National Anthem Comparison
Ghana vs Sierra Leone
3
Shared themes
✗
Different moods
4
4 years apart
✓
Same continent
Ghana
God Bless Our Homeland Ghana
Sierra Leone
High We Exalt Thee, Realm of the Free
Comparison Analysis
Ghana and Sierra Leone, both Africa nations, take distinct approaches to their national anthems. Ghana's "God Bless Our Homeland Ghana" was written in 1957, while Sierra Leone's "High We Exalt Thee, Realm of the Free" dates to 1961.
Both anthems share themes of god / faith, unity and freedom. Ghana additionally explores flag and hope, while Sierra Leone also touches on love of homeland and ancestors / heritage.
The emotional tones differ: Ghana's anthem is prayerful, while Sierra Leone's is majestic.
Ghana changed its national anthem in 1966, reflecting a shift in the nation's identity or political landscape.
Shared themes
Ghana
✝ God / Faith 🤝 Unity 🕊 Freedom 🚩 Flag 🌅 Hope
Sierra Leone
🕊 Freedom ✝ God / Faith 🤝 Unity ❤ Love of homeland 🏺 Ancestors / Heritage
Shared themes:
✝ God / Faith 🤝 Unity 🕊 Freedom
Metadata
| Ghana | Sierra Leone | |
|---|---|---|
| Written | 1957 | 1961 |
| Adopted | 1957 | 1961 |
| Lyricist | Michael Kwame Gbordzoe | Clifford Nelson Fyle |
| Composer | Philip Gbeho | John Joseph Akar |
| Language | en | en |
| Region | West Africa | West Africa |
Lyrics Side by Side
Ghana
God Bless Our Homeland Ghana
Original
God bless our homeland Ghana
And make our nation great and strong,
Bold to defend forever
The cause of Freedom and of Right;
Fill our hearts with true humility,
Make us cherish fearless honesty,
And help us to resist oppressors' rule
With all our will and might for evermore.
Hail to thy name, O Ghana,
To thee we make our solemn vow:
Steadfast to build together
A nation strong in Unity;
With our gifts of mind and strength of arm,
Whether night or day, in mist or storm,
In every need, whate'er the call may be,
To serve thee, Ghana, now and for evermore.
Raise high the flag of Ghana
and one with Africa advance;
Black star of hope and honour
To all who thirst for liberty;
Where the banner of Ghana freely flies,
May the way to freedom truly lie;
Arise, arise, O sons of Ghana land,
And under God march on for evermore!
Sierra Leone
High We Exalt Thee, Realm of the Free
Original
High We Exalt Thee, Realm of the Free
Great is the love we have for thee;
Firmly united ever we stand,
Singing thy praise, O native land.
We raise up our hearts and our voices on high,
The hills and the valleys re-echo our cry;
Blessing and peace be ever thine own,
Land that we love, our Sierra Leone.
One with a faith that wisdom inspires,
One with a zeal that never tires;
Ever we seek to honour thy name,
Ours is the labour, thine the fame.
We pray that no harm on thy children may fall,
That blessing and peace may descend on us all;
So may we serve thee ever alone,
Land that we love, our Sierra Leone.
Knowledge and truth our forefathers spread,
Mighty the nations whom they led;
Mighty they made thee, so too may we
Show forth the good that is ever in thee.
We pledge our devotion, our strength and our might,
Thy cause to defend and to stand for thy right;
All that we have be ever thine own,
Land that we love, our Sierra Leone.
Interesting facts
Ghana
- 1. The anthem opens with a prayer: its first line is 'God bless our homeland Ghana'.
- 2. The anthem is sung in English, Ghana's official language, although Ethnologue counts 73 living indigenous languages in the country, among them Akan, Ewe and Dagbani.
- 3. The original 1957 words began 'Lift high the flag of Ghana' and explained the flag's colours: red for the blood of heroes, green for the farms and a golden band for the richness of the land.
Sierra Leone
- 1. Sierra Leone comes from the Portuguese Serra Leoa, 'Lion Mountains', the name given to the mountains of what is now the Freetown peninsula. It is traditionally credited to the explorer Pedro de Sintra in 1462, but historians dispute this, and an early account of his voyage explains the name not by the mountains' shape but by the lion-like roar of thunder around the summit
- 2. John Joseph Akar, who composed the music, later served as Sierra Leone's ambassador to the United States
- 3. Like neighboring Liberia, Sierra Leone was settled by freed slaves: about 400 arrived from Britain in 1787, and in 1792 about 1,200 Black Loyalists from Nova Scotia, former slaves who had sided with Britain in the American Revolution, founded Freetown
Listen
Ghana
Sierra Leone
