State Anthem of the Soviet Union
| English: State Anthem of the USSR | |
|---|---|
| Государственный гимн СССР[a] | |
 Musical sheet of the anthem | |
Former national anthem of the Soviet Union Former regional anthem of the Russian SFSR | |
| Lyrics | Gabriel El-Registan (1943), Sergey Mikhalkov (1943 and 1977) |
| Music | Alexander Alexandrov, c. 1938 |
| Adopted | 15 March 1944 1955 (as instrumental) 1 September 1977 (with modified lyrics) |
| Relinquished | 26 December 1991 (as national anthem of the Soviet Union) 23 November 1990 (as regional anthem of the Russian SFSR) |
| Preceded by | "The Internationale" |
| Succeeded by | show
List of successors |
| Audio sample | |
 "State Anthem of the Soviet Union" (instrumental)
| |
The "State Anthem of the Soviet Union"[b] was the national anthem of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics and the regional anthem of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic from 1944 to 1991, replacing "The Internationale". Its original lyrics were written by Sergey Mikhalkov (1913–2009) in collaboration with Gabriel El-Registan (1899–1945), and its music composed by Alexander Alexandrov (1883–1946). Following a two-decade interval in which the anthem was performed without lyrics, a second set of lyrics, also written by Mikhalkov, was adopted in 1977.
A decade after the collapse of the Soviet Union, the music would be adopted with new lyrics as the State Anthem of the Russian Federation.
History[]
Origins[]
The anthem's music was originally composed by Alexander Alexandrov in 1938 for the Hymn of the Bolshevik Party. Its opening bars were borrowed from one of Alexandrov's previous pieces, "Life has become better",[c][1] which was based on a quote by former Soviet Union General Secretary Joseph Stalin at the First All-Union Meeting of the Stakhanovites on 17 November 1935.[2] The song alludes to Stalin's cult of personality.
Other than "Life Has Become Better", the music of the anthem has several possible outside influences. Alexandrov himself has described it as the combination of a march with Russian traditional music, particularly that of bylina epic songs. The anthem shares several chord progressions with Vasily Kalinnikov's overture Bylina, Epic Poem (which, as its name indicates, is also inspired by the bylina tradition).[3] There also exist similarities between Alexandrov's anthem and Robert Schumann's Frühlingsfahrt.[4]
When the Communist International (Comintern) was dissolved in 1943 in order for the Soviet Union to maintain its alliance with the other Allies of World War II, a new composition was needed to replace "The Internationale" as the national anthem. A contest was held in mid to late 1943 for a new anthem, and more than 200 entries were submitted.[5] Alexandrov's music was personally chosen by Stalin, who both praised and criticized it.[6] The anthem's lyrics then had to be written. Stalin thought the song should be short, and that it should invoke the Red Army's impending victory over the forces of Germany on the Eastern Front. The poets Sergey Mikhalkov and Gabriel El-Registan were chosen by Stalin's staffers, called to Moscow, and given the task of writing lyrics which referenced not only the Great Patriotic War, but also "a Country of Soviets". The first draft was completed overnight.
The anthem was first published on 7 November 1943. It was played for the first time on Soviet radio at midnight on 1 January 1944, and officially adopted on 15 March the same year.[7] The new lyrics had three refrains following three different stanzas. In each refrain, the second line was modified to refer to friendship, then happiness, then glory. Joseph Stalin and the Soviet Union's war against Germany were originally invoked in the second and third verses, respectively. Reportedly, Stalin was opposed to including his name in the lyrics but relented after some Politburo members insisted.[8]
Post-Stalin era[]
With the process of de-Stalinization after Stalin's death, the lyrics referring to him were considered unacceptable, and from 1956 to 1977 the anthem was performed without lyrics.[citation needed] A notable exception took place at the 1976 Canada Cup ice hockey tournament, where singer Roger Doucet insisted on performing the anthem with lyrics after consultations with Russian studies scholars from Université de Montréal and Soviet team officials.[9][10] In 1977, to coincide with the 60th anniversary of the October Revolution, revised lyrics, written in 1970 by original author Sergey Mikhalkov,[11] were adopted. The varying refrains were replaced by a uniform refrain after all stanzas, and the line praising Stalin was dropped, as were the lines referring to the Great Patriotic War. Another notable change was the replacement of a line referring to the Soviet national flag with one citing the Communist Party of the Soviet Union in the form of "Partiya Lenina" (The party of Lenin). These lyrics were also present in the original party anthem at the same place in the melody, but followed by the lyrics "Partiya Stalina" (The party of Stalin).
Post-1991 use[]
Use in the Russian Federation[]
After the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, the Russian Federation adopted a new wordless anthem, the "Patriotic Song", although there were suggestions for adopting lyrics. As a result, a few different versions were produced.[12] In late 2000, the current national anthem of Russia was introduced, which uses the music of the Soviet national anthem with new lyrics by Sergey Mikhalkov.
State Union of Russia and Belarus[]
The same music was used for a proposed anthem for the State Union of Russia and Belarus, entitled Derzhavny Soyuz Narodov ("Sovereign Union of Nations"). Its lyrics were not tied to any specific nationality, and there were official versions in the languages of every Soviet republic and several other Soviet languages; thus it could have been adopted by a broader union. However, it was never officially adopted, and there appear to be no plans to utilize it in any official role.
Decommunization[]
In some post-Soviet states which adopted decommunization laws banning Communist symbolism, performing the Soviet anthem is illegal. For example, since 2015, offenders in Ukraine face up to five years in prison.[13] Similar laws were adopted in Latvia[citation needed] and Lithuania.[14]
Official translations[]
The anthem has been officially translated into several languages:
| Language | For | Date | Author |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ukrainian |  Ukrainian SSR |
1944 | Mykola Bazhan[15] |
| Latvian |  Latvian SSR |
1944 | and [16] |
| Estonian |  Estonian SSR |
1944 | Vladimir Beekman[17] |
| Lithuanian |  Lithuanian SSR |
1944 | Antanas Venclova[18] |
| Tatar |  Tatar ASSR |
unknown | and [19] |
| Bashkir |  Bashkir ASSR |
unknown | , and [20] |
| Yakut |  Yakut ASSR |
1944 | and [21] |
Lyrics[]
 | This article or section should specify the language of its non-English content, using {{lang}} or {{transl}} (or {{IPA}} or similar for phonetic transcriptions), with an appropriate ISO 639 code. (June 2021) |
This table shows the anthem's various lyrics. As there were two official lyric versions (in 1944 and 1977), both are included within their sections.
1944 lyrics[]
| Russian | Transliteration | English translation |
|---|---|---|
Союз нерушимый республик свободных |
Soyuz nerushimyy respublik svobodnykh |
Unbreakable union of free republics |
1977 lyrics[]
| Russian | Transliteration | English translation |
|---|---|---|
Союз нерушимый республик свободных |
Soyuz nerushimy respublik svobodnykh |
Unbreakable union of free republics |
Other translations[]
| 1944 version | ||
|---|---|---|
| Official CPSU translation[22] | Paul Robeson's adaptation | English Translation by Olga Paul[23] |
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International Phonetic Alphabet transcriptions[]
| International Phonetic Alphabet transcriptions for Russian | |
|---|---|
| 1944 | 1977 |
sɐˈjuz nʲɪrʊˈʂɨmɨj rʲɪˈspublʲɪk svɐˈbodnɨx |
sɐˈjuz nʲɪrʊˈʂɨmɨj rʲɪˈspublʲɪk svɐˈbodnɨx |
ˈsɫaf⁽ʲ⁾sʲə ɐˈtʲet͡ɕɪstvə ˈnaʂɨ svɐˈbodnəjə |
ˈsɫaf⁽ʲ⁾sʲə ɐˈtʲet͡ɕɪstvə ˈnaʂɨ svɐˈbodnəjə |
ˈskvozʲ ˈɡrozɨ sʲɪˈjaɫə nam ˈsont͡sɨ svɐˈbodɨ |
skvəzʲ‿ˈɡro.zɨ sʲɪˈjaɫɐ nam ˈson.t͡sɪ svɐˈbodɨ |
mɨ ˈarmʲɪjʊ ˈnaʂʊ rɐˈsʲtʲilʲɪ f‿srɐˈʐɛnʲjɪx |
f‿pɐˈbʲedʲe bʲɪsːˈmʲertnɨx ɪˈdʲej kəmʊˈnʲizmə |
See also[]
- "God Save the Tsar!"
- "Grom pobedy, razdavajsya!" ("Let the thunder of victory sound!")
- National anthem of Russia
- Patrioticheskaya Pesnya ("Patriotic Song")
- "The Internationale" in Russian
- "Worker's Marseillaise," Russian version of "La Marseillaise"
- National anthems of the Soviet Union and Union Republics
Notes[]
- ^ Державний гімн СРСР / Derzhavny himn SRSR (Ukrainian)
Дзяржаўны гімн СССР / Dziaržaǔny himn SSSR (Belarusian)
СССР мадҳияси / SSSR madhiyasi (Uzbek)
КСРО Мемлекеттік Әнұраны / KSRO Memlekettık Änūrany (Kazakh)
СССР гимны (Bashkir)
ССРБ дәүләт гимны (Tatar)
ეროვნული ჰიმნი სსრკ / Erovnuli himni SSRK (Georgian)
ССРИ Дөвләт һимни / SSRİ Dövlət Himni (Azerbaijani)
ΤSRS valstybinis himnas (Lithuanian)
Имнул де стат ал УРСС / Imnul de stat al URSS (Moldavian)
PSRS valsts himna (Latvian)
СССР Мамлекеттик Гимн (Kirghiz)
ИҶШС Суруди Милли (Tajik)
ԽՍՀՄ պետական օրհներգը / KHSHM petakan orhnergi (Armenian)
Дабаралы өвги ССРС (Turkmen)
NSVL riigihümn (Estonian)
SNTL:n valtiohymni (Finnish)
ССРС өрөгөйүн ырыата (Yakut)
UdSSR-Hymne (German)
Hymne de l'URSS (French)
Szovjetunió Himnusz (Hungarian) - ^ Russian: Госуда́рственный гимн Сове́тского Сою́за, tr. Gosudárstvennyy gimn Sovétskogo Soyúza, IPA: [ɡəsʊˈdarstvʲɪn(ː)ɨj ˈɡʲimn sɐˈvʲetskəvə sɐˈjuzə]
- ^ Russian: Жить Стало Лучше, tr. Zhit' Stalo Luchshe, IPA: [ʐɨtʲ ˈstalə ˈlut͡ʂʂɨ]
References[]
- ^ "A. V. Aleksandrov, "Zhit' Stalo Luchshe"". www.cyberussr.com. Retrieved 2017-12-18.
- ^ "Zhit' stalo luchshe, zhit' stalo veseleye - slova Stalina" Жить стало лучше, жить стало веселее - слова Сталина [Life has become better, life has become more cheerful - the words of Stalin]. bibliotekar.ru (in Russian). Retrieved 2017-12-18.
- ^ А. Компаниец. Сталин и Александров: предыстория российского гимна. // Родина. № 3 за 2002 г.
- ^ Вахит Каркыраев. Дельфин и рейнская русалка. Заплыв #1. . 2000-12-07. Retrieved 2018-12-07.
- ^ Shostakovich, Dmitriĭ Dmitrievich (2004). Testimony : the memoirs of Dmitri Shostakovich. Volkov, Solomon. (25th anniversary ed.). New York: Limelight Editions. pp. 261–262. ISBN 9780879109981. OCLC 53183394.
- ^ Fay, Laurel E. (2000). Shostakovich: A Life. New York: Oxford University Press. pp. 139. ISBN 9780195182514. OCLC 40954268.
- ^ "Gimn Soyuza Sovetskikh Sotsialisticheskikh Respublik (Stalinsky)" Гимн Союза Советских Социалистических Республик («Сталинский») [Anthem of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (Stalin's)]. Museum of Russian Anthems. Archived from the original on 20 April 2016. Retrieved 5 February 2018.
- ^ В соавторстве со Сталиным. ng.ru. 2003-10-02. Archived from the original on 2003-10-02. Retrieved 2019-10-03.
- ^ Morse, Eric (9 September 2009). "The Cold War on ice". canada.com. Archived from the original on 2015-04-02.
- ^ "How Roger Doucet Wrote the Soviet National Anthem".
- ^ Голованова, М. П.; В. С. Шергин (2003). Государственные символы России. Moscow: Росмэн-Пресс. p. 150. ISBN 5-353-01286-0.
- ^ II. Связанные с гимном Глинки Archived August 1, 2012, at archive.today
- ^ "За гимн СССР - 5 лет тюрьмы: декоммунизация в цифрах и фактах".
- ^ "BBC NEWS - Europe - Lithuanian ban on Soviet symbols". 2008-06-17.
- ^ Бажан Микола Платонович. irbis-nbuv.gov.ua. National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine. Retrieved August 19, 2020.
- ^ "Data for item "43210"". dom.lndb.lv. LNB Digitala Biblioteka. Retrieved August 16, 2018.
- ^ "Data for item "43210"". erb.nlib.ee. Eesti Rahvusraamatukogu. Retrieved August 19, 2020.
- ^ Marcinkevičius, Juozas. "Tautiškos giesmės likimasprijungus Lietuvą prie Sovietų Sąjungos (1940-1950)" (PDF). Retrieved July 29, 2018. Cite journal requires
|journal=(help) - ^ "Совет Социалистик Республикалар Союзы гимны". erlar.ru. Retrieved August 17, 2018.
- ^ "Союз нерушимый - Башкирский язык". bashkort-tele.livejournal.com. Retrieved August 18, 2018.
- ^ Krio (September 20, 2014). "О гимне СССР. Перевод сахалы. Блиц-сообщение" [About the USSR anthem. Yakut translation. Blitz message.]. forum.ykt.ru (in Russian).
- ^ "Lyrics: The Soviet National Anthem". www.marxists.org. Retrieved 2017-10-29.
- ^ "Gimn Sovetskogo Soyuza" Гимн Советского Союза [Hymn of the Soviet Union] (PDF). Russian Anthems Museum. 2005-05-23. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-11-24. Retrieved 2018-01-01.
External links[]
 |
Wikisource has lyrics in other languages at: |
- 20 Most popular Soviet songs
- The author of Russian national anthem: sources of the USSR's anthem in Russian.
- by K.Kovalev – Eng. Bortniansky's anthem "Kol slaven" - Eng.
- As presented by Central Television in 1984 on YouTube
- Collection of the USSR anthem in different languages
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