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Explore the Craft of Writing Poetry Spanish Verse The Vilancico, (Vilancente in Portugese) is a genre of verse that originated in the late 15th century on the Iberian Peninsula which today includes Portugal and Spain. It appears to have been inspired by the Glosa. There is more than one variation of the form. It began as a medieval secular genre written with rustic themes but in Spain, by the mid 16th century it became a standard frame for liturgical verse sung at Matins. Eventually the form became associated with the Spanish Christmas Carol. The Portugese themes were often pastoral or lament over unreturned love. The form was picked up in the Latin colonies and was known for incorporating dialects and rhythms from the various ethnic cultures. The elements of The Vilancico as described in the NPEOPP are: sometimes, but not always, written with a mote or introductory stanza that is glossed in the body of the poem. strophic, with usually about 6 strophes of approximately 6 lines each. syllabic, lines of equal length. rhymed, scheme at the discretion of the poet. written with a refrain. When opened with a mote, the lines of the mote are repeated as a refrain in subsequent strophes similar to the Glosa. When written without a mote, the last couplet of the first strophe is often repeated as a refrain in subsequent strophes similar to the Villanelle. often didactic, especially in the Latin colonies to educate the converts of the new world. The elements of the Vilancente of Portugal are: always written with a mote of 2 or 3 lines, the last line of which also serves as a refrain to the subsequent stanzas. stanzaic, written in any number of septets. syllabic, "old measure" which is 5 or 7 syllables. rhymed, rhyme scheme (mote abB) cddccbB effeebB etc. The elements of the Vilancico found at Vole Central are: a verse form, written in 2 sixains followed by an octave.(20 lines) syllabic, L1-L4 of each stanza are 7 syllables each. L5-L6 of the first 2 stanzas and in the last stanza, L5-L8 each line is 6 syllables. rhymed ababAC1 dedeDC2 ccccAC1DC2. written with a refrain, L5 is repeated as L9, L6 repeated as L20, L11 is repeated as L19 and L12 is repeated as L20.