National Anthem Comparison
Dominican Republic vs Haiti
3
Shared themes
✗
Different moods
20
20 years apart
✓
Same continent
Comparison Analysis
Dominican Republic and Haiti, both North America nations, take distinct approaches to their national anthems. Dominican Republic's "Dominican National Anthem" was written in 1883, while Haiti's "The Song of Dessalines" dates to 1903.
Both anthems share themes of Freedom, Flag and Battle / War. Dominican Republic additionally explores Independence and Love of homeland, while Haiti also touches on Ancestors / Heritage and God / Faith.
The emotional tones differ: Dominican Republic's anthem is Defiant, while Haiti's is Fierce.
Shared themes
Dominican Republic
🕊 Freedom 🗽 Independence 🚩 Flag ⚔ Battle / War ❤ Love of homeland
Haiti
🕊 Freedom ⚔ Battle / War 🚩 Flag 🏺 Ancestors / Heritage ✝ God / Faith
Shared themes:
🕊 Freedom 🚩 Flag ⚔ Battle / War
Metadata
| Dominican Republic | Haiti | |
|---|---|---|
| Written | 1883 | 1903 |
| Adopted | 1934 | 1904 |
| Lyricist | Emilio Prud'Homme | Justin Lherisson |
| Composer | Jose Reyes | Nicolas Geffrard |
| Language | es | fr |
| Region | Caribbean | Caribbean |
Lyrics Side by Side
Dominican Republic
Himno Nacional Dominicano
Original
[Coro]
Quisqueyanos valientes, alcemos
Nuestro canto con viva emoción,
Y del mundo a la faz ostentemos
Nuestro invicto glorioso pendón.
¡Salve! el pueblo que, intrépido y fuerte,
A la guerra a morir se lanzó,
Cuando en bélico reto de muerte
Sus cadenas de esclavo rompió.
Ningún pueblo ser libre merece
Si es esclavo, indolente y servil;
Si en su pecho la llama no crece
Que templó el heroísmo viril.
Mas Quisqueya la indómita y brava
Siempre altiva la frente alzará;
Que si fuere mil veces esclava
Otras tantas ser libre sabrá.
[Coro]
Que si dolo y ardid la expusieron
De un intruso señor al desdén,
Las Carreras, Beler, campos fueron
Que cubiertos de gloria se ven.
Que en la cima de heroico baluarte
De los libres el verbo encarnó,
Donde el genio de Sánchez y Duarte
A ser libre o morir enseñó.
[Coro]
Compatriotas, mostremos erguida
Nuestra frente, orgullosos de hoy más;
Que Quisqueya será destruida
Pero sierva de nuevo, ¡jamás!
Que es santuario de amor cada pecho
Do la patria se siente vibrar;
Y es su escudo invencible el derecho
Y es su lema: ser libres o morir.
[Coro]
¡Libertad! que aún se yergue serena
La victoria en su carro triunfal,
Y el clarín de la guerra aún resuena
Pregonando su gloria inmortal.
¡Libertad! Que los ecos se agiten
Mientras llenos de noble ansiedad
Nuestros campos de gloria repiten:
¡Libertad! ¡Libertad! ¡Libertad!
Translation
[Chorus]
Brave Quisqueyans, let us raise
Our song with lively emotion,
And to the face of the world let us show
Our invincible glorious banner.
Hail! The people who, intrepid and strong,
Launched themselves to war to die,
When in a warlike challenge of death
They broke their slave chains.
No people deserves to be free
If it is slavish, indolent and servile;
If in its breast the flame does not grow
That was tempered by manly heroism.
But the indomitable and brave Quisqueya
Will always hold its head high;
For if it were a thousand times enslaved,
It would know how to be free just as many times.
[Chorus]
For though deceit and trickery exposed it
To the scorn of an intruding lord,
Las Carreras and Beler were fields
That are seen covered in glory.
For in a warlike and battle-hardened gesture
From Bani to the Sabana it was
That, set ablaze by the spirit of your children,
The tyrant fell into his grave.
[Chorus]
Countrymen, let us show with heads held high
Our faces, proud from this day on;
For Quisqueya may be destroyed
But a slave again, never!
For every breast is a sanctuary of love
Where the homeland is felt to stir;
And its invincible shield is justice
And its motto: to be free or to die.
[Chorus]
Freedom! For still serenely rises
Victory in its triumphal chariot,
And the bugle of war still resounds
Proclaiming its immortal glory.
Freedom! Let the echoes stir
While, full of noble longing,
Our fields of glory repeat:
Freedom! Freedom! Freedom!
Haiti
La Dessalinienne
Original
Pour le Pays, pour les Ancêtres,
Marchons unis, marchons unis.
Dans nos rangs point de traîtres!
Du sol soyons seuls maîtres.
Marchons unis, marchons unis
Pour le Pays, pour les Ancêtres,
Marchons, marchons, marchons unis,
Pour le Pays, pour les Ancêtres.
Pour les Aïeux, pour la Patrie,
Bêchons joyeux, bêchons joyeux.
Quand le champ fructifie,
L'âme se fortifie.
Bêchons joyeux, bêchons joyeux
Pour les Aïeux, pour la Patrie,
Bêchons, bêchons, bêchons joyeux,
Pour les Aïeux, pour la Patrie.
Pour le Pays et pour nos Pères,
Formons des fils, formons des fils.
Libres, forts et prospères,
Toujours nous serons frères.
Formons des fils, formons des fils
Pour le Pays et pour nos Pères,
Formons, formons, formons des fils,
Pour le Pays et pour nos Pères.
Pour les Aïeux, pour la Patrie,
Ô Dieu des Preux, Ô Dieu des Preux!
Sous ta garde infinie,
Prends nos droits, notre vie.
Ô Dieu des Preux, Ô Dieu des Preux!
Pour les Aïeux, pour la Patrie,
Ô Dieu, Ô Dieu, Ô Dieu des Preux,
Pour les Aïeux, pour la Patrie.
Pour le Drapeau, pour la Patrie,
Mourir est beau, mourir est beau!
Notre passé nous crie:
Ayez l'âme aguerrie!
Mourir est beau, mourir est beau!
Pour le Drapeau, pour la Patrie,
Mourir, mourir, mourir est beau,
Pour le Drapeau, pour la Patrie.
Translation
For the Country, for the Ancestors,
Let us march united, let us march united.
In our ranks, no traitors!
Of the soil let us be the sole masters.
Let us march united, let us march united
For the Country, for the Ancestors,
Let us march, march, march united,
For the Country, for the Ancestors.
For the Forefathers, for the Homeland,
Let us till joyfully, let us till joyfully.
When the field is so beautiful,
The farmer is happy.
Let us till joyfully, let us till joyfully
For the Forefathers, for the Homeland,
Let us till, till, till joyfully,
For the Forefathers, for the Homeland.
For the Country and for our Fathers,
Let us raise sons, let us raise sons.
Free, strong and prosperous,
We shall always be brothers.
Let us raise sons, let us raise sons
For the Country and for our Fathers,
Let us raise, raise, raise sons,
For the Country and for our Fathers.
For the Forefathers, for the Homeland,
O God of the Valiant, O God of the Valiant!
Under your infinite protection,
Take our rights, our lives.
O God of the Valiant, O God of the Valiant!
For the Forefathers, for the Homeland,
O God, O God, O God of the Valiant,
For the Forefathers, for the Homeland.
For the Flag, for the Homeland,
To die is beautiful, to die is beautiful!
Our past cries out to us:
Have a battle-hardened soul!
To die is beautiful, to die is beautiful!
For the Flag, for the Homeland,
To die, to die, to die is beautiful,
For the Flag, for the Homeland.
Interesting facts
Dominican Republic
- 1. Dominican law requires citizens to stand and sing the anthem with their right hand over their heart; failure to show respect during a public playing can result in a fine.
- 2. Composer Jose Reyes and lyricist Emilio Prud'Homme did not collaborate directly; Reyes set the poem to music without ever meeting Prud'Homme to discuss it.
- 3. The anthem is played every day on Dominican radio and television at the start and end of the broadcast day, a tradition dating back to the Trujillo era.
Haiti
- 1. The anthem is sung in Haitian Creole, not French, making it one of the few Caribbean anthems performed in a creole language rather than the former colonial language.
- 2. The refrain's insistent repetition of 'let us march united' reflects a musical call-and-response structure rooted in West African vocal traditions brought to Haiti by enslaved people.
- 3. La Dessalinienne was adopted exactly one century after independence, in 1904, as part of centennial celebrations that aimed to rekindle national pride during a period of political instability.
Listen
Dominican Republic
Haiti
