National anthem of Ukraine arranged by Aleksandr Morozov and performed by the
National Presidential Band of Ukraine with Anatoly M. Molotai conducting.
1915 performance (two verses) by Mykhailo Zazuliak
The national of Ukraine (
Ukrainian: Державний Гімн України,
lit.'State Hymn [of] Ukraine'), known by its official edition's first line "Shche ne vmerla Ukrainy i slava, i volia"[a];[9][2] its original title "Shche ne vmerla Ukraina"[b][10]; and its official designation of the State anthem of Ukraine,[c][11] is one of the
state symbols of
Ukraine.
The Ukrainian
national anthem can be traced back to one of the parties of the Ukrainian
ethnographerPavlo Chubynskyi that occurred during the autumn of 1862. Scholars think that the Polish national song "Jeszcze Polska nie zginęła" (
lit.'Poland is not yet lost'), which dates back to 1797 and later became the national anthem of Poland and the
Polish Legions, also influenced Chubynskyi's
lyrics.[14][15][16] "Jeszcze Polska nie zginęła" was popular among the nations of the former
Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth that were at that time fighting for their independence; the
January Uprising started a few months after Chubynskyi wrote his lyrics.[17] According to a memoirist who was present, Chubynskyi wrote the lyrics spontaneously after listening to Serbian students singing
Svetozar Miletić's "Srpska pesma" (
lit.'Serbian song')[18] during a gathering of Serbian and Ukrainian students in a
Kyiv apartment.[19]
The poem was first officially published in 1863 when it appeared in the fourth issue of the
Lviv journal Meta;[21][22] the journal mistakenly attributed the poem to
Taras Shevchenko.[23] It became popular in the territories that now form part of
Western Ukraine and came to the attention of a member of the Ukrainian clergy,
Mykhailo Verbytskyi of the
Greek Catholic Church. Inspired by Chubynskyi's lyrics, Verbytskyi, then a prominent composer in Ukraine, decided to set it to music.[24] The
lyrics were first published with Verbytskyi's sheet music in 1865.[25] The first choral public performance of the piece was in 1864 at the
Ruska Besida Theatre in Lviv.[12]
One of the first recordings of this anthem (then spelled "Szcze ne wmerła Ukrajiny ni sława, ni wola") in Ukrainian was released on a
gramophone record by
Columbia Phonograph Company during World War I in 1916.[26] As a folk song, it was performed by a Ukrainian emigrant from Lviv and New York resident Mykhailo Zazuliak in 1915.[27]
Early use
"
Shche ne vmerla Ukraina" was not used as a state anthem until 1917 when it was adopted by the
Ukrainian People's Republic.[28][29] Still, even between 1917 and 1921, the song was not legislatively adopted as an exclusive state anthem as other anthems were also used at the time.
After
Joseph Stalin ordered
The Internationale to be replaced with a new Soviet anthem in 1944, the other republics of the union were expected to produce their own as well. The Ukrainian government established a commission on the anthem on 23 February 1944.[31] Soviet authorities, after a period of struggle, successfully persuaded public intellectuals to create an anthem with
lyrics fitting their political interests and music sterile of any Ukrainian national elements.[32] On 23 February, the Ukrainian chairman
Mykhailo Hrechukha started a meeting by reading a synopsis of the anthem-to-be in front of musicians and litterateurs: the Ukrainian nation's union with the Soviets were envisaged for the first
stanza; the Ukrainian people, their struggles, and "freedom" under
Lenin and Stalin were envisaged for the second stanza; Ukraine's economic and political "flourishing" in the union were envisaged for the third stanza. The
refrain was conceived to be used after each stanza, which was considered as a
paean to the union of the Soviet peoples and the reunited Ukraine following the
Soviet annexation of Eastern Galicia and Volhynia.[33]
Composers worked on the score before the decision on the
lyrics; by February 1945, 11 composers were selected as finalists.[34] Anton Lebedynets' score won with an overwhelming majority vote,[35] and the score was adopted as the music of the new Soviet anthem in November 1949.[36] Earlier in January 1948, the lyrics of
Pavlo Tychyna and co-author
Mykola Bazhan won; due to plagiarism of his text, Oleksa Novytskyi demanded to be listed as a co-author, but to no avail.[37] On 21 November 1949, the new anthem of the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic was adopted.[29] Borys Yarovynskyi edited and reorchestrated the anthem in 1979.[38]
Post-independence
On 15 January 1992, "
Shche ne vmerla Ukraina" was adopted by Ukraine's parliament, the
Verkhovna Rada, as the state anthem[12] and was later instituted in the Ukrainian constitution. However, the
lyrics for the anthem were not officially adopted until 6 March 2003, when the Verkhovna Rada passed a law on the state anthem of Ukraine (
Ukrainian: Закон «Про Державний гімн України»), proposed by then-president
Leonid Kuchma. The law proposed Mykhailo Verbytskyi's music and Pavlo Chubynskyi's first
stanza and
refrain of his poem "Shche ne vmerla Ukraina". However, the first line of the lyrics was to be changed from "Shche ne vmerla Ukraina, i slava, i volia" to "Shche ne vmerla Ukrainy i slava, i volia".[d] The law was passed with an overwhelming majority of 334 votes out of 450, with only 46 MPs opposing. Only the members of the
Socialist Party of Ukraine and the
Communist Party of Ukraine refrained from voting. The national anthem that up until then had only officially consisted of Mykhailo Verbytskyi's music, would henceforth also include the modified lyrics of Pavlo Chubynskyi.
The popularity of the Ukrainian anthem has become particularly high in the wake of the
Orange Revolution protests of 2004 and
Euromaidan of 2013. Ukrainian composer
Valentyn Sylvestrov, who participated in Ukrainian protests in
Kyiv, characterized the Ukrainian anthem thus:[40]
The Ukrainian anthem is amazing. At first it doesn't impress you at all, but that's only at first glance. Indeed, this anthem was created by Mykhailo Verbytskyi, a clerical composer of the mid-19th century. He lived under the Austrian monarchy and probably was fond of Schubert; he had a euphonic gift — it's clear from his liturgical compositions. He was a church composer. And this patriotic song, he created as a church composer. This chant is a Hallelujah. No other anthem has this! It's a unique piece: the anthem of Ukraine, which at the same time has all the characteristic features of a liturgy's beginning. Some memory of a liturgy, of an all-night vigil, has submerged in this anthem. It seems as if the wind blows in this simple chant, as if tree branches are singing.
Since Euromaidan
During the Euromaidan protests of 2013, the anthem became a revolutionary song for the protesters. In the early weeks of the protests, they sang the national anthem once an hour, led by singer
Ruslana.[41] In World Affairs, Nadia Diuk argues that the national anthem was used as "the clarion call of the 'revolution'" during Euromaidan, which added weight to protests that previous ones, such as the Orange Revolution, lacked.[42] In a 2014 survey, after being asked "How has your attitude toward the following changed for the last year?", the
Kyiv International Institute of Sociology found that the attitude towards the Ukrainian national anthem had "improved a lot" in 25.3% of Ukrainians.[43]
After the
Russian invasion of Ukraine, several orchestras in Europe and North America performed the Ukrainian national anthem to show their solidarity with Ukraine.[44]
Lyrics
The incipit "
Shche ne vmerla Ukraina [
uk]" reminds Ukrainians about their struggle for national self-identity and independence.[45] It was sung as the de facto national anthem at the
inauguration of the first
PresidentLeonid Kravchuk on 5 December 1991, but it was not until 6 March 2003 that Chubynskyi's
lyrics officially became a part of Ukraine's national anthem. The Constitution of Ukraine designated Verbytskyi's music for the national anthem on 28 June 1996:[11]
The State Anthem of Ukraine is the national anthem set to the music of M. Verbytskyi, with words that are confirmed by the law adopted by no less than two-thirds of the constitutional composition of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine.
On 6 March 2003, the Verkhovna Rada officially adopted the anthem's
lyrics,[9] opting to use only the first
stanza and
refrain from Chubynskyi's original poem, while slightly modifying the first stanza. Instead of stating "Ukraine has not yet died, as hasn't its glory and its freedom/will[1]", the opening line now states "Ukraine's glory and freedom/will have not yet died".
Ще не вмерла України і слава, і воля,
Ще нам, браття молодії, усміхнеться доля.
Згинуть наші воріженьки, як роса на сонці.
Запануєм і ми, браття, у своїй сторонці.
𝄆 Душу й тіло ми положим за нашу свободу,
І покажем, що ми, браття, козацького роду. 𝄇
Šče ne vmerla Ukrajiny i slava, i volia.
Šče nam, brattia molodiji, usmichnet́sia dolia.
Zhynut́ naši vorižeńky, jak rosa na sonci,
Zapanujem i my, brattia, u svojij storonci.
𝄆 Dušu j tilo my položym za našu svobodu,
I pokažem, ščo my, brattia, kozaćkoho rodu. 𝄇
The glory of
Ukraine has not yet perished, nor the will.
Still upon us, young
brothers, fate shall smile.
Our enemies shall vanish, like dew in the sun.
We too shall rule,
brothers, our
country.
𝄆 Soul and body shall we lay down for our freedom,
And we will show,
brothers, that we are of the
Cossack race! 𝄇
Full modern lyrics
The first verse and chorus of the following lyrics constitute a more popular (commonly performed) version of the anthem. Differences from the official lyrics are italicized.
I
Ще не вмерла України ні слава, ні воля.
Ще нам, браття-українці, усміхнеться доля.
Згинуть наші вороженьки, як роса на сонці,
Запануєм і ми, браття, у своїй сторонці.
Приспів:
Душу й тіло ми положим за нашу свободу,
І покажем, що ми, браття, козацького роду!
II
Станем браття, в бій кривавий, від Сяну до Дону
В ріднім краю панувати не дамо нікому.
Чорне море ще всміхнеться, дід Дніпро зрадіє,
Ще на нашій Україні доленька наспіє.
Приспів
III
А завзяття, праця щира[g] свого ще докаже,
Ще ся волі в Україні піснь гучна розляже.
За Карпати відіб’ється, згомонить степами,
України слава стане поміж народами.
𝄆 Приспів 𝄇
I
Šče ne vmerla Ukrajiny ni slava, ni volja,
Šče nam, brattia-ukrajinci, usmichnet́sia dolia.
Zhynut́ naši vorožeńky, jak rosa na sonci,
Zapanujem i my, brattia, u svojij storonci.
Pryspiv:
Dušu j tilo my položym za našu svobodu,
I pokažem, ščo my, brattia, kozaćkoho rodu!
II
Stanem brattia, v bij kryvavyj, vid Sianu do Donu
V ridnim kraju panuvaty ne damo nikomu.
Čorne more šče vsmichnet́sia, did Dnipro zradije,
Šče na našij Ukrajini doleńka naspije.
Pryspiv
III
A zavziattia pracia ščyra svoho šče dokaže,
Šče sia voli v Ukrajini pisń hučna rozliaže.
Za Karpaty vidib’jetjsja zhomonytj stepamy,
Ukrajiny slava stane pomiž narodamy.
I Ukraine's freedom has not yet perished, nor has her glory,
Upon us, fellow Ukrainians, fate shall smile once more. Our enemies will vanish like dew in the sun,
And we too shall rule, brothers, in a free land of our own.
Chorus:
We'll lay down our souls and bodies to attain our freedom,
And we'll show that we, brothers, are of the
Cossack race!
II
Brethren, stand together in a bloody fight, from the
Sian to the
Don
We will not allow others to rule in our native land.
The
Black Sea will smile and grandfather
Dnipro will rejoice,
For in our own Ukraine fortune shall flourish again.
Chorus
III
Our persistence and our sincere toils will be rewarded,
And freedom's song will resound throughout all of Ukraine.
Echoing off the
Carpathians, and rumbling across the steppes,
Ukraine's fame and glory will be known among all nations.
𝄆 Chorus 𝄇
Chubynskyi's original lyrics (1862)
The first stanza of Chubynskyi's original poem is somewhat similar to the first stanza of national anthems of Poland and Yugoslavia and "
Hatikvah", the national anthem of Israel.[49]
I
Ще не вмерла Україна, і слава, і воля!
Ще нам, браття молодії, усміхнеться доля!
Згинуть наші воріженьки, як роса на сонці;
Запануєм і ми, браття у своїй сторонці.
Приспів:
Душу й тіло ми положим за нашу свободу
І покажем, що ми браття козацького роду.
Гей-гей, браття миле, нумо братися за діло!
Гей-гей пора встати, пора волю добувати!
II
Наливайко, Залізнякъ и Тарасъ Трясило
Кличуть насъ изъ-за могилъ на святеє діло.
Изгадаймо славну смерть лицарства-козацтва,
Щобъ не втратить марне намъ своєго юнацтва.
Приспів
III
Ой Богдане, Богдане славний нашъ гетьмане!
На-що віддавъ Украіну москалямъ поганимъ?!
Щобъ вернути іі честь, ляжемъ головами,
Назовемся Украіни вірними синами!
Приспів
IV
Наші браття Славяне вже за зброю взялись;
Не діжде ніхто, щобъ ми по-заду зістались.
Поєднаймось разомъ всі, братчики-Славяне:
Нехай гинуть вороги, най воля настане!
Приспів
I
Šče ne vmerla Ukraina, i slava, i volia!
Šče nam, brattia molodiji, usmichnet́cia dolia!
Zhynut́ naši vorižeńky, jak rosa na sonci;
Zapanujem i my, brattia u svojij storonci.
Pryspiv:
Dušu j tilo my položym za našu svobodu
I pokažem, ščo my brattia kozaćkoho rodu.
Hej-hej, brattia myle, numo bratysia za dilo!
Hej-hej, pora vstaty, pora voliu dobuvaty!
II
Nalyvajko, Zalizniak y Taras Triasylo
Klyčut́ nas yz-za mohyl na sviateje dilo.
Yzhadajmo slavnu smert́ lycarstva-kozactva,
Ščob ne vtratyt́ marne nam svojeho junactva.
Pryspiv
III
Oj Bohdane, Bohdane slavnyj naš het́mane!
Na-ščo viddav Ukrainu moskaliam pohanym?!
Ščob vernuty ii čest́, liažem holovamy,
Nazovemsia Ukrainy virnymy synamy!
Pryspiv
IV
Naši brattia Slaviane vže za zbroju vzialyś;
Ne dižde nichto, ščob my po-zadu zistalyś.
Pojednajmoś razom vsi, bratčyky-Slaviane:
Nechaj hynut́ vorohy, naj volia nastane!
I
Ukraine has not yet died, neither her glory, nor her freedom.
Still upon us, young brethren, fate shall smile!
Our enemies shall vanish like dew in the sun;
We too shall rule in our beloved country.
Chorus:
Soul and body we'll lay down for our freedom,
And show that we are brethren of the Cossack race,
Hey, hey
dearest brothers, onward, take to battle
Hey, hey, time to rise, time to gain freedom!
II Nalyvaiko,
Zalizniak and
Taras Triasylo
Call us from the grave beyond to the battle holy.
Recall the famous death of the Chivalrous
Cossacks
Not to lose vainly our youth.
Chorus
III
Oh
Bohdan, Bohdan, our great
hetman
What for did you
give Ukraine to wretched
Moskals?!
To return her honor, we lay our heads
We shall call ourselves Ukraine's faithful sons!
Chorus
IV
Our
Slavic brothers already took up arms
No one shall see that we should stay behind.
Unite together all, brothers Slavs:
So that enemies perish, and freedom arriveth!
^Ukrainian: Державний гімн України, Derzhavnyi himn Ukrainy
^There were attempts for attaining new lyrics through a commission sponsoring several contests as the Ukrainian government did not adopt Chubynskyi's lyrics due to them being considered outdated. The unsuccessful results have continued the association of the anthem with Chubynskyi's lyrics.[39]
^Grinevich, Victor (22 January 2009).
"Павло Чубинський писав вірші «під Шевченка»" [Pavlo Chubynskyi wrote poems "under Shevchenko"]. Gazeta.ua (in Ukrainian). Retrieved 3 March 2022.
^Grabowska, Sabina (2016). "The Evolution of Polish National Symbols on the Example of the Flag and Anthem". Kultura I Edukacja (4). Wydawnictwo Adam Marszałek: 183.
ISSN1230-266X.
Hang, Xing (2003). Encyclopedia of National Anthems. Lanham: Scarecrow Press.
ISBN978-0-8108-4847-4.
Hrytsak, Yaroslav (2005). "On Sails and Gales, and Ships Driving in Various Directions: Post-Soviet Ukraine as a Test Case for the Meso-Area Concept". In Matsuzato, Kimitaka (ed.). Emerging Meso-areas in the Former Socialist Countries: histories revised or improvised?. Hokkaido University.
ISBN978-4-938637-35-4.
Khrebtan-Hörhager, Julia (2016-07-03). "Collages of Memory: Remembering the Second World War Differently as the Epistemology of Crafting Cultural Conflicts between Russia and Ukraine". Journal of Intercultural Communication Research. 45 (4): 282–303.
doi:
10.1080/17475759.2016.1184705.
S2CID147896427.
Klid, Bohdan (2008). "Songwriting and Singing: Ukrainian Revolutionary and Not So Revolutionary Activities in the 1860s". Journal of Ukrainian Studies: 264–277.