The Our Father in Spanish is the Padre Nuestro, which begins “Padre nuestro, que estás en los cielos, santificado sea tu nombre”: “Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name.” Spanish-speaking Catholics pray it at every Mass, in the Rosary and in their daily prayers. Two wordings are in use: the traditional one, taught in catechisms for centuries, and a common modern wording adopted at Mass in the late twentieth century. Below are the traditional text, the differences in today’s wording, an easy pronunciation guide, a line-by-line translation, and the English Our Father.
The traditional Padre Nuestro
As given in Gaspar Astete’s Catecismo de la Doctrina Cristiana, the most widely used Spanish catechism for three centuries:
Padre nuestro, que estás en los cielos, santificado sea el tu nombre; venga a nos el tu reino; hágase tu voluntad, así en la tierra como en el cielo.
El pan nuestro de cada día, dánosle hoy; y perdónanos nuestras deudas, así como nosotros perdonamos a nuestros deudores; y no nos dejes caer en la tentación; mas líbranos de mal.
Amén.
Today’s wording at Mass
Since the late 1980s most Spanish-speaking countries pray a common wording at Mass. The main differences from the traditional text are:
| Traditional | Today |
|---|---|
| santificado sea el tu nombre | santificado sea tu nombre |
| venga a nos el tu reino | venga a nosotros tu reino |
| el pan nuestro de cada día, dánosle hoy | danos hoy nuestro pan de cada día |
| perdónanos nuestras deudas, así como nosotros perdonamos a nuestros deudores | perdona nuestras ofensas, como también nosotros perdonamos a los que nos ofenden |
| no nos dejes caer en la tentación; mas líbranos de mal | no nos dejes caer en la tentación, y líbranos del mal |
Both wordings are the same prayer, and both are fine for personal prayer; follow the wording used in your parish when praying together.
How to pronounce the Padre Nuestro
The opening of the traditional text (stressed syllables in capitals):
PAH-dreh NWEHS-troh, keh ehs-TAHS ehn lohs see-EH-lohs,
sahn-tee-fee-KAH-doh SEH-ah ehl too NOHM-breh;
VEHN-gah ah nohs ehl too RRAY-noh;
AH-gah-seh too voh-loon-TAHD, ah-SEE ehn lah tee-EH-rrah KOH-moh ehn ehl see-EH-loh.
Tips: “c” before e or i sounds like “s” in Latin America (cielos); “h” is silent (hágase); the “rr” is rolled (tierra); “j” sounds like a strong “h.”
Line-by-line translation
The traditional text, line by line:
| Spanish (traditional) | English |
|---|---|
| Padre nuestro, que estás en los cielos | Our Father, who art in heaven |
| santificado sea el tu nombre | hallowed be thy name |
| venga a nos el tu reino | thy kingdom come |
| hágase tu voluntad, así en la tierra como en el cielo | thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven |
| el pan nuestro de cada día, dánosle hoy | give us this day our daily bread |
| y perdónanos nuestras deudas | and forgive us our debts (trespasses) |
| así como nosotros perdonamos a nuestros deudores | as we forgive our debtors (those who trespass against us) |
| y no nos dejes caer en la tentación | and lead us not into temptation |
| mas líbranos de mal | but deliver us from evil |
| Amén | Amen |
The Our Father in English
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name.
Thy kingdom come;
Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread;
and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us;
and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
Amen.
Frequently asked questions
How do you say the Our Father in Spanish?
“Padre nuestro, que estás en los cielos, santificado sea tu nombre…” The traditional text is at the top of this page, with the modern differences below it.
Why are there two versions of the Padre Nuestro?
The traditional wording was updated so that Spanish-speaking countries would share one common text at Mass. The meaning is the same.
Do Spanish-speaking Catholics add “for thine is the kingdom”?
Not in the Our Father itself. At Mass, the people answer the priest’s prayer after the Our Father with “Tuyo es el reino, tuyo el poder y la gloria, por siempre, Señor.”
More prayers in Spanish
- Our Father in Aramaic
- Our Father in French
- Our Father in Italian
- Apostles’ Creed in Spanish
- Act of Contrition in Spanish
- Catholic prayers in Spanish
- Hail Mary in Spanish
- Our Father prayer
- Our Father in Latin
- Rosary prayers
- Glory Be prayer
Texts and sources
- Padre Nuestro, Gaspar Astete, Catecismo de la Doctrina Cristiana (1599; Valladolid edition, 1787), public domain (Spanish Wikisource).
- Our Father, Baltimore Catechism No. 3 (Kinkead, 1891), public domain (Project Gutenberg #14553).
- Comparison table, pronunciation guide and translation written for this page; modern wording summarized phrase by phrase.