Laos
ພະງຊາດລາວ
Pheng Xat Lao
Hymn of the Lao People
1941
1947
Sisana Sisane
Thongdy Sounthonevichit
🤝 Unity 🗽 Independence 🕊 Freedom 🌾 Prosperity |
Key Facts
- 1. The Pathet Lao communist movement changed only the lyrics in 1975, keeping the original melody, because the tune was already beloved by people across all political factions.
- 2. Thongdy Sounthonevichit, who composed the music, drew on Lao traditional pentatonic scales, giving the anthem a distinctly Southeast Asian melodic character.
- 3. Laos and Vietnam share strikingly similar anthem structures, both featuring march-like tempos and revolutionary themes, reflecting the close political alliance between the two nations.
Lyrics
ຊาດลาวຕັ້ງແຕ່ກ່ອນມາ
ລາວທັງລາຍສຸດໃຈຂອຢູ່ຊູ່ຊື່ເສີຍງສະຫຼາງ
ພອເທາເທອກັນເມື່ອກ່ອນ
ລອດລາວທະວີ ເຜ່າພັນໃຫ້ລາວເຮືອງເຮື້ອງຢິ່ງ
ຊັກສິດທິ ເຜ່າຜວ່າງເອກກະລາດແຮງ
ຫຼືຫຸ້ນຫຼາຍສິຫຼາຍທອດ
ໃຫ້ເລືອດລາວໄດ້ພັດທະນາໝ້າ
ໄວ້ຊູ່ຊອນ ລາວຫວັງວ່າ
ລາວຈະກ້າວໜ້າບ່ຂັດສົນໃດ
Translations are non-official and intended to convey meaning, not replace originals
Analysis
EditorialWritten during World War II when Laos was under Japanese occupation, the anthem was first adopted in 1947 under the Kingdom of Laos. Remarkably, it survived the communist revolution in 1975 and remains the anthem of the Lao People's Democratic Republic.