National Anthem Comparison
Libya vs Tunisia
2
Shared themes
✗
Different moods
25
25 years apart
✓
Same continent
Comparison Analysis
Libya and Tunisia, both Africa nations, take distinct approaches to their national anthems. Libya's "Libya, Libya, Libya" was written in 1955, while Tunisia's "Defenders of the Homeland" dates to 1930.
Both anthems share themes of freedom and battle / war. Libya additionally explores god / faith, ancestors / heritage and unity, while Tunisia also touches on resilience.
The emotional tones differ: Libya's anthem is defiant, while Tunisia's is fierce.
Libya changed its national anthem in 2011, reflecting a shift in the nation's identity or political landscape.
Shared themes
Libya
🕊 Freedom ⚔ Battle / War ✝ God / Faith 🏺 Ancestors / Heritage 🤝 Unity
Tunisia
⚔ Battle / War 🕊 Freedom 💪 Resilience
Shared themes:
🕊 Freedom ⚔ Battle / War
Metadata
| Libya | Tunisia | |
|---|---|---|
| Written | 1955 | 1930 |
| Adopted | 2011 | 1987 |
| Lyricist | Al Bashir al-Arebi | Mustafa Sadik al-Rafii / Aboul-Qacem Echebbi |
| Composer | Mohammed Abdel Wahab | Mohammed Abdel Wahab (disputed; also credited to Ahmed Kheireddine) |
| Language | ar | ar |
| Region | North Africa | North Africa |
Lyrics Side by Side
Libya
ليبيا ليبيا ليبيا
Original
كُورَال:
يَا بِلَادِي يَا بِلَادِي
بِجِهَادِي وَجِلَادِي
اِدْفَعِي كَيْد اَلْأَعَادِي وَالْعَوَادِي
وَاسْلَمِي اِسْلَمِي اِسْلَمِي
اِسْلَمِي طُولَ الْمَدَى
إِنَّنَا نَحْنُ الْفِدَاء
لِيبِيَا لِيبِيَا لِيبِيَا
١
يَا بِلَادِي أَنْتِ مِيرَاثُ الْجُدُودْ
لَا رَعَى اللهُ يَدًا تَمْتَدُّ لَكْ
فَاسْلَمِي إِنَّا عَلَى الدَّهْرِ جُنُودْ
لَا نُبَالِي إِنْ سَلِمْتِ مَنْ هَلَكْ
وَخُذِي مِنَّا وَثِيقَاتِ الْعُهُودْ
إِنَّنَا يَا لِيبِيَا لَنْ نَخْذِلَكْ
لَنْ نَعُودْ لِلْقُيُودْ
قَدْ تَحَرَّرْنَا وَحَرَّرْنَا الْوَطَنْ
لِيبِيَا لِيبِيَا لِيبِيَا
كُورَال
٢
جُرُّدَ الْأَجْدَادُ عَزْمًا مُرْهَفَا
يَوْمَ نَادَاهُمْ مُنَادٍ لِلْكِفَاحْ
ثُمَّ سَارُوا يَحْمِلُونَ الْمُصْحَفَا
بِالْيَدِ الْأُولَىٰ وَبِالْأُخْرَى السِّلَاحْ
فَإِذَا فِي الْكَوْنِ دِينٌ وَصَفَا
وَإِذَا الْعَالَمُ خَيْرٌ وَصَلَاحْ
فَالْخُلُودْ لِلْجُدُودْ
إِنَّهُمْ قَدْ شَرَّفُواْ هٰذَا الْوَطَنْ
لِيبِيَا لِيبِيَا لِيبِيَا
كُورَال
٣
حَيِّ الْمُخْتَارْ أَمِيرَ اَلْفَاتِحِينْ
إِنَّهُ فِي لِيبِيَا رَمْزُ الْجِهَادْ
حَمَلَ الْرَّايَةَ فِينَا بِالْيَمِينْ
وَتَبَعْنَاهُ لِتَحْرِيرِ الْبِلَادْ
فَانْثَنَىٰ بِالْمَجْدِ وَالْفَتْحِ الْمُبِينْ
وَرَكَزْنَا فَوْقَ هَامَاتِ الْنِّجَادْ
رَايَةً حُرَّةً
ظَلَّلَتْ بِالْعَزِّ أَرْجَاءَ الْوَطَنْ
لِيبِيَا لِيبِيَا لِيبِيَا
كُورَال
٤
يَا ابْنَ لِيبْيَا يَا ابْنَ آسَادَ الْشَّرَى
إِنَّنَا لِلْمَجْدِ وَالْمَجْدُ لَنَا
مُذْ سَرَوْنَا حَمِدَ الْقَوْمُ الْسُّرَى
بَارَكَ اللهُ لَنَا اِسْتِقْلَالَنَا
فَابْتَغُوا الْعَلْيَاءَ شَأْوًا فِي الْوَرَى
وَاسْتَعِدُّواْ لِلْوَغَى أَشْبَالَنَا
لِلْغِلَابْ يَا شَبَابْ
إِنَّمَا الدُّنْيَا كِفَاحٌ لِلْوَطَنْ
لِيبِيَا لِيبِيَا لِيبِيَا
Translation
Chorus:
O my country, O my country,
Through my struggle and my fighting,
Repel the plots of enemies and the blows of fate,
And be safe, be safe, be safe,
Be safe for all time.
We will give our lives for you.
Libya, Libya, Libya!
1
O my country, you are the heritage of our forefathers;
May God not protect a hand stretched out against you.
Be safe, for we are soldiers for all time;
We care not who perishes, so long as you are safe.
Take from us binding pledges
That we, O Libya, shall never fail you.
We shall not return to chains:
We have freed ourselves and freed the homeland.
Libya, Libya, Libya!
Chorus
2
Our forefathers drew a keen-edged resolve
On the day a herald called them to the struggle.
Then they marched, bearing the Qur'an
In one hand, and in the other their arms.
And lo, there was faith and purity in the universe,
And lo, the world was goodness and righteousness.
Immortality to our forefathers!
They have brought honour to this homeland.
Libya, Libya, Libya!
Chorus
3
Hail al-Mukhtar, prince of the conquerors!
In Libya he is the symbol of the struggle.
He bore the banner among us in his right hand,
And we followed him to free the land.
He returned with glory and a manifest victory,
And on the summits of the highlands we planted
A free banner
That shaded every corner of the homeland with honour.
Libya, Libya, Libya!
Chorus
4
O son of Libya, O son of the lions of al-Shara,
We are made for glory, and glory is ours.
Since we set out by night, the people have praised the night march.
May God bless our independence for us.
So seek the heights as your goal among mankind,
And make ready for battle, O our lion cubs.
To the struggle for victory, O youth!
For life is nothing but a struggle for the homeland.
Libya, Libya, Libya!
Tunisia
حماة الحمى
Original
حماة الحمى يا حماة الحمى
هلموا هلموا لمجد الزمن
لقد صرخت في عروقنا الدما
نموت نموت ويحيا الوطن
لتدو السماوات برعدها
لترم الصواعق نيرانها
إلى عز تونس إلى مجدها
رجال البلاد وشبانها
فلا عاش في تونس من خانها
ولا عاش من ليس من جندها
نموت ونحيا على عهدها
حياة الكرام وموت العظام
حماة الحمى يا حماة الحمى
هلموا هلموا لمجد الزمن
لقد صرخت في عروقنا الدما
نموت نموت ويحيا الوطن
ورثنا السواعد بين الأمم
صخورا صخورا كهذا البنا
سواعد يهتز فوقها العلم
نباهي به ويباهي بنا
وفيها كفا للعلا والهمم
وفيها ضمان لنيل المنى
وفيها لأعداء تونس نقم
وفيها لمن سالمونا السلام
حماة الحمى يا حماة الحمى
هلموا هلموا لمجد الزمن
لقد صرخت في عروقنا الدما
نموت نموت ويحيا الوطن
إذا الشعب يوما أراد الحياة
فلا بد أن يستجيب القدر
ولا بد لليل أن ينجلي
ولا بد للقيد أن ينكسر
حماة الحمى يا حماة الحمى
هلموا هلموا لمجد الزمن
لقد صرخت في عروقنا الدما
نموت نموت ويحيا الوطن
Translation
[Translation excerpt: opening refrain and final stanza only. A full translation is pending review against the corrected original.]
O defenders of the homeland!
Rally around to the glory of our time!
The blood surges in our veins,
We die, we die, so that the homeland may live!
If the people one day will to live,
Then destiny must surely respond,
The darkness must surely lift,
And the chains must surely be broken.
Interesting facts
Libya
- 1. Mohammed Abdel Wahab was known as 'the Composer of Generations' (Musiqar al-Ajyal). Some sources also credit him with the music of the anthems of Tunisia and the United Arab Emirates, but both attributions are disputed.
- 2. 'Allahu Akbar', the anthem used under Gaddafi, began as a battle song of the Egyptian army during the 1956 Suez War. After Libya broke with Egypt over its 1979 peace treaty with Israel, the anthem was kept, but its Egyptian origin was no longer mentioned.
- 3. When the anthem was restored in 2011, the verse praising King Idris was dropped; a rewritten verse honours Omar al-Mukhtar, who led the resistance to Italian colonial rule, though it is not always sung.
Tunisia
- 1. The anthem closes with the opening lines of Echebbi's poem 'The Will to Live': 'If the people one day will to live, destiny must respond.' During the 2011 Arab Spring these lines were chanted and written on signs and walls in Arab cities.
- 2. From 1958 to 1987 Tunisia's anthem was 'Ala Khallidi'. Humat al-Hima replaced it on 12 November 1987, five days after Ben Ali removed President Habib Bourguiba in a bloodless coup.
- 3. Mohammed Abdel Wahab, to whom the music is usually credited, also composed Libya's anthem 'Libya, Libya, Libya' in 1951.
- 4. Both constitutions adopted since the 2011 revolution name Humat al-Hima as the national anthem: Article 4 of the 2014 constitution and Article 11 of the 2022 constitution.
Listen
Libya
Tunisia
