Nad Tatrou sa blýska
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Nad Tatrou sa blýska is the national anthem of Slovakia. The song arose in 1844 during a campaign of the students of the Evangelic Lutheran Lyceum of Bratislava to the town of Levoča in protest against the deprival of Ľudovít Štúr by Hungarian authorities (for details see under Ľudovít Štúr).
The text was written by Janko Matúška in 1844 during the campaign, but the melody was taken from the folk song Kopala studienku (She was digging a little well). It became popular during the Slovak Volunteer campaigns of 1848/1849. However, it was published in print only in 1851. In 1920 the first verse became part of the Czechoslovak anthem, which consisted of the present-day Czech anthem Kde domov můj? followed by the first part of the present-day Slovak anthem. In 1993, the first two verses became the national anthem of independent Slovakia.
Only the first two verses are in the Slovak anthem.
Lyrics
- Nad Tatrou sa blýska
- hromy divo bijú.
- Zastavme ich bratia,
- ved' sa ony stratia,
- Slováci ožijú.
- To Slovensko naše
- posiaľ tvrdo spalo.
- Ale blesky hromu'''
- vzbudzujú ho k tomu,
- aby sa prebralo.
- Už Slovensko vstáva
- putá si strháva
- Hej rodina milá
- hodina odbila,
- žije matka Sláva
- Ešte jedle rastú
- na krivánskej strane
- Kto jak Slovák cíti,
- nech sa šable chytí,
- a medzi nás vstane
Literal translation:
- There is lightning over the Tatra,
- thunderclaps are striking ferociously.
- Let us stop them, brothers,
- (you will see that) they will disappear,
- the Slovaks will revive.
- This, our Slovakia
- has long been fast asleep.
- But the lightning of the thunder
- is rousing it
- to wake up.
- Already Slovakia is waking up,
- throwing off its bonds
- Hey dear family
- the hour has ticked away
- Mother Glory is alive
- Firs yet grow
- on the slopes of Kriváň
- Whoever is feeling like a Slovak,
- let him take a sabre
- and let him rise among us.
A looser translation of the first two verses
- Far above the Tatra
- lightning bolts are pounding.
- These bolts we shall banish,
- brothers, they will vanish;
- Slovaks are rebounding.
- Our Slovakia was,
- until now, quiescent.
- But the lightning flashing
- and the thunder crashing
- made it effervescent.
External links
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