Maamme
Encyclopedia
Maamme or Vårt land (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...

) (“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-language
English 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 Runeberg
Johan 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.
Finnish Lyrics
Original Swedish Lyrics
English Translation of Finnish Lyrics (Source: http://www.pokemasters.net/forums/showthread.php?t=22694)
English Translation of Swedish Lyrics
1.
Oi maamme, Suomi, synnyinmaa,
soi, sana kultainen!
Ei laaksoa, ei kukkulaa,
ei vettä rantaa rakkaampaa,
kuin kotimaa tää pohjoinen,
maa kallis isien!
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.
O our land Finland, our land of birth,
sound, the golden word!
There's no a valley, no a hill
not a water, a shore more precious
than this northern homeland
the dear land of our fathers!
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.
2.
On maamme köyhä, siksi jää,
jos kultaa kaivannet
Sen vieras kyllä hylkäjää,
mut meille kallein maa on tää,
sen salot, saaret, manteret,
ne meist on kultaiset.
Vårt land är fattigt, skall så bli
För den, som guld begär.
En främling far oss stolt förbi:
Men detta landet älska vi,
För oss med moar, fjäll och skär
Ett guldland dock det är.
Our land is poor, so it remains,
if you long for gold
A stranger sure abandons it,
but to us, the most precious land is this,
its wilds, islands, mainlands,
to us, they are golden.
Our land is poor, and so shall be
To him who gold will crave.
The strangers proudly pass, but we
Shall ever love this land, we see,
In moor, and fell, and isle and wave,
A golden land, so brave.
3.
Ovatpa meille rakkahat
koskemme kuohuineen,
ikuisten honkain huminat,
täht'yömme, kesät kirkkahat,
kaikk'kuvineen ja lauluineen
mi painui sydämeen.
Vi älska våra strömmars brus
Och våra bäckars språng.
Den mörka skogens dystra sus,
Vår stjärnenatt, vårt sommarlju.
Allt, allt, vad här som syn, som sång
Vårt hjärta rört en gång.
They are dear to us
our rapids with their surges
the hummings of eternal pines
our starnights, the summers bright
all that with their pictures and songs
closed to heart.
We love our rippling brooks, so bright,
Our gushing streams, so strong,
The whisper of dark woods, at night,
Our starry skies, our summer light,
All, all that we, in sight and song,
Have felt and lived among.
4.
Täss auroin, miekoin, miettehin
isämme sotivat,
kun päivä piili pilvihin
tai loisti onnen paistehin,
täss Suomen kansan vaikeimmat
he vaivat kokivat.
Här striddes våra fäders strid
Med tanke, svärd och plog.
Här, här, i klar som mulen tid.
Med lycka hård, med lycka blid.
Det finska folkets hjärta slog.
Här bars vad det fördrog.
Here with ploughs, swords, thoughts
our fathers fought,
when the day hid in the clouds
or shone with shines of happiness
here the nation of Finland, the most difficult
troubles they experienced.
Here fought our fathers, without fear,
With sword, and plough, and thought.
And here, in clouded times, and clear,
With fortune in their front or rear,
Their Finnish hearts have beat, and wrought
And borne what bear they ought.
5.
Tään kansan taistelut ken voi
ne kertoella, ken?
Kun sota laaksoissamme soi,
ja halla näläntuskan toi,
ken mittasi sen hurmehen
ja kärsimykset sen?
Vem täljde väl de striders tal.
Som detta folk bestod.
Då kriget röt från dal till dal.
Då frosten kom med hungers kval.
Vem mätte allt dess spillda blod
Och allt dess tålamod?
This nation's battles who can
tell them, who?
When a war sounded in our valleys,
and frost brought the pain of hunger,
who measured the blood
and its sufferings?
Who tells, of all the fights, the tale,
In which this folk withstood,
When war did rage from dale to dale,
When frost set in, with hunger’s wail?
Who measured all their pouring blood,
And all their patience good?
6.
Täss on sen veri virrannut
hyväksi meidänkin,
täss iloaan on nauttinut
ja murheitansa huokaillut
se kansa, jolle muinaisin
kuormamme pantihin.
Och det var här det blodet flöt,
Ja, här för oss det var,
Och det var här sin fröjd det njöt,
Och det var här sin suck det göt.
Det folk som våra bördor bar
Långt före våra dar.
Here has its blood flown
for our sake, too
here has it enjoyed its happiness
and sighed its worries
that nation, to which the most ancient
burden of ours was given.
And it was here their blood was shed,
For us, here, on this shore;
And it was here their joys were bred,
Here, that their sighs were heaved and fled,
That people’s who our burdens bore
Before us, long before.
7.
Tääll' olo meill on verraton
ja kaikki suotuisaa,
vaikk onni mikä tulkohon,
maa isänmaa se meillä on.
Mi maailmass on armaampaa
ja mikä kalliimpaa?
Här är oss ljuvt, här är oss gott,
Här är oss allt beskärt;
Hur ödet kastar än vår lott.
Ett land, ett fosterland vi fått,
Vad finns på jorden mera värt
Att hållas dyrt och kärt?
Here we have a feeling excellent
and everything favourable,
although be it whatever luck
land fatherland is what we have.
What's sweeter in the world
and what's more precious?
Here it is sweet and good, we wot,
All, too, is giv’n us here;
However fate may cast our lot,
A land, a fatherland, we’ve got.
Will there a thing on earth appear
More worthy, to hold dear?
8.
Ja tässä, täss' on tämä maa,
sen näkee silmämme.
me kättä voimme ojentaa
ja vettä rantaa osoittaa
ja sanoa: kas tuoss' on se,
maa armas isäimme.
Och här och här är detta land.
Vårt öga ser det här,
Vi kunna sträcka ut vår hand
Och visa glatt på sjö och strand
Och säga: se det landet där.
Vårt fosterland det är.
And here is this land,
our eyes see it.
We can reach out a hand
and point at water, shore
and say: see, there's
our father's dearest land.
And here’s, and here’s this fatherland,
Here every eye it sees;
And we can stretch a pointing hand,
To show, with joy, its sea and strand,
And say, “Behold this country, this,
Our Fatherland it is.”
9.
Jos loistoon meitä saatettais
vaikk' kultapilvihin,
mis itkien ei huoattais,
vaan tärkein riemun sielu sais,
ois tähän köyhään kotihin
halumme kuitenkin.
Och fördes vi att bo i glans
Bland guldmoln i det blå,
Och blev vårt liv en stjärnedans.
Där tår ej göts, där suck ej fanns.
Till detta arma land ändå
Vår längtan skulle stå.
If we were accompained to glory
even to golden clouds,
where we wouldn't cry
but most important joy the soul would get,
to this poor home
our will would be.
And if we once were made to rise
To gold clouds, from below,
And if we moved in starry skies,
Where no one weeps, where no one sighs,
To this poor lonely country, though,
Our longing hearts would go.
10.
Totuuden, runon kotimaa
maa tuhatjärvinen
miss' elämämme suojan saa,
sa muistojen, sa toivon maa,
ain ollos, onnees tyytyen,
vapaa ja iloinen.
O land, du tusen sjöars land,
Där sång och trohet byggt,
Där livets hav oss gett en strand,
Vår forntids land, vår framtids land.
Var för din fattigdom ej skyggt.
Var fritt, var glatt, var tryggt.
The homeland of truth and poet
the land with a thousand lakes
where our life gets protection,
you the land of memories and hopes,
always be, content with your luck,
free and joyful.
Oh land, the thousand lakes’ own land,
Of faith, and lay, and glee,
Where life’s main sea gave us a strand,
Our fore-time’s land, our future’s land,
Shy of thy poorness, never be,
Be calm, be glad, be free!
11.
Sun kukoistukses kuorestaan
kerrankin puhkeaa,
viel lempemme saa nousemaan
sun toivos, riemus loistossaan,
ja kerran, laulus synnyinmaa
korkeemman kaiun saa.
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.
Your prosperity from its hide
shall break out once
yet our love it shall rise
your hope, joy in its brilliance,
and once, your song, the land of birth
shall get the highest echo.
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.

See also

  • Flag of Finland
    Flag of Finland
    The 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 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...

  • Ålänningens sång
    Ålänningens sång
    Ålänningens sång , is the official anthem of the Åland Islands, an autonomous Swedish-speaking province of Finland...

     - the official anthem of Åland
  • Min izāmō
    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...

     - the national anthem of the Livonians
  • 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....

     - the national anthem of 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....


External links

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