The "National Anthem of the Republic of China", also known by its incipit "Three Principles of the People", is the national anthem of the Republic of China, commonly called Taiwan, as well as the party anthem of the Kuomintang. It was adopted in 1930 as the national anthem, replacing the "Song to the Auspicious Cloud". It became the national anthem in Taiwan on October 25, 1945 as a consequence of Taiwan's return to Chinese rule after the surrender of Imperial Japan. Following the retreat of the government of the Republic of China to Taiwan and the establishment of the People's Republic of China, it was discontinued as a national anthem on the mainland and replaced by "March of the Volunteers" there.

The national anthem's words are adapted from a 1924 speech by Sun Yat-sen in 1927. The lyrics relate to how the vision and hopes of a new nation and its people can be achieved and maintained. Informally, the song is sometimes known as "San Min Chu-i" from its opening line, which references the Three Principles of the People (), but this name is never used on formal or official occasions. During flag-raising ceremonies, the national anthem is played at the start prior to flag-raising followed by the National Flag Anthem of the Republic of China during actual flag-raising.

History

The text was a collaboration between several Kuomintang (KMT) party members: Hu Hanmin, Tai Chi-tao, Liao Zhongkai, and Shao Yuanchong. The text debuted on 16 June 1924, as the opening of a speech by Sun Yat-sen at the opening ceremony of the Whampoa Military Academy. After the success of the Northern Expedition, the Kuomintang party chose the text to be its party anthem and publicly solicited for accompanying music. Cheng Maoyun won in a contest of 139 participants.

Tune

thumb|Anthem of Republic China 1930s

<score sound="1">

\relative c' {

\key c \major \time 4/4

\partial 4 c\mf

c2. e4 e2. g4 g2. e4 d2. e4 c'2. a8( g) \bar "|" \break

a2. e4 a2. g8( fis) g2.\fermata g4-.\p( f-. a-. g-. c-.)( b-. d-. c-.) a( \bar "|" \break

a c a g e d c) g'\mf g2. a8( g) g2. c4 c2. a8( g) \bar "|" \break

g2. g4\ff e'2. d8.( e16) d2. g,4 d'2. d8.( e16) c2. \bar "|."}

</score>

Lyrics

{| cellpadding="10"

!Traditional Chinese<br />(with Bopomofo)

!Simplified Chinese<br />(with Hanyu Pinyin)

!IPA transcription

|- style="vertical-align:top; white-space:nowrap;"

|<poem lang="zh-tw" style="font-size:125%">

，；

，。

，；

，。

，；

，。</poem>

|<poem lang="zh-hans" style="font-size:125%">

，；

，。

，；

，。

，；

，。</poem>

|<poem style="line-height: 2.415em;"></poem>

|}

The lyrics are in classical literary Chinese. For example:

  • () is a literary equivalent of both singular and plural "you" (which are differentiated in modern Chinese) depending on the context. In this case, it is the plural of "you".
  • () is a classical synonym of "not" ( fēi).
  • () is a classical, archaic interjection, and is not used in this sense in the modern vernacular language.

In this respect, the national anthem of the Republic of China stands in contrast to the People's Republic of China's "March of the Volunteers", which was written a few years later entirely in modern vernacular Chinese.

As well as being written in classical Chinese, the national anthem follows classical poetic conventions. The ancient Fu style follows that of a four-character poem, where the last character of each line rhymes in or , which are equivalent.

English translations

The official translation by Theodore B. Tu appears in English-language guides to the ROC published by the government.

{| cellpadding="10"

!Official

!Literal

|- style="vertical-align:top; white-space:nowrap;"

|<poem>San Min Chu-i

Our aim shall be:

To found a free land,

World peace, be our stand.

Lead on, comrades,

Vanguards ye are.

Hold fast your aim,

By sun and star.

Be earnest and brave,

Your country to save,

One heart, one soul,

One mind, one goal.</poem>

|<poem>The Three Principles of the People

The foundational principle that we follow.

Using this, we establish the Republic;

Using this, we advance towards Great Unity.

Oh, you, righteous men,

For the people, be their vanguards.

Day or night, without resting,

Follow the Principles.

Swear to be diligent; swear to be courageous.

Obliged to be trustworthy; obliged to be loyal.

With one heart and one virtue,

We carry through until the very end.</poem>

|}

Transcriptions in other Sinitic languages

<div class="overflowbugx" style="overflow-x:auto;">

{| class="wikitable"

!Cantonese (Yale)

!Taiwanese Hokkien (Pe̍h-ōe-jī)

|- style="vertical-align:top; white-space:nowrap;"

|<poem>

</poem>

|<poem>

</poem>

|}

</div>

Notes

References

Further reading

  • Reed W. L. and Bristow M. J. (eds.) (2002) "National Anthems of the World", 10 ed., London
  • Cassell, p.&nbsp;526.
  • The National Anthem of the ROC (4 Versions)