The Finnish anthem(s)

Three years ago, in 2017, Finland celebrated the centenary of its independence (see my article ‘Finland in a nutshell‘). During these celebrations, I heard the fact Finland had two national anthems, an official and an unofficial.
Let me share you my research about this.

‘Maamme’, the official national anthem of Finland:

‘Maamme’ (our land) is the official Finnish national anthem. It is composed of the first and the last verse of the translation of the Swedish poem ‘Vårt land’ written in 1846 by Johan Ludvig Runeberg. The music, composed by the German Fredrik Pacius in 1848, is common with the national anthem of Estonia and Sweden.
You can listen to the Finnish anthem here:

The translation of the song in English:

Our Land

Our land, our land, our fatherland,
Sound loud, O name of worth!
No mount that meets the heaven’s band.
No hidden vale, no wavewashed strand.
Is loved, as is our native North. Our own forefathers’ earth.

Thy blossom, in the bud laid low,
Yet ripened shall upspring.
See! From our love once more shall grow
Thy light, thy joy, thy hope, thy glow!
And clearer yet one day shall ring The song our land shall sing.

‘Finlandia Hymne’, the symphonic poem by Jean Sibelius:

Even if Maamme is the official anthem, Finnish people prefer the song Finlandia hymne from the symphonic poem Finlandia by Sibelius. It’s one of the most important songs in Finland. Sibelius composed this music in 1899 with the goal of illustrating Finland’s past. The text of the song was written by Veikko Antero Koskenniemi in 1939.

Finland, behold, thy daylight now is dawning,
the threat of night has now been driven away.
The skylark calls across the light of morning,
the blue of heaven lets it have its way,
and now the day the powers of night is scorning:
thy daylight dawns, O Finland of ours!

Finland, arise, and raise towards the highest
thy head now crowned with mighty memory.
Finland, arise, for to the world thou criest
that thou hast thrown off thy slavery,
beneath oppression’s yoke thou never liest.
Thy morning’s come, O Finland of ours!

I strongly hope you learn something about Finland today!

See you soon!
Clément

Sources:

• Sibelius.fi. (2020). Finlandia. Retrieved from Sibelius.fi: http://www.sibelius.fi/english/musiikki/ork_finlandia.htm
• This is Finland. (2020). Finlandia by Jean Sibelius. Retrieved from This is Finland: https://finland.fi/arts-culture/finlandia-by-jean-sibelius/
• This is Finland. (2020). The Finnish national anthem. Retrieved from This is Finland: https://finland.fi/facts-stats-and-info/the-finnish-national-anthem/