🐂 Running of the Bulls - Encierro
Beginner Spanish · San Fermín and el encierro
San Fermín and El Encierro in Spanish
El encierro is the bull run associated with the San Fermín festival in Pamplona, Spain. This lesson focuses on language for understanding and describing the event, its route, clothing, crowds, and cultural context.
Your next small win: explain what el encierro is, name important festival vocabulary, ask where San Fermín is celebrated, and describe what spectators might see.
Start with the key words
Core Encierro Vocabulary
These words help you understand basic descriptions of the bull run and the surrounding festival.
Bull
Bull run
To run
Street
Crowd
Festival
Name four encierro words
Say “bull, bull run, street, and crowd” in Spanish.
Toro, encierro, calle y multitud.
More event vocabulary
Runner
Route / course
Bullring
Danger
Look beyond the bull run
San Fermín Festival Vocabulary
El encierro is one part of the larger San Fermín festival in Pamplona. White clothing and a red scarf are strongly associated with the festivities.
Spain
Celebration
White clothing
Red scarf / neckerchief
Music
Party / festivity
The San Fermín festivities are celebrated in Pamplona.
Many people wear white clothing and a red scarf.
The red scarf is a symbol of the festivities.
San Fermín attracts visitors from many countries.
Describe San Fermín
Say that San Fermín is celebrated in Pamplona and that many people wear white clothing and a red scarf.
Las fiestas de San Fermín se celebran en Pamplona.
Muchas personas llevan ropa blanca y un pañuelo rojo.
Describe what happens
The Encierro and Its Route
These phrases describe the event in simple present tense without giving instructions for taking part.
The bulls run through the streets.
The runners move along a designated route.
The bulls travel through the streets.
Many people watch the bull run.
The bull run is part of the San Fermín festivities.
The bull run can be very dangerous.
Useful phrase: formar parte de means “to be part of.” For example, El encierro forma parte de las fiestas de San Fermín.
Talking about the encierro
What is the bull run?
It is a tradition of the San Fermín festivities.
Where do the bulls run?
They run through the streets of Pamplona.
Explain the event
Say that the encierro is part of San Fermín and that the bulls run through the streets.
El encierro forma parte de las fiestas de San Fermín.
Los toros corren por las calles.
Risk and cultural context
The encierro involves significant risk and people can be seriously injured. This lesson describes the event and the Spanish used to discuss it. It does not provide instructions for participating.
The tradition is also controversial, particularly because of concerns about animal welfare and its connection with bullfighting.
Ask about the tradition
Useful Questions About San Fermín
These questions help you learn about the festival, its location, clothing, and the encierro itself.
What is the bull run?
Where is San Fermín celebrated?
Where do the bulls run?
Is the bull run dangerous?
Why do they wear white clothing and red scarves?
Where can we watch the bull run?
Por dónde: use ¿Por dónde...? to ask about the path or route something follows.
Ask about San Fermín
Ask where San Fermín is celebrated, what the encierro is, and where the bulls run.
¿Dónde se celebra San Fermín?
¿Qué es el encierro?
¿Por dónde corren los toros?
Your turn · 8 quick questions
Practice: San Fermín and El Encierro
Choose the answer that best fits each situation. Focus on the festival, location, clothing, route, spectators, and core encierro vocabulary.
Practice complete
You can talk about San Fermín and el encierro in Spanish.
A few San Fermín phrases to revisit
One last step: describe the event without choices.
Say where San Fermín is celebrated, explain what the encierro is, describe what the bulls do, and mention the clothing associated with the festival.
Las fiestas de San Fermín se celebran en Pamplona.
El encierro forma parte de las fiestas de San Fermín.
Los toros corren por las calles.
Muchas personas llevan ropa blanca y un pañuelo rojo.
Which Spanish word refers to the bull run associated with San Fermín?
- encierro
- recorrido
- festival
- multitud
Encierro is the word used for the bull run.
encierro = bull run
You want to ask where San Fermín is celebrated. What do you ask?
- ¿Dónde se celebra San Fermín?
- ¿Qué es San Fermín?
- ¿Por dónde corren los toros?
- ¿Es peligroso San Fermín?
¿Dónde se celebra...? asks where a festival or celebration takes place.
¿Dónde se celebra San Fermín?
San Fermín is celebrated in which city?
- Pamplona
- Valencia
- Madrid
- Sevilla
The San Fermín festivities are celebrated in Pamplona, Spain.
Pamplona
You want to say that the bulls run through the streets. Which sentence fits?
- Los toros corren por las calles.
- Los toros observan las calles.
- Los toros llevan ropa blanca.
- Los toros celebran en Pamplona.
Correr means “to run,” and por las calles means “through the streets.”
Los toros corren por las calles.
You want to ask about the route followed by the bulls. What do you ask?
- ¿Por dónde corren los toros?
- ¿Dónde se celebra San Fermín?
- ¿Qué llevan los corredores?
- ¿Quién observa el encierro?
¿Por dónde...? asks about the path or route something follows.
¿Por dónde corren los toros?
Which clothing is strongly associated with San Fermín in this lesson?
- ropa blanca y un pañuelo rojo
- ropa negra y un pañuelo blanco
- ropa roja y un sombrero blanco
- ropa azul y un pañuelo negro
White clothing and a red scarf are strongly associated with the San Fermín festivities.
ropa blanca y un pañuelo rojo
You want to say that many people watch the encierro. Which sentence fits?
- Muchas personas observan el encierro.
- Muchas personas recorren el encierro.
- Muchas personas celebran el toro.
- Muchas personas llevan el recorrido.
Observar means “to watch” or “to observe.”
Muchas personas observan el encierro.
You want to say that the encierro can be very dangerous. What do you say?
- El encierro puede ser muy peligroso.
- El encierro puede ser muy tranquilo.
- El encierro puede ser una multitud.
- El encierro puede ser ropa blanca.
Puede ser means “can be,” and peligroso means “dangerous.”
El encierro puede ser muy peligroso.