Canada National Anthem
O Canada
Key Facts
- 1. The French and English lyrics are not translations of each other; they are entirely different poems set to the same melody
- 2. In 2018 the lyrics were changed from 'in all thy sons command' to 'in all of us command' to make them gender-neutral; Weir's original 1908 line, 'thou dost in us command', had no 'sons', which he added in 1913
- 3. Before 1980, custom had made both 'O Canada' and 'God Save the Queen' Canada's de facto national anthems, and 'The Maple Leaf Forever' was also popular in English Canada
Canada National Anthem Lyrics
Translations are non-official and intended to convey meaning, not replace originals
Analysis
EditorialOriginally composed in French by Calixa Lavallée with lyrics by Adolphe-Basile Routhier for the Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day celebrations in Quebec City on June 24, 1880. The English version by Robert Stanley Weir, written in 1908, became the most widely accepted version in English-speaking Canada. It was only proclaimed the official national anthem on July 1, 1980, a century after it was first performed. The French text by Routhier remains unchanged to this day; it is Weir's English text that has been revised: Weir himself amended it in 1913, 1914 and 1916, it was changed again when the anthem became official in 1980, and in 2018 'in all thy sons command' became 'in all of us command'.
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Sources & References
- O Canada . en.wikipedia.org
Source & Review
- Source status
- Wikipedia source
- Translation
- AI-assisted working translation
- Rights status
- Third-party rights may apply
- Last reviewed
- Editorial review
- Pending
- Editorial owner
- Nationalia
- Report a correction
- rights@nationalia.org