The Lebanese National Anthem (, ), officially known by its opening words "" (English: All for the country, for glory, and the flag), was written by Rashid Nakhle and composed by Wadih Sabra. It was adopted on 12 July 1927, seven years after the proclamation of the state of Greater Lebanon during the French mandate.
History
Origins
At the beginning of the 20th century, some poets composed hymns that praised the glories of Lebanon, its nature, and its cedars. These hymns were performed by the band of the Mount Lebanon Mutasarrifate in locations such as the square of the Serail of Baabda, the Manshieh building, Deir al-Qamar, and the garden of Rüstem Pasha in Beirut.
Historian Joseph Nehme mentions in the third volume of his book titled Pages du Liban that he heard Lebanese and Syrian volunteers in the Allied armies, who had entered Mount Lebanon, chanting a rallying hymn.
The First National Anthem
On the day of the proclamation of the State of Greater Lebanon by Henri Gouraud in September 1920, Father Maroun Ghosn composed a hymn that was performed at the beginning and end of the celebration. The music was initially composed by Bechara Farzan, and subsequently Paul Ashqar gave it another melody. It has since become part of the musical repertoire of the Lebanese Army under the title: "Hymn of Salutation to the Cedars".
The original anthem had three verses, the second one was later removed when adopted by the Lebanese Armed Forces, as it contained a phrase honoring France.
{| class="wikitable centre"
|-
| colspan="2" style="font-weight:bold;text-align:center;background:#dfdfdf"|First Verse
|-
| style="text-align:center;" |<poem>
لُبْنَانُ لَا تَخْشَ الْعِدَا
كُلُّنَا تَقَلَّدَا لِيَوْمِ الْوَغَى الْمُهَنَّدَا
إِخْوَانُنَا مَاتُواْ فِدَا كَيْ تَنَالَ السُّؤْدُدَا
فَعِشْ لِلْمَدَىٰ مُؤَيَّدَا
يَا أَرْزَةً عَلَى الْبُنُودِ
أَشْرَقَتْ فَحَقَّقَتْ مُنَى الْجُدُودْ
،أَبْطَالُنَا بِحَسْرَةٍ
قَدْ قَضَوْا وَهُمْ عَلَىٰ رَجَا الْوُعُودْ
</poem>
|Lebanon, fear not adversity,
For we are all armed for the day of battle.
Our brothers have fallen faithfully, so that you may attain glory,
So live forever glorified.
O Cedar on the banners,
Shining and fulfilling our ancestors dream,
Our heroes, full of sorrow,
Have departed, carrying hope in the promises.
|-
| colspan="2" style="font-weight:bold;font-style:italic;text-align:center;background:#dfdfdf"|Chorus:
|-
| style="text-align:center;" |<poem>
أَلَا فَارْفَعُواْ لِلْعُلَىٰ
،رَايَةً لَاحَ فِيهَا أَرْزُنَا
فَيَا مَا حَلَا، مَا حَلَا
أَرْزُنَا رَمْزُنَا وَعِزُّنَا
</poem>
|Come, raise high, to glory,
The banner where our Cedar waves.
Ah, how beautiful, how beautiful,
Our Cedar, our symbol, and our honor.
|-
| colspan="2" style="font-weight:bold;text-align:center;background:#dfdfdf"|Second Verse
|-
| style="text-align:center;" |<poem>
بُشْرَاكَ يَا لُبْنَانَنَا
فُزْتَ فُزْتَ بِالْمُنَى فَلِلَّهِ نَرْفَعُ الثَّنَى
فرَنْسَا لَا نُنْسَى لَهَا نُبْلَهَا وَفَضْلَهَا
أَجَلْ حُبُّهَا بِقَلْبِنَا
يَا لِلدِّمَا وَقَدْ جَرَى سَبْلُهَا مُدَفَّقًا عَلَى الثَّرَى
لُبْنَانُنَا جِبَالُهُ تَفَطَّرَتْ تَصَدَّعَتْ تَحَسُّرًا
</poem>
|Good news oh our Lebanon!
You got your desire, we thank God for that
France, we will not forget her nobility and virtue
Yes, we love her in our hearts
Oh, the blood that has flowed out onto the soil
Our Lebanon, its mountains, broke down and cracked in regret
|-
| colspan="2" style="font-style:italic;text-align:center;" |Chorus
|-
| colspan="2" style="font-weight:bold;text-align:center;background:#dfdfdf"|Third Verse
|-
| style="text-align:center;" |<poem>
لُبْنَانُ إِنَّا فِي السَّلَامْ
نُكْرِمُ الضَّيْفَ الْهُمَامْ، وَنَرْعَىٰ حُقُوقَ الْأَنَامْ
وَإِنْ دَجَا لَيْلُ الْخِصَامْ
نُورِدُ الْخَصْمَ الْحِمَامْ، بِمَاضِي غِرَازِ الْحُسَامْ
،قَلْبُنَا قُـدَّ مِنْ صُخُورْ،
بَطْشُنا يُرْعِبُ اللَّيْثَ الْهَصُورْ
إِنْ طَغَى الضِّدُّ أَوْ بَغَىٰ
صَارَ مَطْعَمَ الْوُحُوشِ وَالنُّسُورْ
</poem>
|Lebanon, in peace,
We honor the noble guest and uphold human rights.
But if the night of conflict falls,
We repel our enemies with the sharpness of our blades.
Our hearts are forged from stone,
Our might terrifies even the fiercest lion.
If the adversary oppresses or attacks,
He shall become the prey of beasts and vultures.
|-
| colspan="2" style="font-style:italic;text-align:center;" |Chorus
|}
Among the anthems of this period, there was also one composed by the "poet of the cedars", Chibli Mallat, or Youssef al-Sawda. In this atmosphere, the deputy Sheikh Ibrahim al-Moundhir urged the Parliament to draft an official national anthem, following the example of independent nations.<blockquote>"The influence of national songs on the soul is undeniable. There is no advanced nation in the world, nor any nation aspiring to be one, that does not have a national anthem—one that its children, young and old, know by heart and sing during national events and in every literary gathering." The anthem was retained upon independence in 1943.
Among the texts not selected by the jury was one by Abdel-Halim Hajjar, which was noted by the jury but later withdrawn by the author, and another by Chebli Mallat. The latter had a feminist touch, as it began with the lines: "Daughters of the Cedars / Sing for us / The symbols of our proud cedars..." This line was recently reintroduced in Carole Sakr's rendition: "Lebanon, land of women and men."
Controversy Over the Rif Anthem
Rasha Al Karam of Al Jadeed TV released a controversial mini-documentary in 2011 about the Lebanese national anthem, claiming that the tune and lyrics were actually plagiarized from the "Anthem of the Rif", a song written for Abdelkrim el-Khattabi and composed by Lebanese composer Mohammed Fleifel in 1924. This anthem was allegedly adopted as an official hymn one year before the Lebanese national anthem appeared.
Despite the efforts of artist Ghassan Rahbani, who claimed to have discovered the plagiarism to highlight the seriousness of the matter and called for changing the anthem, the attempt to turn the anthem scandal into a public issue ultimately failed.
According to Lebanese historian Charles Hayek, the Republic of the Rif never had an official anthem. He argues that the confusion stems from a Moroccan documentary published in 1959, which used the melody of the Lebanese anthem.
The only evidence of plagiarism is a segment from a documentary about Moroccan politician Mahdi Ben Barka, in which the melody of the Lebanese national anthem is played over footage of King Mohammed V, but with different lyrics. Additionally, the book Deux poètes contemporains by Omar Farroukh concludes that Mohammed Fleifel sold the melody of the "Anthem of the Hero of the Rif" to Wadia Sabra. However, while the "Anthem of the Rif" was indeed composed by the Fleifel brothers, its melody differed from that of the national anthem composed by Sabra.
According to Professor Joumana Mrad, the "Anthem of the Rif" was highly popular at the time, making it difficult to steal or plagiarize for resale. This suggests that the claim that the Rif melody was sold is a false accusation.
Lyrics
{| class="wikitable"
!MSA original
!Romanization (EALL)
!IPA transcription
|- style="vertical-align:top; white-space:nowrap;"
|<poem dir="rtl" style="line-height:1.52em;"></poem>
|<poem></poem>
|<poem></poem>
|}
{| class="wikitable"
!French translation
!Poetic English translation
|- style="vertical-align:top; white-space:nowrap;"
|<poem></poem>
|<poem>I
All of us! For our Country, for our Glory and Flag!
Our valor and our writings are the envy of the ages.
Our mountain and our valley, they bring forth stalwart men.
And to Perfection we devote our words and labor.
All of us! For our Country, for our Glory and Flag!
All of us! For our Country!
II
Our Elders and our children, they await our Country's call,
And on the Day of Crisis they are as Lions of the Jungle.
The heart of our East is ever Lebanon,
God has preserved him until the end of time.
III
The Gems of the East are his land and sea.
Throughout the world his good deeds flow from pole to pole.
And his name is his glory since time began.
The cedars are his pride, his immortality's symbol.
</poem>
|}
Notes
References
External links
- The National Anthem – a page that is part of the official page of the Presidency of Lebanon.
- The Hymns of the Army page at the official website of the Lebanese Army.
- Lebanese national anthem (on YouTube)