Maamme Maamme (Finnish) or Vårt Land (Swedish), meaning Our land, is the title of Finland's national anthem. The music was composed by the German Fredrik Pacius, with (Swedish) words by the Finland-Swede 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 stanzas and formed the prologue to the great verse cycle The Tales of Ensign Stål, a masterpiece of Romantic nationalism. 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. 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 would now like the Finnish national anthem to be changed to Finlandia by Jean Sibelius (also a Finland-Swede): partly because the original Vårt Land was written in Swedish, not Finnish; partly because Pacius's tune is also used for the national anthem of Estonia with a similarly themed text, Mu isamaa, My Fatherland (1869); and partly because Pacius was German. It is also said that he 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. Jean Sibelius is Finland's national composer. Finlandia, however, was written as a purely instrumental piece and is difficult to sing (neverthless it briefly became the national anthem of Biafra). The Finns are also a very conservative people, attached to their traditions, and it is therefore unlikely the national anthem will be changed. Here are the lyrics of the first verse in Finnish, in Swedish (as originally written), and in an English-language version: Maamme (translation by Paavo Cajander) 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) 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 by Clement Burbank Shaw) 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. See also Flag of Finland Holidays in Finland Ålänningens sång - the official anthem of Åland Du gamla, Du fria - the national anthem of Sweden External links The Finnish National Anthem - history of the anthem, and RealAudio of the song FAVORITE ARTICLES: History of the World    History of the United States    History of Europe    Ancient History    History    Military History    World War I    Bombing of Dresden    California    US Constitution    Frank Sinatra    Boston    Marbury v. Madison This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License at http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html You may copy and modify it as long as the entire work (including additions) remains under this license. You must provide a link to http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html To view or edit this article at Wikipedia go to http://www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maamme