Malta National Anthem
L-Innu Malti
The Maltese Hymn
1922
1941
Dun Karm Psaila
Robert Samut
✝ God / Faith ❤ Love of homeland 🌿 Nature ☮ Peace |
Key Facts
- 1. Robert Samut, the composer, died in 1934, seven years before the government declared the anthem official.
- 2. At its first two public performances, in December 1922 and January 1923, some words of the first stanza were altered; Dun Karm protested in a newspaper article, and his text has not been changed since.
- 3. Dun Karm was asked for words to Samut's tune so that schoolchildren could sing it, and he chose to write them as a prayer, hoping a shared prayer would unite the country and its political parties.
- 4. On 25 March 1945, before a football match against Hajduk Split at the Gżira Stadium, the band played the Yugoslav and British anthems, and the crowd rose and sang 'L-Innu Malti'.
- 5. Since 2025 Malta has marked 27 December, the anniversary of the first public performance, as National Anthem Day.
Malta National Anthem Lyrics
Lil din l-art ħelwa, l-Omm li tatna isimha,
Ħares, Mulej, kif dejjem Int ħarist:
Ftakar li lilha bil-oħla dawl libbist.
Agħti, kbir Alla, id-dehen lil min jaħkimha,
Rodd il-ħniena lis-sid, saħħa 'l-ħaddiem:
Seddaq il-għaqda fil-Maltin u s-sliem.
Translations are non-official and intended to convey meaning, not replace originals
Analysis
EditorialWritten by Dun Karm Psaila in 1922 with music by Robert Samut. The anthem is a prayer asking God to protect Malta. It was first performed in public on 27 December 1922 at the Manoel Theatre; the Maltese government declared it the official anthem on 22 February 1941, and the 1964 Independence Constitution confirmed it as the national anthem. Its lyricist, a Catholic priest, is honoured as Malta's national poet. The Maltese language itself is unique, being the only Semitic language officially written in the Latin script.
Learn More
Sources & References
- L-Innu Malti . Wikipedia
Source & Review
- Source status
- Wikipedia source
- Translation
- Human-reviewed translation
- Rights status
- Third-party rights may apply
- Last reviewed
- Editorial review
- AI-assisted editorial review
- Editorial owner
- Nationalia
- Report a correction
- rights@nationalia.org