in Brazil It’s in Aruanda, ê It’s in Aruanda, a And in the jeji language Congagola and Nagô Came the Bantu people Who arrived in Brazil It’s in Aruanda, ê It’s in Aruanda, a Bringing their culture Their history, their axé The ancestral mysteries And the strength of candomblé It’s in Aruanda, ê It’s in Aruanda, a
Meaning and Interpretation:
Aruanda is derived from Luanda, the capital and largest city in Angola. The word Aruandê was derived from the word Luanda, the capital and largest city of Angola, Africa. Luanda, once known as Loanda, was founded by Portuguese explorer Paulo Dias de Novais in 1575 who named it “São Paulo de Loanda”. The city became the center of slave trade from Africa to Brazil from c.1550 to c.1850, growing to be the largest port for the Portuguese trafficking of slaves to Africa for over 300 years. It was in Luanda that the slaves were gathered, chained, stored in the basements of ships and sent off across the Atlantic to be sold. The transformation from the word Luanda to Aruanda occurred slowly overtime. To the early generations of slaves, Luanda burned deep in their memory as the last vision they had of home, their last taste of freedom. For this reason, wherever the slave was transported in Brazil, he fondly recalled and spoke of his African city “Luanda.” Slavery continued on for centuries, though, and as time passed, children who were born into slavery never saw Africa, nor a city called Luanda. They had never travelled on ships, never seen a port
Aruanda became a representation of a place to be returned where the Brazilian slaves believed they could live free. The idea of Aruanda became had such strong connotations, that the sound of “ê!” was eventually added for emphasis. “Aruanda ê!”