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{{Short description|Song that represents a country or nation}}
{{hatnote group|
 {{redirect|State anthem|the songs of U.S. states|List of U.S. state songs}}
 {{redirect|National Hymn|the U.S. hymn tune|God of Our Fathers}}
 {{other uses|National Anthem (disambiguation)}}
}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2016}}
[[File:Image-Inno di Mameli 2.jpg|thumb|[[Holograph]]ic copy of 1847 of {{lang|it|[[Il Canto degli Italiani]]}}, the Italian national anthem since 1946]]
{{Nationalism sidebar |Development}}
A '''national anthem''' is a [[Patriotism|patriotic]] [[musical composition]] symbolizing and evoking eulogies of the history and traditions of a [[country]] or [[nation]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=National anthem – The World Factbook|url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/field/national-anthem/|access-date=2021-05-27|website=www.cia.gov|archive-date=5 August 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220805175145/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/field/national-anthem/|url-status=dead}}</ref> The majority of national anthems are [[March (music)|marches]] or [[hymn]]s in style. Some countries that are devolved into multiple constituent states have their own official musical compositions for them (such as with the [[United Kingdom]] and the [[Soviet Union]]); their constituencies' songs are sometimes referred to as national anthems even though they are not [[sovereign state]]s.

== History ==
In the [[early modern period]], some [[Monarchies in Europe|European monarchies]] adopted [[Personal anthem|royal anthems]], with several having survived into current use. "[[God Save the King|God Save the King/Queen]]", first performed in 1619, remains the royal anthem of the United Kingdom and the [[Commonwealth realm]]s.{{Citation needed|date=April 2024}} {{lang|es|[[La Marcha Real]]}} was adopted as the royal anthem of the Spanish monarchy in 1770 and as the national anthem of Spain in 1939. Denmark has retained its royal anthem, {{lang|da|[[Kong Christian stod ved højen mast]]}} (1780) alongside its national anthem ({{lang|da|[[Der er et yndigt land]]}}, adopted in 1835).{{Citation needed|date=April 2024}}

In 1795, the [[French First Republic]] adopted {{lang|fr|[[La Marseillaise]]}} as its national anthem by decree, making France the first country in history to have an official national anthem.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Elgenius |first=Gabriella |title=Symbols of Nations and Nationalism |publisher=Palgrave Macmillan |year=2018 |isbn=9780230317048 |pages=141–144}}</ref> Some anthems are older in origin but were not officially adopted until the 19th or 20th century. For example, the lyrics of the Japanese national anthem, ''[[Kimigayo]]'', were taken from a [[Heian period]] (794–1185) poem, but were not set to music until 1880.<ref>Japan Policy Research Institute [http://www.jpri.org/publications/workingpapers/wp79.html JPRI Working Paper No. 79] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181002192508/http://www.jpri.org/publications/workingpapers/wp79.html |date=2 October 2018 }}.</ref> The national anthem of the Netherlands, the ''[[Wilhelmus]]'', contains a melody and lyrics dating back to the 16th century, but it was not officially adopted as the country's national anthem until 1932.<ref>J. Leerssen: National Thought in Europe: A Cultural History, Amsterdam University Press, 2020, p. 103.</ref>

During the early 19th century, it became common for newly formed nations to define national anthems, notably as a result of the [[Spanish American wars of independence|Latin American wars of independence]], for Argentina (1813), Peru (1821), Brazil (1831), but also in Europe for Belgium (1830). Consequently, adoption of national anthems prior to the 1930s was mostly by newly formed or newly independent states, such as the [[First Portuguese Republic]] ({{lang|pt|[[A Portuguesa]]}}, 1911), the [[Kingdom of Greece]] ("[[Hymn to Liberty]]", 1865), the [[First Philippine Republic]] ({{lang|fil|[[Marcha Nacional Filipina]]}}, 1898), Lithuania ({{lang|lt|[[Tautiška giesmė]]}}, 1919), [[Weimar Germany]] ({{lang|de|[[Deutschlandlied]]}}, 1922), Ireland ({{lang|ga|[[Amhrán na bhFiann]]}}, 1926) and [[Greater Lebanon]] ("[[Lebanese National Anthem]]", 1927).

[[File:Handschrift Brussel p-37-38.jpg|thumb|right|Early version of the "Wilhelmus" as preserved in a manuscript of 1617 (Brussels, [[Royal Library of Belgium|Royal Library]], MS 15662, fol. 37v–38r)<ref>M. de Bruin, "Het Wilhelmus tijdens de Republiek", in: L.P. Grijp (ed.), ''Nationale hymnen. Het Wilhelmus en zijn buren. Volkskundig bulletin 24'' (1998), pp. 16–42, 199–200; esp. p. 28 n. 65.</ref>]]

"{{lang|it|[[Il Canto degli Italiani]]}}" was written by [[Goffredo Mameli]] and set to music by [[Michele Novaro]] in 1847,<ref>{{cite web |title=Italy – Il Canto degli Italiani/Fratelli d'Italia |url=http://nationalanthems.me/italy-il-canto-degli-italiani/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180519111307/http://www.nationalanthems.me/italy-il-canto-degli-italiani/ |archive-date=19 May 2018 |access-date=24 November 2011 |website=NationalAnthems.me}}</ref> currently used as the national anthem of Italy. The song was very popular during [[unification of Italy|Italian unification]] and the following decades. However, after the [[proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy|Kingdom of Italy's 1861 proclamation]], the [[Republicanism|republican]] and [[Jacobin (politics)|Jacobin]] connotations of "Il Canto degli Italiani" were difficult to reconcile with the new state's monarchic constitution. The kingdom chose instead "[[Marcia Reale]]" (Royal March), the [[House of Savoy]]'s official anthem, composed by order of King [[Charles Albert of Sardinia]] in 1831. After the [[World War II]], Italy [[1946 Italian institutional referendum|became a republic]]. On 12 October 1946, it chose "Il Canto degli Italiani" as a provisional national anthem. The song would retain this role as ''de facto'' anthem of the Italian Republic, and after several unsuccessful attempts, gained ''[[de jure]]'' status on 4 December 2017.

The [[Olympic Charter]] of 1920 introduced the ritual of playing the national anthems of the gold medal winners. From this time, the playing of national anthems became increasingly popular at international sporting events, creating an incentive for such nations that did not yet have an officially defined national anthem to introduce one.{{efn|A [[Wales|Welsh]] patriotic song, {{lang|cy|[[Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau]]}}, was sung in a [[rugby football|rugby]] game against [[New Zealand]] in [[Llanelli]] in 1905, and came to be regarded as "unofficial national anthem of Wales" after this event.}}

The United States introduced the patriotic song ''[[The Star-Spangled Banner]]'' as a national anthem in 1931. Following this, several nations moved to adopt as official national anthem patriotic songs that had already been in ''[[de facto]]'' use at official functions, such as Mexico ({{lang|es|[[Himno Nacional Mexicano|Mexicanos, al grito de guerra]]}}, composed 1854, adopted 1943) and Switzerland ("[[Swiss Psalm]]", composed 1841, ''de facto'' use from 1961, adopted 1981).

By the period of [[decolonisation]] in the 1960s, it had become common practice for newly independent nations to adopt an official national anthem. Some of these anthems were specifically commissioned, such as the anthem of Kenya, {{lang|sw|[[Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu]]}}, produced by a dedicated "Kenyan Anthem Commission" in 1963.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://nationalanthems.me/kenya-ee-mungu-nguvu-yetu |title=Kenya |access-date=20 March 2015}}</ref>

A number of nations remain without an official national anthem adopted ''de jure''. In these cases, there are established ''de facto'' anthems played at sporting events or diplomatic receptions. These include the United Kingdom (God Save the King) and Sweden ({{lang|sv|[[Du gamla, Du fria]]}}; the country also has a royal anthem, {{lang|sv|[[Kungssangen]]}}). Countries that have moved to officially adopt ''de iure'' their long-standing ''de facto'' anthems since the 1990s include: Luxembourg ({{lang|lb|[[Ons Heemecht]]}}, adopted 1993), South Africa ([[National anthem of South Africa]], adopted 1997) and Israel ({{Transliteration|he|[[Hatikvah]]}}, composed 1888, ''de facto'' use from 1948, adopted 2004).

== Usage ==
[[File:StarSpan1940.ogv|thumb|[[Star-Spangled Banner]] with the American flag (ca. 1940s). Anthems used during [[sign-on and sign-off]] sequences have become less common due to the increasing prevalence of 24-hour-a-day, seven-day-a-week broadcasting.]]
National anthems are used in a wide array of contexts. Certain etiquette may be involved in the playing of a country's anthem. These usually involve military honours, standing up, removing headwear etc. In diplomatic situations the rules may be very formal. There may also be [[royal anthem]]s, [[presidential anthem]]s, [[state anthem]]s etc. for special occasions.

They are played on [[National Day|national holidays]] and festivals, and have also come to be closely connected with sporting events. Wales was the first country to adopt this, during a [[Rugby football|rugby]] game against New Zealand in 1905. Since then during sporting competitions, such as the [[Olympic Games]], the national anthem of the [[gold medal]] winner is played at each [[Podium|medal ceremony]]; also played before games in many sports leagues, since being adopted in baseball during World War II.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.si.com/more-sports/photos/2007/11/05musical-traditions-in-sports#18 |title=Musical traditions in sports | work=SportsIllustrated}}</ref> When teams from two nations play each other, the anthems of both nations are played, the host nation's anthem being played last.

In some countries, the national anthem is played to students each day at the start and/or end of school as an exercise in patriotism, such as in Tanzania.<ref name=aa>{{cite web|url=http://allafrica.com/stories/201306170026.html |title=Tanzania: Dons Fault Court Over Suspension of Students (Page 1 of 2) |publisher=allAfrica.com |date=2013-06-17 |access-date=2014-06-19}}</ref> In other countries the state anthem may be played in a theatre before a play or in a cinema before a movie. Many radio and television stations have adopted this and play the national anthem when they [[sign on]] in the morning and again when they [[sign off]] at night. For instance, the national anthem of China is played before the broadcast of evening news on Hong Kong's local television stations including [[TVB Jade]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/c107b76c-43d7-11dd-842e-0000779fd2ac.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924142745/http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/c107b76c-43d7-11dd-842e-0000779fd2ac.html#axzz1yuMVoexp|archive-date=24 September 2015|url-access=subscription|title=Identity: Nationalism confronts a desire to be different|work=Financial Times|date=29 June 2008|access-date=20 March 2015|url-status=bot: unknown}}</ref> In Colombia, it is a law to play the [[National Anthem of Colombia|National Anthem]] at 6:00 and 18:00 on every public radio and television station, while in Thailand, "[[Phleng Chat Thai]]" is played at 08:00 and 18:00 nationwide (the [[Phleng Sansoen Phra Barami|Royal Anthem]] is used for sign-ons and closedowns instead),
also in Indonesia, [[National anthem of Indonesia|Indonesia Raya]] is played at 06:00 on national [[television network]]s started from December 11, 2024 as mandated by president [[Prabowo Subianto]],<ref>{{Cite news| url=https://www.viva.co.id/english/1783002-mandatory-morning-airing-of-indonesia-raya-on-all-indonesian-tv-channels?page=all|title =Mandatory Morning Airing of 'Indonesia Raya' on All Indonesian TV Channels|work =VIVA |access-date =April 1, 2025}}</ref> while [[TVRI]] is the only national television that played it twice at 06:00 and 18:00. The use of a national anthem outside of its country, however, is dependent on the international recognition of that country. For instance, Taiwan has not been [[Political status of Taiwan|recognized]] by the [[International Olympic Committee]] as a separate nation since 1979 and must compete as [[Chinese Taipei Olympic Committee|Chinese Taipei]]; its "[[National Banner Song]]" is used instead of its [[National Anthem of the Republic of China|national anthem]].<ref>[[Yomiuri Shimbun]] [http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/national/20070806TDY02005.htm Foul cried over Taiwan anthem at hoop tourney] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130502031831/http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/national/20070806TDY02005.htm |date=2 May 2013 }}. Published 6 August 2007</ref> In Taiwan, the country's national anthem is sung before instead of during [[Flag of the Republic of China|flag-rising and flag-lowering]], followed by the National Banner Song during the actual flag-rising and flag-lowering. Even within a state, the state's citizenry may interpret the national anthem differently (such as in the United States some view the [[The Star-Spangled Banner|U.S. national anthem]] as representing respect for dead soldiers and policemen whereas others view it as honouring the country generally).<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nfl/2017/09/26/how-national-anthem-become-essential-part-sports/706243001/|title=How national anthem became essential part of sports|work=USA Today|access-date=September 27, 2017|language=en}}</ref>

Various solutions may be used when countries with different national anthems compete in a unified team. When [[North Korea]] and [[South Korea]] [[Korea at the 2018 Winter Olympics|participated together in the 2018 Winter Olympics]], the folk song "[[Arirang]]", beloved on both sides of the border and seen as a symbol of Korea as a whole, was used as an anthem instead of the national anthem of either state.<ref name=playsfirst>{{cite news|last1=Watson|first1=Ivan|last2=Ko|first2=Stella|last3=McKenzie|first3=Sheena|title=Joint Korean ice hockey team plays for first time ahead of Olympics|url=https://edition.cnn.com/2018/02/04/sport/north-south-korea-ice-hockey-intl/index.html|access-date=5 February 2018|work=CNN|date=5 February 2018}}</ref>

== Creators ==
[[File:Pils rouget lisle chantant marseillaise mb (Musée).jpg|thumb|Rouget de Lisle performing "La Marseillaise" for the first time]]
Most of the best-known national anthems were written by little-known or unknown composers such as [[Claude Joseph Rouget de Lisle]], composer of "[[La Marseillaise]]" and [[John Stafford Smith]] who wrote the tune for "[[The Anacreontic Song]]", which became the tune for the U.S. national anthem, "[[The Star-Spangled Banner]]". The author of "God Save the King", one of the oldest and best-known anthems in the world, is unknown and disputed.

Very few countries have a national anthem written by a world-renowned composer. Exceptions include Germany, whose anthem "[[Das Lied der Deutschen]]" uses a melody written by [[Joseph Haydn]], and Austria, whose national anthem "[[Land der Berge, Land am Strome]]" is sometimes credited to [[Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart]]. The music of the "[[Pontifical Anthem]]", anthem of the Vatican City, was composed in 1869 by [[Charles Gounod]], for the [[golden jubilee]] of [[Pope Pius IX]]'s priestly ordination. When Armenia was under Soviet rule, its anthem, the "[[Anthem of the Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic]]" used a melody by [[Aram Khachaturian]].

The committee charged with choosing a [[Negaraku|national anthem for the Federation of Malaya]] (later Malaysia) at independence decided to invite selected composers of international repute to submit compositions for consideration, including [[Benjamin Britten]], [[William Walton]], [[Gian Carlo Menotti]] and [[Zubir Said]], who later composed "[[Majulah Singapura]]", the national anthem of Singapore. None were deemed suitable. The tune eventually selected was (and still is) the [[Allah Lanjutkan Usia Sultan|anthem]] of the constituent state of [[Perak]], which was in turn adopted from a popular French melody titled "La Rosalie" composed by the lyricist [[Pierre-Jean de Béranger]].

A few anthems have words by [[Nobel Prize in Literature|Nobel laureates in literature]]. The first Asian laureate, [[Rabindranath Tagore]], wrote the words and music of "[[Jana Gana Mana]]" (the first [[stanza]] of the original song "[[Bharoto Bhagyo Bidhata]]") and "[[Amar Shonar Bangla]]", later adopted as the national anthems of [[India]] and [[Bangladesh]] respectively. Both songs are originally composed in [[Bengali language|Bengali]]. Tagore is the only individual to have written the national anthems of two countries. The national anthem of [[Sri Lanka]], "[[Sri Lanka Matha|Nama Nama Sri Lanka Mata]]," is also directly influenced by [[Rabindranath Tagore]]. While Tagore didn't compose the anthem himself, he inspired his student, [[Ananda Samarakoon]], who wrote the music and lyrics, and translated them into [[Sinhala language|Sinhala]]. Tagore initially composed the song in [[Bengali language|Bengali]] and [[melody]] in 1938. [[Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson]] wrote the lyrics for the Norwegian national anthem "[[Ja, vi elsker dette landet]]".

Other countries had their anthems composed by locally important people. This is the case for Colombia, whose [[National Anthem of Colombia|anthem's]] lyrics were written by former president and poet [[Rafael Núñez (politician)|Rafael Nuñez]], who also wrote the country's first constitution, and in Malta, written by [[Dun Karm Psaila]], already a [[National poet|National Poet]]. A similar case is Liberia, the national [[All Hail, Liberia, Hail!|anthem]] of which was written by its third president, [[Daniel Bashiel Warner]].

== Languages ==
A national anthem, when it has lyrics (as is usually the case), is most often in the [[national language|national]] or most common language of the country, whether ''de facto'' or [[Official language|official]], though there are notable exceptions. Most commonly, states with more than one [[national language]] may offer several versions of their anthem, for instance:
* The "[[Swiss Psalm]]", the national anthem of Switzerland, has different lyrics for each of the country's four [[official language]]s (French, German, Italian and [[Romansh language|Romansh]]).
* The national anthem of Canada, "[[O Canada]]", has official lyrics in both English and French which are not translations of each other, and is frequently sung with a mixture of stanzas, representing the country's [[Bilingualism in Canada|bilingual nature]]. The song itself was originally written in French.
* "[[Flower of Scotland]]", the unofficial [[National anthem of Scotland|national anthem]] of [[Scotland]], features some words written and spoken in the [[Scots language]]<ref>{{cite web |title=O Flower of Scotland |url=https://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryUK/HistoryofScotland/O-Flower-of-Scotland/ |website=Historic UK |access-date=27 April 2024}}</ref>
* "[[Amhrán na bhFiann|The Soldier's Song]]", the national anthem of Ireland, was originally written and adopted in English, but an Irish translation, although never formally adopted, is nowadays almost always sung instead, even though only 10.5% of Ireland speaks Irish natively.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.cso.ie/en/releasesandpublications/ep/p-cp10esil/p10esil/|title=Census of Population 2016 – Profile 10 Education, Skills and the Irish Language – CSO – Central Statistics Office|date=23 November 2017 |language=en|access-date=2018-02-11|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180212083359/http://www.cso.ie/en/releasesandpublications/ep/p-cp10esil/p10esil/|archive-date=12 February 2018|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}}</ref>
* The current [[National anthem of South Africa|South African national anthem]] is unique in that five of the country's eleven official languages are used in the same anthem (the first [[stanza]] is divided between two languages, with each of the remaining three stanzas in a different language). It was created by combining two songs together and then modifying the lyrics and adding new ones.
* The former country of Czechoslovakia combined the two national anthems of the two lands; the first stanza consisting of the first stanza of the Czech anthem "[[Kde domov můj]]", and the second stanza consisting of the first stanza of the Slovak anthem "[[Nad Tatrou sa blýska]]".
* One of the two official national anthems of New Zealand, "[[God Defend New Zealand]]", is now commonly sung with the first verse in [[Māori language|Māori]] ("Aotearoa") and the second in English ("God Defend New Zealand"). The tune is the same but the words are not a direct translation of each other.
* "[[God Bless Fiji]]" has lyrics in English and [[Fijian language|Fijian]] which are not translations of each other. Although official, the Fijian version is rarely sung, and it is usually the English version that is performed at international sporting events.
* Although Singapore has [[Languages of Singapore|four official languages]], with English being the current ''[[lingua franca]]'', the national anthem, "[[Majulah Singapura]]" is in [[Malay language|Malay]] and, by law, can only be sung with its original Malay lyrics, despite Malay being a minority language in Singapore. This is because Part XIII of the Constitution of the Republic of Singapore declares, "the national language shall be the Malay language and shall be in the Roman script [...]"
* There are several countries that do not have official lyrics to their national anthems. One of these is the "[[Marcha Real]]", the national anthem of Spain. Although it originally had lyrics, those lyrics were discontinued after governmental changes in the early 1980s after [[Francisco Franco]]'s dictatorship ended. In 2007, a national competition to write words was held, but no lyrics were chosen.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.economist.com/europe/2007/07/26/lost-for-words|title=Spain: Lost for words |newspaper=The Economist|date=26 July 2007|access-date=20 March 2015}}</ref> Other national anthems with no words include "[[Inno Nazionale della Repubblica]]", the national anthem of [[San Marino]], that of [[Bosnia and Herzegovina]], that of [[Russia]] from 1990 to 2000, and that of [[Kosovo]], entitled "[[Europe (anthem)|Europe]]".
* The national anthem of [[India]], "[[Jana Gana Mana]]" has its official lyrics in [[Bengali language|Bengali]]; they were adapted from a poem written by [[Rabindranath Tagore]], who also wrote the music.
* Despite the most common language in [[Wales]] being English, the unofficial national anthem of Wales, "[[Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau]]" is sung in the [[Welsh language]].
* An unofficial national anthem of Finland, "[[Maamme]]", was first written in [[Swedish language|Swedish]] and only later translated to Finnish. It is nowadays sung in both languages as there is a [[Finland Swedish|Swedish speaking minority]] of about 5% in the country. The national anthem of Estonia, "[[Mu isamaa, mu õnn ja rõõm]]" has a similar melody with "Maamme", but only with different lyrics and without repeating the second halves of strophes. ''[[Finlandia]]'' has been repeatedly suggested to be the official national anthem of Finland.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://yle.fi/uutiset/3-7675489|title=Sibeliuksen Finlandia syntyi vapauden kaipuusta, sävelet kertovat Suomen kansan noususta|date=8 December 2014|website=YLE Uutiset}}</ref>
* The national anthem of [[Pakistan]], the "[[Qaumi Taranah]]", is unique in that it is entirely in [[Persian language|Farsi (Persian)]] with the exception of one word which is in [[Urdu]], the national language.

== See also ==
* [[Personal anthem]], for a monarch or representative of a monarch, often in addition to a national anthem or being a national anthem itself
* [[Earth anthem]] (unofficial), any song or music with the planet Earth in an exalted role
* [[List of national anthems]]
* [[Martial music]]
* [[List of former national anthems]]
* [[List of regional anthems]]

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

== References ==
{{reflist}}

== External links ==
{{Commons}}
{{Wikiquote|National anthems}}
{{Wikidata property|P85}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20120424213330/http://www.nationalanthems.me/ NationalAnthems.me] – national anthems of every country in the world (and historical national anthems) with streaming audio, lyrics, information and links
* [http://www.lengua.com/hymnen.htm National Anthems (mp3 files)]
* [https://www.govjobportal.net/2018/09/national-anthem-of-india-in-hindi.html National anthem of India] {{in lang|hi}}. {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181209123912/https://www.govjobportal.net/2018/09/national-anthem-of-india-in-hindi.html |date=9 December 2018 }}.
* [http://www.nationalanthems.info Nationalanthems.info], lyrics and history of national anthems
* [http://www.national-symbol.com/ Recordings of countries' anthems (mp3 files)]{{Dead link|date=August 2025 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20150713134832/http://www.navyband.navy.mil/anthems.shtml Recordings of countries' anthems around the world] by the [[United States Navy Band]]
{{Nationalanthemsoftheworld}}
{{Nationalism}}

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[[Category:National anthems| ]]
[[Category:Articles containing video clips]]