Canción is a Spanish lyrical song which was one of the essential genres of the Spanish literature of the Middle Ages, which mostly dealt with religious themes or love. In the original form the Canción was intended for the lecture, but in the course of time it changed to a predominantly lyric poetry. As Canción trovadoresca described it in the 15./16. Century, a five-line, Trochaic silver. In the first verse, the poem was preceded by a motto, usually a proverb, with the following lines varying in this motto, which is called Volte. There are two lines of verse on the first (either 2nd and 4th or even 3rd and 5th). Since this form seems rather limited, the Canción was extended over time, then it consisted of a total of 12 lines, with the motto becoming four lines. Since the Renaissance, and especially through the influence of the canon (see poems), almost every stanza has been designated with this concept, and still later almost every popular member.
The term can be derived from the Spanish noun canción, which can be translated with song and vocals, but nowadays a translation with the term song is also common. Consequently, the translation refers to the original meaning of the word, as it was still used in the Middle Ages, whereby it was simply a lyrical song, which is also a common translation today.
The subject matter of such a Canción was mainly concerned with religion, love, or related subjects. The predecessors of this song form were the Galician-Portuguese cantigas de amor (Songs of Love), whose origins lie in the early Middle Ages. The two Spanish Renaissance poets Iñigo López de Mendoza (1398-1458) and Jorge Manrique (1440-1479) can be mentioned as representatives of this original form, the Canciones of which were very well known.
A little later, in the 16th and 17th centuries, it is then Lope de Vega (1562-1635) and Miguel de Cervantes (1547-1616), which produce Canciones. These poets, however, varied the basic principle, whereby the so-called Canción petrarquista arose. This consists of 4 to 12 identical stanzas consisting of eleven silver or sieve silver, with a refrain.