What is an anthem? It is not just the main song of the country, but part of the symbolism of the state. A good anthem is loved in the state, it is gladly performed not only at solemn political events, but also at festivals and sports competitions. And what are some interesting facts about anthems?
Each state is proud of its most important song and considers it the most beautiful and very popular. Of course, each country has every right to such an opinion. Each anthem has its own history.
And what interesting facts about anthems and their creation can be listed:
- Japan has the shortest anthem. It fits into only five lines. But, you must agree, such a main song of the state is easy to memorize and learn by heart even in kindergarten!
- Greece boasts the world’s longest anthem. It consists of twenty-four verses! Agree, impressive. But, of course, in reality, the full version of such a hymn no one is able to perform. Such a huge text is even difficult to memorize. Therefore, usually four verses are performed.
- If we recall interesting facts about hymns, it is worth mentioning songs without words. Such an anthem can boast, for example, Spain. During its performance, it is supposed to simply look expressively into the distance. But you do not need to learn by heart.
- Some multinational states can boast anthems in different languages. Canada, for example, can boast of two anthems. And in South Africa the verses of the anthem are written in different languages to emphasize the multinationality of the country and respect for the nationalities living in it.
- Such a state as Rhodesia (now it has become Zimbabwe) had an anthem based on classical music. The anthem was based on Beethoven’s “Ode to Joy”. Agree, quite a winning move.
What are some other interesting facts about the creation of anthems:
- For some time, musicians in Spain had to pay to play the anthem, as it was officially owned by the Ministry of Culture. To avoid fees, the musicians came up with a trick – performed a slightly modified anthem, which could not be copyrighted.
- St. Helena has no official anthem. But there is a song that fulfills its role. By the way, it was written by Dave Mitchell, a man who saw the island only on postcards. And the song itself was written to be played on the radio.
- The Czech Republic and Slovakia are the countries that split the anthem in half. The fact is that when the states united, the anthem consisted of Czech and Slovak parts. After the split, it had to be divided.
