Anthem of Estonian SSR
Encyclopedia
Anthem
The term anthem means either a specific form of Anglican church music , or more generally, a song of celebration, usually acting as a symbol for a distinct group of people, as in the term "national anthem" or "sports anthem".-Etymology:The word is derived from the Greek via Old English , a word...
of the Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic
Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic
The Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic , often abbreviated as Estonian SSR or ESSR, was a republic of the Soviet Union, administered by and subordinated to the Government of the Soviet Union...
, a republic of the Soviet Union. It was official from 1945 to 1990.
During the decades of the Soviet occupation of Estonia
Estonia
Estonia , officially the Republic of Estonia , is a state in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea, to the south by Latvia , and to the east by Lake Peipsi and the Russian Federation . Across the Baltic Sea lies...
, the original Estonian anthem was strictly forbidden. Throughout the years of prohibition, Lydia Koidula
Lydia Koidula
Lydia Emilie Florentine Jannsen, , known after her pen name Lydia Koidula was an Estonian poet. Her sobriquet means ‘Lydia of the Dawn’ in Estonian. It was given her by the writer Carl Robert Jakobson...
's poem, Mu isamaa on minu arm
Mu isamaa on minu arm
Mu isamaa on minu arm is an Estonian poem by Lydia Koidula. The poem was first set to music for the first Estonian Song Festival in 1869 by Aleksander Kunileid....
, with a melody by Gustav Ernesaks
Gustav Ernesaks
Gustav Ernesaks was an Estonian composer and a choir conductor....
served as means of expressing national feelings, and was regarded as an unofficial anthem of Estonia. With the restoration of Estonian independence in 1991 however, the national anthem from 1920 by Fredrik Pacius
Fredrik Pacius
Fredrik Pacius was a German composer and conductor who lived most of his life in Finland. He has been called the "Father of Finnish music"....
with lyrics by Johann Voldemar Jannsen
Johann Voldemar Jannsen
Johann Voldemar Jannsen was an Estonian journalist and poet active in Livonia....
has been restored.
Background
The music of the Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic's anthem was composed by Gustav ErnesaksGustav Ernesaks
Gustav Ernesaks was an Estonian composer and a choir conductor....
, and the lyrics were written by Johannes Semper
Johannes Semper
Johannes Semper was an Estonian writer and translator.A student and later a prominent scholar at the University of Tartu, he was briefly nominated as Minister for Education of the Estonian SSR when the country was occupied by the Soviet Union in 1940.He wrote the lyrics of the Anthem of Estonian...
. It and the Karelo-Finnish SSR
Anthem of Karelo-Finnish SSR
The State Anthem of the Karelo-Finnish SSR was the national anthem of Karelia when it was a republic of the Soviet Union and known as the Karelo-Finnish SSR.-Background:...
anthem were the only ones not to mention the Russian people
Russians
The Russian people are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Russia, speaking the Russian language and primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries....
. On 21 July 1956, the third stanza of the lyrics was changed to remove mentions of Joseph Stalin
Joseph Stalin
Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin was the Premier of the Soviet Union from 6 May 1941 to 5 March 1953. He was among the Bolshevik revolutionaries who brought about the October Revolution and had held the position of first General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union's Central Committee...
. This is the version presented here.
Estonian lyrics
- Jää kestma, Kalevite kange rahvas,
- ja seisa kaljuna, me kodumaa!
- Ei vaibund kannatustes sinu vahvus,
- end läbi sajanditest murdsid sa
- ja tõusid õitsvaks sotsialismimaaks,
- et päikene su päevadesse paista saaks.
- Nüüd huuga, tehas, vili, nurmel vooga,
- sirp, lõika, alasile, haamer, löö!
- Nõukogu elu, tuksu võimsa hooga,
- too õnne rahvale, me tubli töö!
- Me Liidu rahvaste ja riike seas
- sa, Eesti, sammu esimeste kindlas reas!
- Sa kõrgel leninlikku lippu kannad
- ja julgelt kommunismi rada käid.
- Partei me sammudele suuna annab
- ja võidult võitudele viib ta meid.
- Ta kindlal juhtimisel kasva sa
- ja tugevaks ning kauniks saa, me kodumaa!
English translation
- Endure, heroic people of KalevKalev (mythology)In Estonian mythology and Kreutzwald's epic poem "Kalevipoeg", King Kalev was the father of King Kalevipoeg and the husband of Linda.Toompea, a hill in the centre of Tallinn, was said to be the tumulus over his grave, erected by Linda in memory of him. It is now Estonia's centre of government.In an...
s - And stand as a rock, our homeland!
- Your courage did not subside in the sufferings,
- You broke yourself through the centuries,
- And arose a socialist country in blossom,
- For sun could shine in your days.
- Ye roar, factories, and corn-fields, wave;
- Reap, sickle, and beat out, hammerHammer and sickleThe hammer and sickle is a part of communist symbolism and its usage indicates an association with Communism, a Communist party, or a Communist state. It features a hammer and a sickle overlapping each other. The two tools are symbols of the industrial proletariat and the peasantry; placing them...
! - May life of the Soviets throb in mighty swing;
- May happiness be brought to people by good labor!
- Among our Soviet nations and states
- Estonia, march in the firm fore!
- You're bearing Lenin's banner high,
- You're boldly marching your Communist way.
- Our PartyCommunist Party of the Soviet UnionThe Communist Party of the Soviet Union was the only legal, ruling political party in the Soviet Union and one of the largest communist organizations in the world...
will lead our steps - And take us from victory to victory.
- Grow in her firm leadership
- And become mighty and fair, our Homeland!
Russian lyrics
- Живи, сын Калева - народ наш славный,
- И стой, отчизна наша, как скала.
- Сквозь все страдания веков бесправных
- Отвагу ты и доблесть пронесла.
- И вот зажгла социализма свет,
- Воспрянула в цвету для счастья и побед.
- Могучим колосом цветите нивы!
- Жни, серп, и, молот, бей, гуди, завод!
- В стране советской каждый будь счастливым -
- Упорный труд нам счастье принесёт.
- В союзе братском пред тобой простор -
- Эстония, шагай в строю своих сестёр!
- Ты знамя Ленина несёшь святое,
- Дорогой славною идёшь вперёд.
- Родная партия всегда с тобою -
- Путём побед она тебя ведёт.
- Расти, отчизна, на пути большом,
- Прекрасней и сильней будь с каждым новым днём!