Bože pravde
| English: God of Justice | |
|---|---|
| Боже правде | |
 Sheet music of the Serbian national anthem (for mixed choir) | |
National anthem of  SerbiaFormer anthem of  Republika SrpskaAnthem of the  Joint Council of Municipalities | |
| Also known as | (English: "Serbian National Prayer") |
| Lyrics | Jovan Đorđević, 1872 |
| Music | Davorin Jenko, 1872 |
| Adopted | 1882[1] |
| Readopted | November 8, 2006 |
| Relinquished | 1919 (partially) 1945 (fully) |
| Audio sample | |
"Bože pravde" (instrumental, two verses) | |
"Bože pravde" (Serbian Cyrillic: Боже правде, pronounced [bǒʒe prâːʋde], "God of Justice")[2] is the national anthem of Serbia, as defined by the Article 7 of the Constitution of Serbia.[3] "Bože pravde" was the state anthem of the Principality of Serbia and the Kingdom of Serbia until 1919 when Serbia became a part of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes which was formed one year earlier. It was recommended by the regional Parliament of Serbia on August 17, 2004[2] and constitutionally adopted on November 8, 2006, after Serbia became a sovereign state again. The recommended text was made Law on May 11, 2009.[4] The original song was written in 1872 with music by Davorin Jenko and lyrics by Jovan Đorđević. It was then a piece for the theater play Marko kazuje na kome je carstvo (Marko names the Emperor), and its immense popularity with audiences prompted its adoption as the Serbian national anthem.
History
Template:National anthems of Serbia
While being the national anthem of the Kingdom of Serbia, it occasionally was referred to as the "Serbian National Prayer"[5] and the original lyrics contained a petition for the Serbian king. Various rulers of Serbia changed the words of the anthem to suit them. During the rule of Prince Milan I of Serbia, the words were "God, save Prince Milan" (knez Milana Bože spasi), which changed to King Milan when Serbia became a kingdom. Later it was tailored to Peter I and Alexander I as well.[6] During the time of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (which later became the Kingdom of Yugoslavia), "Bože pravde" was part of its national anthem.
"Bože pravde" used as the Serbian national anthem utilizes slightly modified original lyrics, asserting that Serbia is no longer a monarchy — four verses are different. In three, "Serbian king" (srpskog kralja) is changed to "Serbian lands" (srpske zemlje) and in one, "God save the Serbian king" (srpskog kralja Bože spasi, literally "The Serbian king, O God, save") is changed to "O God, save; O God, defend" (Bože spasi, Bože brani).
"Bože pravde" was also used as the regional anthem of the Republika Srpska, a constituency of Bosnia and Herzegovina until 2006, when it was ruled down by the country's constitutional court for being unconstitutional.[7] and the decision was upheld by the Constitutional Court of Republika Srpska.[8]
In 1992, "Vostani Serbije" and "Marš na Drinu" were proposed as the regional anthem of Serbia along with "Bоže pravde".[9] The latter, promulgated by then-ruling Socialist Party of Serbia, even received a plurality of popular vote on referendum, but was never officially adopted.[10]
Lyrics
The full Serbian national anthem as officially defined consists of eight stanzas, but usually only the first two are performed on public occasions for reasons of brevity.[4]
| Serbian Cyrillic | Serbian Latin | English translation |
|---|---|---|
Боже правде, ти што спасе |
Bože pravde, ti što spase |
God of Justice; Thou who saved us |
References
- ^ "Pojavila se retka verzija himne "Bože pravde" koja će vas oduševiti, a evo kako je nastala" (in Serbian).
- ^ a b c "National symbols and anthem of the Republic of Serbia". Government of Serbia. Archived from the original on July 20, 2011. Retrieved July 20, 2011.
- ^ Constitution of Serbia Archived June 16, 2013, at the Wayback Machine at the site of the Government of Serbia
- ^ a b c d "Zakon o izgledu i upotrebi grba, zastave i himne Republike Srbije" [Law on the Appearance and Use of the Coat of arms, the Flag and the Anthem of the Republic of Serbia]. Official Gazette of the Republic of Serbia – No. 36/2009 (in Serbian). Narodna skupština Republike Srbije – JP "Službeni glasnik". 2009-05-11. Archived from the original on 2009-12-19. Retrieved 2009-06-26.
- ^ "Serbia - Bože pravde". NationalAnthems.me. Archived from the original on 2012-03-26. Retrieved 2011-11-18.
- ^ LJ. M. V. - J. Ž. S. (2006-08-01). "Hej, Bože pravde!". Vecernje novosti (in Serbian). Retrieved 2007-04-17.
- ^ "Press Release". Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina. 2007-01-27. Archived from the original on 2014-01-03.
- ^ "Republika Srpska court upholds complaint about anthem". RFE/RL.
- ^ Konstantin Babić (2000-11-02). "Zašto Srbija još nema himnu". Vreme.
- ^ "Svi naši referendumi". Novi Sad: Radio-televizija Vojvodine. 2008-03-06.
- ^ Petrovitch, Voislav (1915). Serbia, Her People, History and Aspirations. Cosimo, Inc. p. 15. ISBN 978-1-60206-941-1. Retrieved October 14, 2017. Translated by Elisabeth Christitch, originally published in The Times. 𝄆 'Note𝄆 ': this is a free, not literal translation of the lyrics, also fitting the meter of the original.𝄆
External links
- Serbian anthem streaming audio, lyrics and info
- National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia - Important Documents
