Nadal

Cant de la Sibil-la

The Cant de la Sibil-la is a custom that has been known in Menorca and the Balearic Islands since the early Middle Ages.

The Cant de la Sibil-la is performed as part of the liturgy of the Christmas mass. Sung by a solo a cappella voice in Catalan, it was once widespread throughout the Iberian region, but today the traditional singing of the sibyl on Christmas Eve can only be heard in a few places in the Mediterranean.

The Song of the Sybil was inscribed on 16 November 2010 on UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

In the church of Santa Maria de Maó it was recovered following the text of an 18th century manuscript version.