Costa Rica National Anthem
Himno Nacional de Costa Rica
National Anthem of Costa Rica
1852
1949
José María Zeledón Brenes
Manuel María Gutiérrez
☮ Peace 🌿 Nature 🕊 Freedom 🚩 Flag |
Key Facts
- 1. The anthem is not free of martial imagery: it warns that if anyone should try to stain the homeland's glory, its brave people will 'turn their rough tools into weapons'
- 2. Zeledón's words were not the first: texts from 1873 and 1879 were never made official, and an official 1888 text by Juan Fernández Ferraz was dropped because its language was too elevated and it did not fit the music well
- 3. The current lyrics were first sung on September 15, 1903, by a choir of more than two thousand children
- 4. The anthem's 'simple farmers' (labriegos sencillos) became part of Costa Rica's traditional, idealized image of itself as an egalitarian nation of small farmers
Costa Rica National Anthem Lyrics
Noble patria, tu hermosa bandera
Expresión de tu vida nos da:
Bajo el límpido azul de tu cielo
Blanca y pura descansa la paz.
En la lucha tenaz de fecunda labor
Que enrojece del hombre la faz,
Conquistaron tus hijos, labriegos sencillos,
Eterno prestigio, estima y honor.
¡Salve, oh tierra gentil!
¡Salve, oh madre de amor!
Cuando alguno pretenda tu gloria manchar,
Verás a tu pueblo, valiente y viril,
La tosca herramienta en arma trocar.
¡Salve, oh patria! Tu pródigo suelo
Dulce abrigo y sustento nos da;
Bajo el límpido azul de tu cielo
¡Vivan siempre el trabajo y la paz!
Translations are non-official and intended to convey meaning, not replace originals
Analysis
EditorialThe music was composed in 1852 by Manuel María Gutiérrez. The current lyrics by José María Zeledón Brenes won a public competition in 1903 and were made official by law in 1949. The anthem is notably peaceful in tone and celebrates the dignity of agricultural labor rather than military conquest, a spirit that fits the country's decision to abolish its army in 1948.
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Sources & References
- Simbolos Nacionales . Presidencia de la Republica de Costa Rica
- Himnos de mi patria: Himno Nacional de Costa Rica . Editorial Digital, Imprenta Nacional de Costa Rica
- Decreto Ejecutivo N° 34616-MEP-C (recitals on Ley 551 of 1949 and Decreto 10471-E of 1979) . Procuraduría General de la República (SCIJ) (2008)
Source & Review
- Source status
- Official source verified
- Translation
- AI-assisted working translation
- Rights status
- Third-party rights may apply
- Last reviewed
- Editorial review
- Pending
- Editorial owner
- Nationalia
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