Maamme
Encyclopedia
Maamme or Vårt land (Swedish
) (“our land”) is the title of Finland
's national anthem
. There is no law on an official national anthem in Finland, but Maamme is firmly established by convention.
The music was composed by the German immigrant Fredrik Pacius
, with (original Swedish
) words by Johan Ludvig Runeberg
, and was performed for the first time on 13 May 1848. The original poem, written in 1846 but not printed until 1848, had 11 stanza
s and formed the prologue to the great verse cycle The Tales of Ensign Stål
("Fänrik Ståhls Sägner"), a masterpiece of Romantic nationalism
. The current Finnish text is usually attributed to the 1889 translation of Ensign Stål by Paavo Cajander
, but in fact originates from the 1867 translation by Julius Krohn
.
The Tales of Ensign Stål were much appreciated throughout all of Scandinavia
. Up until the time of Finland's independence in 1917–18, when the song began to be recognized as specifically applying to Finland, Pacius's tune and Runeberg's text were often also sung in Denmark
, Norway
, and Sweden
. Note that in the original Swedish text there is no reference to Finland (except for in verses 4 and 10, which are rarely sung), only to a country in the north, but the Finnish text explicitly refers to Finland. The poem's theme is, furthermore, remarkably similar to that of the national anthems of Sweden (Du gamla, Du fria
) and Norway (Ja, vi elsker dette landet
).
Some Finns have proposed that the Finnish national anthem be changed to Finlandia
by Jean Sibelius
, with lyrics by V.A. Koskenniemi (Finnish) and Joel Rundt (Swedish). There are also those who simply prefer Finlandia as a musical piece, although critics call it difficult to sing.
It is said that Pacius composed the tune in a mere fifteen minutes, with no idea that it would become so important to the people of Finland that they would eventually make it their national anthem.
The tune of Maamme has similarities with the German drinking song Papst und Sultan. Many believe that Fredrik Pacius intentionally or unintentionally copied parts of the tune. Another Finnish patriotic song, Sotilaspoika, composed by Pacius, also includes similarities with Papst und Sultan.
The melody of Maamme is also used for the national anthem of Estonia
with a similarly themed text, Mu isamaa, mu õnn ja rõõm, My Fatherland, My Happiness and Joy (1869). It is also considered to be national anthem for Livonians with text Min izāmō, min sindimō
, My Fatherland, my native land.
version:
)
Swedish language
Swedish is a North Germanic language, spoken by approximately 10 million people, predominantly in Sweden and parts of Finland, especially along its coast and on the Åland islands. It is largely mutually intelligible with Norwegian and Danish...
) (“our land”) is the title of Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
's national anthem
National anthem
A national anthem is a generally patriotic musical composition that evokes and eulogizes the history, traditions and struggles of its people, recognized either by a nation's government as the official national song, or by convention through use by the people.- History :Anthems rose to prominence...
. There is no law on an official national anthem in Finland, but Maamme is firmly established by convention.
The music was composed by the German immigrant 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 (original Swedish
Swedish language
Swedish is a North Germanic language, spoken by approximately 10 million people, predominantly in Sweden and parts of Finland, especially along its coast and on the Åland islands. It is largely mutually intelligible with Norwegian and Danish...
) words by Johan Ludvig Runeberg
Johan Ludvig Runeberg
Johan Ludvig Runeberg was a Finnish poet, and is the national poet of Finland. He wrote in the Swedish language....
, and was performed for the first time on 13 May 1848. The original poem, written in 1846 but not printed until 1848, had 11 stanza
Stanza
In poetry, a stanza is a unit within a larger poem. In modern poetry, the term is often equivalent with strophe; in popular vocal music, a stanza is typically referred to as a "verse"...
s and formed the prologue to the great verse cycle The Tales of Ensign Stål
The Tales of Ensign Stål
The Tales of Ensign Stål is an epic poem written in Swedish by the Finland-Swedish author Johan Ludvig Runeberg, the national poet of Finland...
("Fänrik Ståhls Sägner"), a masterpiece of Romantic nationalism
Romantic nationalism
Romantic nationalism is the form of nationalism in which the state derives its political legitimacy as an organic consequence of the unity of those it governs...
. The current Finnish text is usually attributed to the 1889 translation of Ensign Stål by Paavo Cajander
Paavo Cajander
Paavo Cajander was a Finnish poet and translator.Cajander was born in Hämeenlinna. He was renowned by translation into Finnish of Shakespeare's works and of Johan Ludvig Runeberg's The Tales of Ensign Stål, whose first verse is currently the Finnish national anthem. He died in...
, but in fact originates from the 1867 translation by Julius Krohn
Julius Krohn
Julius Leopold Fredrik Krohn was a Finnish folk poetry researcher, a professor of Finnish literature, a poet, a hymn writer, a translator and a journalist. He was born in Viipuri. Krohn worked as a lecturer on Finnish language in Helsinki University from the year 1875 and as a supernumerary ...
.
The Tales of Ensign Stål were much appreciated throughout all of Scandinavia
Scandinavia
Scandinavia is a cultural, historical and ethno-linguistic region in northern Europe that includes the three kingdoms of Denmark, Norway and Sweden, characterized by their common ethno-cultural heritage and language. Modern Norway and Sweden proper are situated on the Scandinavian Peninsula,...
. Up until the time of Finland's independence in 1917–18, when the song began to be recognized as specifically applying to Finland, Pacius's tune and Runeberg's text were often also sung in Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
, Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
, and Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
. Note that in the original Swedish text there is no reference to Finland (except for in verses 4 and 10, which are rarely sung), only to a country in the north, but the Finnish text explicitly refers to Finland. The poem's theme is, furthermore, remarkably similar to that of the national anthems of Sweden (Du gamla, Du fria
Du gamla, Du fria
"Du gamla, Du fria" is the de facto national anthem of Sweden. It was originally named "Sång till Norden" , and the first words of its lyrics have become adopted as the title in the interim....
) and Norway (Ja, vi elsker dette landet
Ja, vi elsker dette landet
is the national anthem of Norway. It is commonly referred to as just "Ja, vi elsker" . The lyrics were written by Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson between 1859 and 1868, and the melody was written by his cousin Rikard Nordraak in 1864. It was first performed publicly on 17 May 1864 in connection with the 50th...
).
Some Finns have proposed that the Finnish national anthem be changed to Finlandia
Finlandia Hymn
The Finlandia Hymn refers to a serene hymn-like section of the patriotic symphonic poem Finlandia, written in 1899 and 1900 by the Finnish composer Jean Sibelius...
by Jean Sibelius
Jean Sibelius
Jean Sibelius was a Finnish composer of the later Romantic period whose music played an important role in the formation of the Finnish national identity. His mastery of the orchestra has been described as "prodigious."...
, with lyrics by V.A. Koskenniemi (Finnish) and Joel Rundt (Swedish). There are also those who simply prefer Finlandia as a musical piece, although critics call it difficult to sing.
It is said that Pacius composed the tune in a mere fifteen minutes, with no idea that it would become so important to the people of Finland that they would eventually make it their national anthem.
The tune of Maamme has similarities with the German drinking song Papst und Sultan. Many believe that Fredrik Pacius intentionally or unintentionally copied parts of the tune. Another Finnish patriotic song, Sotilaspoika, composed by Pacius, also includes similarities with Papst und Sultan.
The melody of Maamme is also used for the national anthem 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...
with a similarly themed text, Mu isamaa, mu õnn ja rõõm, My Fatherland, My Happiness and Joy (1869). It is also considered to be national anthem for Livonians with text Min izāmō, min sindimō
Min izamo
Min izāmō is the national anthem of the Livonians. The song was written by Kōrli Stalte , a poet and spiritual leader of Livonians, to a melody composed by Fredrik Pacius . It is written in the Livonian language. Translated, the title of the song means "My Fatherland".-1...
, My Fatherland, my native land.
Lyrics
Here are the lyrics of the first and last verse in Finnish, in Swedish (as originally written), and in an English-languageEnglish language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
version:
Maamme
- Oi maamme, Suomi, synnyinmaa,
- soi, sana kultainen!
- Ei laaksoa, ei kukkulaa,
- ei vettä, rantaa rakkaampaa
- kuin kotimaa tää pohjoinen,
- maa kallis isien.
- Sun kukoistukses kuorestaan
- kerrankin puhkeaa;
- viel' lempemme saa nousemaan
- sun toivos, riemus loistossaan,
- ja kerran laulus, synnyinmaa
- korkeemman kaiun saa.
Vårt land
(the original, by Johan Ludvig RunebergJohan Ludvig Runeberg
Johan Ludvig Runeberg was a Finnish poet, and is the national poet of Finland. He wrote in the Swedish language....
)
- Vårt land, vårt land, vårt fosterland,
- ljud högt, o dyra ord!
- Ej lyfts en höjd mot himlens rand,
- ej sänks en dal, ej sköljs en strand,
- mer älskad än vår bygd i nord,
- än våra fäders jord!
- Din blomning, sluten än i knopp,
- Skall mogna ur sitt tvång;
- Se, ur vår kärlek skall gå opp
- Ditt ljus, din glans, din fröjd, ditt hopp.
- Och högre klinga skall en gång
- Vår fosterländska sång.
Our Land
(translation from the Finnish version)- Oh our land, Finland, fatherland,
- echo loudly, golden word!
- No valley, no hill,
- no water, shore more dear
- than this northern homeland,
- this precious land of our fathers.
- One day from your bud
- you will bloom;
- From our love shall rise
- your hope, glorious joy,
- and once in song, fatherland
- higher still will ring.
Our Land
(translation from the Swedish version)- Our land, our land, our Fatherland!
- Ring out, dear word, oh sound!
- No rising hill, or mountain grand,
- No sloping dale, no northern strand,
- There is, more loved, to be found,
- Than this — our fathers’ ground.
- Thy blossom, hidden now from sight,
- Shall burst its bud ere long.
- Lo! from our love, shall rise aright,
- Thy sun, thy hope, thy joy, thy light,
- And higher, once, more full and strong,
- Shall ring Our Country’s song.
Original Lyrics
The original lyrics consisted of eleven verses but for the national anthem, the poem was shortened to the first verse and the last verse. Unless the people gathered are supposed to be either Finnish or Swedish speaking three verses are sung: the first in Finnish, the first in Swedish and the last in Finnish.
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See also
- Flag of FinlandFlag of FinlandThe flag of Finland , also called Siniristilippu , dates from the beginning of the 20th century. On a white background, it features a blue Nordic cross, which represents Christianity. The state flag has a coat of arms in the centre, but is otherwise identical to the civil flag. The swallow-tailed...
- Holidays in Finland
- Mu isamaa, mu õnn ja rõõm - the national anthem of EstoniaEstoniaEstonia , 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...
- Ålänningens sångÅlänningens sångÅlänningens sång , is the official anthem of the Åland Islands, an autonomous Swedish-speaking province of Finland...
- the official anthem of Åland - Min izāmōMin izamoMin izāmō is the national anthem of the Livonians. The song was written by Kōrli Stalte , a poet and spiritual leader of Livonians, to a melody composed by Fredrik Pacius . It is written in the Livonian language. Translated, the title of the song means "My Fatherland".-1...
- the national anthem of the Livonians - Du gamla, Du friaDu gamla, Du fria"Du gamla, Du fria" is the de facto national anthem of Sweden. It was originally named "Sång till Norden" , and the first words of its lyrics have become adopted as the title in the interim....
- the national anthem of SwedenSwedenSweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
External links
- History of the Finnish national anthem
- Full lyrics at Wikisource
- This Is Finland: The Finnish National Anthem - history of the anthem, and RealAudio of the song
- www.national-anthems.net - mp3, RealAudio and Windows Media files of the anthem
- Papst und Sultan - A German drinking-song which resembles the tune of Maamme.