State Anthem of the Soviet Union

The State Anthem of the Union of Soviet Socialist RepublicsTemplate:Efn was the national anthem of the Soviet Union and the regional anthem of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic from 1944 to 1991, replacing "The Internationale". Its original lyrics were written by Sergey Mikhalkov (1913–2009) in collaboration with El-Registan (1899–1945), and its music was composed by Alexander Vasilyevich Alexandrov (1883–1946), initially as the Hymn of the Bolshevik Party. For a two-decade interval following de-Stalinization, the anthem was performed without lyrics. The second set of lyrics, also written by Mikhalkov and in which Joseph Stalin's name was omitted, was adopted in 1977.

A decade after the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the same melody was used for its successor state, as the State Anthem of the Russian Federation.

History

Origins

The anthem's music was originally composed by Alexander Alexandrov in 1938 for the Hymn of the Bolshevik Party. Its opening bars were borrowed from one of Alexandrov's previous pieces, "Life Has Become Better",Template:Efn which was based on a quote by former Soviet Union General Secretary Joseph Stalin at the First All-Union Meeting of the Stakhanovites on 17 November 1935.

Other than "Life Has Become Better", the music of the anthem has several possible outside influences. Alexandrov himself has described it as the combination of a march with Russian traditional music, particularly that of bylina epic songs. The anthem shares several chord progressions with Vasily Kalinnikov's overture Bylina, Epic Poem (which, as its name indicates, is also inspired by the bylina tradition). There also exist similarities between Alexandrov's anthem and Robert Schumann's Frühlingsfahrt.

When the Comintern was dissolved in 1943 for the Soviet Union to maintain its alliance with the other Allies of World War II, a new composition was needed to replace "The Internationale" as the national anthem. A contest was held in mid to late 1943 for a new anthem, and more than 200 entries were submitted. Alexandrov's music was personally chosen by Stalin, who both praised and criticized it. The anthem's lyrics then had to be written. Stalin thought the song should be short, and that it should invoke the Red Army's impending victory over the forces of Germany on the Eastern Front. The poets Sergey Mikhalkov and Gabriyel' Arkadyevich Ureklyan were chosen by Stalin's staffers, called to Moscow, and given the task of writing lyrics that referenced not only the Great Patriotic War, but also "a Country of Soviets". The first draft was completed overnight.

The anthem was first published on 7 November 1943. It was played for the first time on Soviet radio at midnight on 1 January 1944, and officially adopted on 15 March the same year. The new lyrics had three refrains following three different stanzas. In each refrain, the second line was modified to refer to friendship, then happiness, then glory. Joseph Stalin and the Soviet Union's war against Germany were originally invoked in the second and third verses, respectively. Reportedly, Stalin was opposed to including his name in the lyrics but relented after some Politburo members insisted.

Post-Stalin era

With the process of de-Stalinization after Stalin's death, the lyrics referring to him were considered unacceptable, and from 1956 to 1977 the anthem was performed without lyrics. A notable exception took place at the 1976 Canada Cup ice hockey tournament, where singer Roger Doucet insisted on performing the anthem with lyrics after consultations with Russian studies scholars from Université de Montréal and Soviet team officials. In 1977, to coincide with the 60th anniversary of the October Revolution, revised lyrics, written in 1970 by original author Sergey Mikhalkov, were adopted. The varying refrains were replaced by a uniform refrain after all stanzas, and the line praising Stalin was dropped, as were the lines referring to the Great Patriotic War. Another notable change was the replacement of a line referring to the Soviet national flag with one citing the Communist Party of the Soviet Union in the form of "Partiya Lenina" (The party of Lenin). These lyrics were also present in the original party anthem at the same place in the melody, but followed by the lyrics "Partiya Stalina" (The party of Stalin).

Post-1991 use

Use in the Russian Federation

After the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, the Russian Federation adopted a new anthem, the Patriotic Song. It was previously the regional anthem of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic from 1990 until 1991 (until 1990 it used the State Anthem of the Soviet Union). Unlike most national anthems, it had no official lyrics (although unofficial ones written for it were proposed, they were not adopted).

The Patriotic Song was replaced soon after Vladimir Putin first took office on 7 May 2000. The federal legislature established and approved the music of the National Anthem of the Soviet Union, with newly written lyrics, in December 2000. Boris Yeltsin criticized Putin for supporting the semi-reintroduction of the Soviet-era national anthem, although some opinion polls showed that many Russians favored this decision. In late 2000, the current national anthem of Russia was introduced, which uses the music of the Soviet national anthem with new lyrics by Sergey Mikhalkov, who also wrote both the original Soviet anthem and its remake in 1977.

State Union of Russia and Belarus

The same music was used for a proposed anthem for the State Union of Russia and Belarus, entitled Derzhavny Soyuz Narodov ("Sovereign Union of Nations"). Its lyrics were not tied to any specific nationality, and there were official versions in the languages of every Soviet republic and several other Soviet languages; thus it could have been adopted by a broader union. However, it was never officially adopted, and there appear to be no plans to utilize it in any official role.

Decommunization

In some post-Soviet states which adopted decommunization laws banning Communist symbolism, publicly performing the Soviet anthem is illegal. For example, since 2015, offenders in Ukraine face up to five years in prison with the exception of Russian-occupied areas in Ukraine. Similar laws were adopted in Latvia and Lithuania.

Russo-Ukrainian War

After Russia annexed Crimea, Ukrainian artist Template:Ill responded with the song Die, Empire! (), which is modified from the Soviet national anthem.

Official translations

The anthem has been officially translated into several languages:

Language	For	Date	Author
Ukrainian	Ukrainian SSR	1944	Mykola Bazhan
Komi	Komi ASSR	1944	Sergey Karavayev
Azerbaijani	Azerbaijan SSR Dagestan ASSR	1944	Samad Vurgun
Georgian	Georgian SSR	1944	Template:Interlanguage link
Kazakh	Kazakh SSR	1944	Unknown
Tajik	Tajik SSR	Unknown	Mirzo Tursunzoda, Mirsaid Mirshakar, Boqiy Rahzimzoda, Layeq Sherali
Khakas	Khakas AO	1944	Template:Interlanguage link and Template:Interlanguage link (1977 version)
Tatar	Tatar ASSR	1944	Äxmät İsxaq and Template:Interlanguage link
Lithuanian	Lithuanian SSR	1944	Antanas Venclova
Latvian	Latvian SSR	1944	Template:Interlanguage link and Template:Interlanguage link
Bashkir	Bashkir ASSR	unknown	Template:Interlanguage link, Template:Interlanguage link and Template:Interlanguage link
Estonian	Estonian SSR	1944	Vladimir Beekman
Yakut	Yakut ASSR	1944	Template:Interlanguage link and Template:Interlanguage link
Abkhaz	Abkhaz ASSR	1944	Dmitry Gulia

Lyrics

File:Soviet Anthem 1943.webm

Soviet Anthem 1943

This table shows the anthem's various lyrics. As there were two official versions (in 1944 and 1977), both are included within their sections.

Original version

Russian original	Romanization of Russian	IPA transcription as sungTemplate:Efn

Post-Stalin version

Russian original	Romanization	IPA transcription as sungTemplate:Efn

English translations

Literal translation of the original version

Literal translation of the post-Stalin version

I An unbreakable union of free republics, The Great Rus' has sealed forever. Long live, the creation by the people's will, The united, mighty Soviet Union! Chorus: Be glorified, our free motherland, Reliable stronghold of the people's friendship! Banner of the Soviets, the banner of the people, May it lead from victory to victory! II Through storms, the sun of freedom shone on us, And Great Lenin illuminated our path. Stalin taught us to be faithful to the people, To labor and achievements, we were inspired! Template:Yesitalic III We raised our Army in battles, And swept the vile invaders from the path! In battles, we determine the fate of generations, We bring glory to our Fatherland! Template:Yesitalic

I An unbreakable union of free republics, The Great Rus' has sealed forever. Long live, the creation by the people's will, The united, mighty Soviet Union! Chorus: Be glorified, our free Motherland, Reliable stronghold of the people's friendship! The Party of Lenin – the strength of the people, Leads us to the triumph of Communism! II Through storms, the sun of freedom shined on us, And Great Lenin illuminated our path! To a righteous cause, he raised the people To labor and achievements, we were inspired! Chorus III In the victory of Communism's immortal ideas, We see the future of our country! And to the red banner of the glorious Motherland, We will always be devotedly true! Chorus

English adaptations

Official CPSU translation (1944 lyrics)	Paul Robeson's adaptation (1949)	Olga Paul version (1944)
I Unbreakable Union of freeborn Republics Great Russia has welded forever to stand; Created in struggle by will of the peoples, United and mighty, our Soviet land! Chorus: Sing to our Motherland, glory undying, Bulwark of peoples in brotherhood strong! Flag of the Soviets, peoples' flag flying, Lead us from victory to victory on! II Through tempests, the sunrays of freedom have cheered us, Along the new path where great Lenin did lead, Be true to the people, thus Stalin has reared us, Inspired us to labour and valorous deed! Chorus III Our army grew up in the heat of grim battle, Barbarian invaders, we'll swiftly strike down. In combat the fate of the future we'll settle, Our country we'll lead to eternal renown! Chorus	I United forever in friendship and labor, Our mighty republics will ever endure. The Great Soviet Union will live through the ages. The dream of a people, their fortress secure! Chorus: Long live our Soviet motherland, Built by the people's mighty hand. Long live our people, united and free! Strong in our Friendship tried by fire, long may our crimson flag inspire, Shining in glory for all men to see! II Through days dark and stormy while Great Lenin led us, Our eyes saw the bright sun of freedom above, And Stalin, our leader, with faith in the people, Inspired us to build up the land that we love! Chorus III We fought for the future, destroyed the invader, And brought to our Homeland the Laurels of Fame. Our glory will live in the memory of nations, and all generations will honor her name! Chorus	I The Russian [Soviet] republics, in freedom united, Have mustered their power, their glory, their pride, And thus they created the great Soviet Union, The will of the nations that spread far and wide! Chorus: Great shall your glory be, motherland proud and free, Bulwark of friendship for nation and man! Flag of the Soviets, lead us to victory, Flag of the people since freedom began! II The sunlight of freedom has shone through the tempest, And Lenin has lighted our path with his flame, While Stalin has shown us that faith in the people Inspires us to action, deeds, and fame. Chorus III Our army in action has grown in its power, And soon it will wipe out the enemy horde; The fate of the future is sealed by our bravery, For honor and glory shall be our reward! Chorus

See also

• Aegukka
• Alexandrov Ensemble
• Anthems of the Soviet Republics
• Auferstanden aus Ruinen
• Communist symbolism
• List of socialist songs
• March of the Volunteers
• National anthem of Russia
• The Internationale
• White Army, Black Baron
• Worker's Marseillaise
• Workers of the world, unite!

External links

• 20 Most popular Soviet songs
• The author of Russian national anthem: sources of the USSR's anthem in Russian.
• by K.Kovalev – Eng. Bortniansky's anthem "Kol slaven" - Eng.
• Template:Trim Template:Replace on YouTube

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