An anthem is a musical composition of celebration, usually used as a symbol for a distinct group, particularly the national anthems of countries. Originally, and in music theory and religious contexts, it also refers more particularly to short sacred choral work and still more particularly to a specific form of liturgical music. In this sense, its use began c. 1550 in English-speaking churches; it uses English language words, in contrast to the originally Roman Catholic 'motet' which sets a Latin text.
"Poland Is Not Yet Lost", also known as the "Dąbrowski Mazurka", and the "Song of the Polish Legions in Italy", is the national anthem of Poland. The original lyrics were written by Józef Wybicki in Reggio Emilia, in Northern Italy, between 16 and 19 July 1797, two years after the Third Partition of Poland marked the end of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. Its initial purpose was to raise the morale of Jan Henryk Dąbrowski's Polish Legions that served with Napoleon Bonaparte in the Italian campaigns of the French Revolutionary Wars. The song expressed the idea that the nation of Poland, despite lacking an independent state of their own, had not disappeared as long as the Polish people endured and fought in its name.
"La Brabançonne" is the national anthem of Belgium. The originally French title refers to the Duchy of Brabant; the name is usually untranslated in Belgium's other two official languages, Dutch and German.
"Lupang Hinirang", originally titled in Spanish as "Marcha Nacional Filipina", and commonly and informally known by its incipit "Bayang Magiliw", is the national anthem of the Philippines. Its music was composed in 1898 by Julián Felipe, and the lyrics were adopted from the Spanish poem "Filipinas", written by José Palma in 1899.
The "Himnusz" is the national anthem of Hungary. The lyrics were written by Ferenc Kölcsey, a nationally renowned poet, in 1823, and its currently official musical setting was composed by the romantic composer Ferenc Erkel in 1844, although other lesser known musical versions exist. The poem bore the subtitle „A magyar nép zivataros századaiból” ; it is often argued that this subtitle – by emphasising past rather than contemporary national troubles – was added expressly to enable the poem to pass Habsburg censorship. The full meaning of the poem's text is evident only to those well acquainted with Hungarian history. The first stanza is sung at official ceremonies and as well in common. It was de facto used as hymn of the Kingdom of Hungary from its composition in 1844, and was officially adopted as national anthem of the Third Hungarian Republic in 1989.
"God Save the Tsar!" was the national anthem of the Russian Empire. The song was chosen from a competition held in 1833 and was first performed on 18 December 1833. It was composed by violinist Alexei Lvov, with lyrics written by the court poet Vasily Zhukovsky. It was the anthem until the February Revolution of 1917, after which "Worker's Marseillaise" was adopted as the new national anthem until the overthrow of the Russian Provisional Government by the Bolsheviks in the October Revolution of the same year.
The "Swiss Psalm" is the national anthem of Switzerland.
"Dievs, svētī Latviju" is the national anthem of Latvia. Created in 1873 as a patriotic song, it did not gain official status until 1920.
The State Anthem of Ukraine, also known by its incipit "Šče ne vmerla Ukrainy i slava, i volia" and its original title "Šče ne vmerla Ukraina", is one of the state symbols of Ukraine.
The "Brazilian National Anthem" was composed by Francisco Manuel da Silva in 1831 and had been given at least two sets of unofficial lyrics before a 1922 decree by president Epitácio Pessoa gave the anthem its definitive, official lyrics, by Joaquim Osório Duque-Estrada, after several changes were made to his proposal, written in 1909.
"Nokor Reach" is the national anthem of Cambodia. It is based on a Cambodian folk tune and was written by Chuon Nath.
The "State Anthem of the Russian Federation" is the national anthem of Russia. It uses the same melody as the "State Anthem of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics", composed by Alexander Alexandrov, and new lyrics by Sergey Mikhalkov, who had collaborated with Gabriel El-Registan on the original anthem. From 1944, that earliest version replaced "The Internationale" as a new, more Soviet-centric and Russia-centric Soviet anthem. The same melody, but without any lyrics, was used after 1956. A second version of the lyrics was written by Mikhalkov in 1970 and adopted in 1977, placing less emphasis on World War II and more on the victory of communism, and without mentioning Joseph Stalin by name.
The State Anthem of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics was the national anthem of the Soviet Union and the regional anthem of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic from 1944 to 1991, replacing "The Internationale". Its original lyrics were written by Sergey Mikhalkov (1913–2009) in collaboration with El-Registan (1899–1945), and its music was composed by Alexander Alexandrov (1883–1946). For a two-decade interval following de-Stalinization, the anthem was performed without lyrics. The second set of lyrics, also written by Mikhalkov and in which Stalin's name was omitted, was adopted in 1977.
The State Anthem of the Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic was the national anthem of Armenia when it was a republic of the Soviet Union and known as the Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic. It was used between 1944 and 1991. Its music was composed by Armenian composer Aram Khachaturian, and the lyrics were written by Sarmen. Along with the Anthem of the Estonian SSR, it is one of the only two SSR anthems without an intro.
"Azərbaycan marşı" is the national anthem of Azerbaijan. The music was composed by Uzeyir Hajibeyov, and the lyrics were written by poet Ahmad Javad or cultural figure and politician Jamo bey Hajinski. The government officially adopted the anthem in 1920, with the passage of the decree, "On the State Hymn of the Republic of Azerbaijan". In 1992, after the fall of the Soviet Union, Azerbaijan's government officially restored "Azərbaycan Marşı" as the national anthem.
The "Worker's Marseillaise" is a Russian revolutionary song named after "La Marseillaise", the current national anthem of France. It is based on a poem of Pyotr Lavrov, first published on 1 July 1875 in London as "A New Song". The poem reflects a radical socialist program and calls for the violent destruction of the Russian monarchy. At the end of 1875 or in 1876, this poem began to be sung in Russia to the melody of the last verse of Robert Schumann's song "Die beiden grenadiere". Schumann's melody is inspired by the original Marseillaise, but is noticeably different from it. Thus, the melody of the Worker's Marseillaise is only indirectly related to the original Marseillaise, and the lyrics not at all. The song is close to the cruel romance genre, and this influenced its popularity. The name the "Worker's Marseillaise" has been fixed since the 1890s.
The State Anthem of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic, known by its incipit "We Sing the Praises of Transnistria" and also simply known as the Anthem of Transnistria, was written by Boris Parmenov, Nicholas Bozhko and Vitaly Pishchenko, and composed by Boris Alexandrovich Alexandrov. The anthem has lyrics in all three official languages of Transnistria: Russian, Romanian, and Ukrainian. They are, however, not all literal translations of one another. The origin of the anthem was from the Russian patriotic song "Long Live Our State", a 1943 composition that was one of the proposed songs to be the State Anthem of the Soviet Union. Boris Alexandrov's composition was, however, rejected in favor of the one submitted by his father, Alexander Alexandrov.
"Rufst du, mein Vaterland" was the former national anthem of Switzerland. It had the status of de facto national anthem from the formation of Switzerland as a federal state in the 1840s, until 1961, when it was replaced by the Swiss Psalm.
"God Defend New Zealand" is one of two national anthems of New Zealand, the other being "God Save the King". Legally the two have equal status, but "God Defend New Zealand" is more commonly used. Originally written as a poem, it was set to music as part of a competition in 1876. Over the years its popularity increased, and it was eventually named the second national anthem in 1977. It has English and Māori lyrics, with slightly different meanings. Since the late 1990s, the usual practice when performed in public is to perform the first verse of the national anthem twice, first in Māori and then in English.
"The Red Army Is the Strongest", popularly known by its incipit "White Army, Black Baron", is a Soviet march song written by Pavel Gorinshtein and composed by Samuel Pokrass. Written in 1920, during the Russian Civil War, the song was meant as a combat anthem for the Red Army.
