View source for Finlandia hymn

[[File:Finlandia première édition.gif|thumb|First edition of the reduction of Sibelius Finlandia]]
{{Short description|Section of Sibelius' Finlandia}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2019}}
{{italics title|string=Finlandia}}
The '''''Finlandia'' hymn''' ({{langx|fi|Finlandia-hymni}}) refers to a serene [[hymn]]-like section of the patriotic [[symphonic poem]] ''[[Finlandia]]'', written in 1899 and 1900 by the [[Finnish people|Finnish]] composer [[Jean Sibelius]]. It was later re-worked by the composer into a stand-alone piece.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.hymnary.org/tune/finlandia_sibelius|title=Hymn Tune Finlandia|website=Hymnary.org}}</ref> With words written in 1940 by [[Veikko Antero Koskenniemi]],<ref name="lieder-net">{{Cite web|url=https://www.lieder.net/lieder/get_text.html?TextId=9594|title=Finlandia-hymni|website=lieder.net}}</ref> it is one of the most important [[nationalism|national]] songs of [[Finland]].<ref>{{cite book|author=Tomi Mäkelä|title=Jean Sibelius|publisher=Boydell Press|year=2011|isbn=9781843836889|page=300}}</ref> Although not the official [[national anthem]] of Finland, it has been continuously proposed as such.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|url=https://yle.fi/uutiset/3-7675489|title=Sibeliuksen Finlandia syntyi vapauden kaipuusta, sävelet kertovat Suomen kansan noususta|language=fi|trans-title=Sibelius's Finland was born of a longing for freedom, the melody tells of the rise of the Finnish people|first=Paavo |last=Koponen |date=December 8, 2014 |website=Yle}}</ref>

Other major uses of the tune include several Christian [[hymn]]s and other [[national song]]s.

==Finnish national song==
After the success of the full-length symphonic poem (most of which consists of rousing and turbulent passages, evoking [[Russification of Finland|the national struggle]] of the Finnish people), Sibelius published a stand-alone version of the hymn as the last of twelve numbers in his ''Masonic Ritual Music'', Op. 113, with a text by opera singer [[Wäinö Sola]]. The version usually heard today has lyrics written by Koskenniemi in 1940 and was first performed in 1941. Sibelius himself arranged the [[hymn]] for choral performances.<ref>Arnold, Elliott. ''Finlandia: the story of Sibelius''. H. Holt and Company, 1941.</ref> Today, during modern performances of ''Finlandia'' in its entirety, a choir is sometimes involved, singing the Finnish lyrics with the hymn section.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Finlandia|title=Finlandia, Tone Poem For Orchestra By Sibelius|last=Schwarm|first=Betsy|website=[[Encyclopædia Britannica]]|access-date=6 July 2018}}</ref>

The ''Finlandia'' hymn is often proposed as an official national song or anthem of Finland.<ref name=":0"/> 
<!-- Please do not add Finnish words by V. A. Koskenniemi before year 2033, because they are copyrighted; Koskenniemi died in 1962, and copyright time is 70 years.-->

==International anthem==

In 1934, [[Lloyd Stone]] wrote "[[This is my song (1934 song)|This is my song]]", to the ''Finlandia'' tune, as an international song of peace. An expanded version with Christian themes by a later author appears in many hymnals.<ref name="Daw2016">{{cite book|last=Daw Jr|first=Carl P.|title=Glory to God: A Companion|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CcleDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA344|date=25 May 2016|publisher=Westminster John Knox Press|location=Louisville, Kentucky|isbn=978-1-61164-652-8|pages=344–5}}</ref>

Conductor [[Leopold Stokowski]] proposed using the melody for a worldwide [[anthem]].<ref name=":0"/>

==Christian hymns==
[[File:Finlandia - 20 Uchaf Emynau Cymru - The Top 20 Best.ogg|thumb|The opening bars, sung in [[Welsh language|Welsh]] by John Eifion and Côr Penyberth]]
Other words commonly set to the tune include some Christian hymns. Among those in widespread use across English-speaking denominations are "Be still, my soul"<ref name="hymntime-be-still">{{cite web | url=http://www.hymntime.com/tch/htm/b/e/s/bestmyso.htm | title=Be Still, My Soul | publisher=Cyberhymnal | access-date=15 November 2013 | archive-date=23 March 2014 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140323135940/http://www.hymntime.com/tch/htm/b/e/s/bestmyso.htm | url-status=dead }}</ref> and "We rest on Thee, our shield and our defender".<ref name="hymnary-we-rest">{{cite web | url=https://hymnary.org/text/we_rest_on_thee_our_shield_and_our_defen |title=We Rest on Thee |website=Hymnary.org |access-date=3 December 2019}}</ref>

==="Be still, my soul"===
The Christian [[hymn]] "Be still, my soul", written in German ''("Stille mein Wille, dein Jesus hilft siegen")'' in 1752 by the Lutheran hymnwriter [[Catharina von Schlegel]] (1697–1777) and translated into English in 1855 by [[Jane Laurie Borthwick]] (1813–1897), is usually sung to this tune.<ref name="hymntime-be-still" /> It begins:

{{quote|<poem>Be still, my soul, the Lord is on thy side;
Bear patiently the cross of grief or pain.
Leave to thy God to order and provide;
In every change He faithful will remain.
Be still, my soul, thy best, thy heavenly friend
Through thorny ways leads to a joyful end.</poem>}}

==="We rest on Thee"===
The hymn "We rest on Thee", written by Edith G. Cherry around 1895, is also commonly sung to the tune.<ref name="hymnary-we-rest" /> Its first verse is:

{{quote|<poem>We rest on Thee, our Shield and our Defender!
We go not forth alone against the foe;
Strong in Thy strength, safe in Thy keeping tender,
We rest on Thee, and in Thy Name we go.
Strong in Thy strength, safe in Thy keeping tender,
We rest on Thee, and in Thy Name we go.</poem>}}

==Other uses==
The tune was adopted for [[Biafra]]'s national anthem, ''[[Land of the Rising Sun (national anthem)|Land of the Rising Sun]]'', during its attempted secession from [[Nigeria]] in the late 1960s.<ref name=":0"/>

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On a smaller scale it also serves as the tune for the songs of various colleges and schools.

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
* [http://finland.fi/Public/default.aspx?contentid=160087&nodeid=41803&culture=en-US thisisFINLAND: Facts & stats – the national anthem]

{{Jean Sibelius}}
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[[Category:Choral compositions by Jean Sibelius]]
[[Category:Hymn tunes]]
[[Category:1899 compositions]]
[[Category:1938 songs]]
[[Category:1940 songs]]
[[Category:Songs about Finland]]
[[Category:Finnish-language choral compositions]]

[[de:Finlandia#Die „Finlandia-Hymne“]]
[[es:Finlandia (Sibelius)#El Himno "Finlandia"]]
[[eu:Finlandia (Sibelius)#"Finlandia" ereserkia]]
[[fr:Finlandia (poème symphonique)#Versions chantées]]
[[ja:フィンランディア#フィンランディア賛歌]]