National Anthem Comparison
Israel vs Ukraine
2
Shared themes
✗
Different moods
15
15 years apart
✗
Different continents
Comparison Analysis
Israel (Asia) and Ukraine (Europe) come from different parts of the world, yet both express national identity through song. Israel's "Hatikvah" was written in 1878; Ukraine's "Ukraine Has Not Yet Perished" in 1863.
Both anthems share themes of Identity and Freedom. Israel additionally explores Hope and Resilience, while Ukraine also touches on Battle / War and Ancestors / Heritage.
The emotional tones differ: Israel's anthem is Hopeful, while Ukraine's is Defiant.
Ukraine changed its national anthem in 2003, reflecting a shift in the nation's identity or political landscape.
Shared themes
Israel
🌅 Hope 🏛 Identity 💪 Resilience 🕊 Freedom
Ukraine
🕊 Freedom ⚔ Battle / War 🏛 Identity 🏺 Ancestors / Heritage
Shared themes:
🏛 Identity 🕊 Freedom
Metadata
| Israel | Ukraine | |
|---|---|---|
| Written | 1878 | 1863 |
| Adopted | 2004 | 2003 |
| Lyricist | Naftali Herz Imber | Pavlo Chubynsky |
| Composer | Samuel Cohen (based on Moldavian-Romanian folk tune) | Mykhailo Verbytsky |
| Language | he | uk |
| Region | Western Asia | Eastern Europe |
Lyrics Side by Side
Israel
התקווה
Original
כָּל עוֹד בַּלֵּבָב פְּנִימָה
נֶפֶשׁ יְהוּדִי הוֹמִיָּה
וּלְפַאֲתֵי מִזְרָח קָדִימָה
עַיִן לְצִיּוֹן צוֹפִיָּה
עוֹד לֹא אָבְדָה תִּקְוָתֵנוּ
הַתִּקְוָה בַּת שְׁנוֹת אַלְפַּיִם
לִהְיוֹת עַם חָפְשִׁי בְּאַרְצֵנוּ
בְּאֶרֶץ צִיּוֹן וִירוּשָׁלַיִם
Translation
As long as in the heart, within,
A Jewish soul still yearns,
And onward, towards the ends of the east,
An eye still gazes toward Zion.
Our hope is not yet lost,
The hope of two thousand years,
To be a free people in our land,
The land of Zion and Jerusalem.
Ukraine
Ще не вмерла України
Original
Ще не вмерла України і слава, і воля,
Ще нам, браття молодії, усміхнеться доля.
Згинуть наші воріженьки, як роса на сонці,
Запануєм і ми, браття, у своїй сторонці.
Душу й тіло ми положим за нашу свободу,
І покажем, що ми, браття, козацького роду.
Станем, браття, в бій кривавий від Сяну до Дону,
В ріднім краю панувати не дамо нікому;
Чорне море ще всміхнеться, дід Дніпро зрадіє,
Ще у нашій Україні доленька наспіє.
Душу й тіло ми положим за нашу свободу,
І покажем, що ми, браття, козацького роду.
А завзяття, праця щира свого ще докаже,
Ще ся воля в Україні піснею огласить,
За Карпати відіб'ється, в степах заголосить,
України слава стане поміж народами.
Душу й тіло ми положим за нашу свободу,
І покажем, що ми, браття, козацького роду.
Translation
Ukraine's glory and freedom have not yet perished,
Fate shall smile on us, young brothers, once more.
Our enemies shall vanish, like dew in the morning sun,
And we too, brothers, shall rule in our own land.
We'll lay down our souls and bodies for our freedom,
And show that we, brothers, are of the Cossack nation.
We shall stand, brothers, in a bloody battle from the Sian to the Don,
We shall not let anyone rule in our native land;
The Black Sea will smile again, old Grandfather Dnipro will rejoice,
In our Ukraine fortune shall flourish once more.
We'll lay down our souls and bodies for our freedom,
And show that we, brothers, are of the Cossack nation.
Our zeal and honest toil shall yet prove its worth,
Freedom's song shall resound throughout Ukraine,
Echoing off the Carpathians, ringing out in the steppes,
Ukraine's glory shall rise among the nations.
We'll lay down our souls and bodies for our freedom,
And show that we, brothers, are of the Cossack nation.
Interesting facts
Israel
- 1. Hatikvah is played in a minor key, making it one of the very few national anthems worldwide with a melancholic rather than triumphant musical tone.
- 2. At the 1948 declaration of independence, the assembled crowd spontaneously broke into Hatikvah before it had been officially designated as the state anthem.
- 3. The original poem had nine stanzas, but only a modified version of the first stanza and the refrain are used as the anthem, with several key words changed over the decades.
Ukraine
- 1. Opens with an assertion that the nation still lives, a motif shared with the Polish anthem and Israel's Hatikvah
- 2. Hatikvah was written in Lviv by Naftali Herz Imber, making it an anthem born in Ukraine for a country that didn't yet exist
- 3. The lyrics were changed in 2003: the original 'Ukraine has not yet died' was softened to 'has not yet perished'
Listen
Israel
Ukraine
