Guinea-Bissau National Anthem

Esta É a Nossa Pátria Bem Amada

This Is Our Beloved Homeland

Written 1963

Adopted 1974

Lyrics Amilcar Cabral

Music Xiao He

🗽 Independence 🤝 Unity ⚔ Battle / War 🏺 Ancestors / Heritage 🌿 Nature | Defiant

Key Facts

1. The music comes from China: a delegation from Portuguese Guinea heard one of Xiao He's songs there and asked him for music to inspire the struggle for independence.
2. Guinea-Bissau kept the original shared anthem after Cape Verde adopted a new one in 1996, making it the sole custodian of a song once meant to unite two nations.
3. The anthem is sung in Portuguese, the colonial language, rather than in Crioulo (the widely spoken creole) or any of the country's indigenous languages like Balanta or Fula.
4. Guinea-Bissau has experienced multiple coups since independence, the first in November 1980, yet the anthem has never been changed.

Guinea-Bissau - Esta É a Nossa Pátria Bem Amada

Guinea-Bissau National Anthem Lyrics

Sol, suor e o verde e mar, Séculos de dor e esperança; Esta é a terra dos nossos avós! Fruto das nossas mãos, Da flor do nosso sangue: Esta é a nossa pátria amada. [Chorus] Viva a pátria gloriosa! Floriu nos céus a bandeira de luta. Avante, contra o jugo estrangeiro! Nós vamos construir Na pátria imortal A paz e o progresso! Ramos do mesmo tronco, Olhos na mesma luz: Esta é a força da nossa união! Cantem o mar e a terra A madrugada e o sol Que a nossa luta fecundou. [Chorus]

Translations are non-official and intended to convey meaning, not replace originals

Analysis

Editorial

Written by Amílcar Cabral, the revolutionary leader who led the independence struggle against Portugal for both Guinea-Bissau and Cape Verde through the PAIGC party. Cabral was assassinated in 1973, months before Guinea-Bissau declared independence on 24 September 1973; Portugal recognized it in September 1974. The music was composed by the Chinese composer Xiao He in 1962-63, after a delegation from Portuguese Guinea visited China. Cabral wrote the words in 1963, and the anthem was adopted in 1974. Cape Verde used the same anthem, and the two countries went on sharing it after their political split in 1980.