"" ( bn, আমার সোনার বাংলা, lit=My Golden Bengal, ) is the
national anthem
A national anthem is a patriotic musical composition symbolizing and evoking eulogies of the history and traditions of a country or nation. The majority of national anthems are marches or hymns in style. American, Central Asian, and European n ...
of
Bangladesh
Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...
. An
ode
An ode (from grc, ᾠδή, ōdḗ) is a type of lyric poetry. Odes are elaborately structured poems praising or glorifying an event or individual, describing nature intellectually as well as emotionally. A classic ode is structured in three majo ...
to
Mother Bengal, the lyrics were written by Bengali polymath
Rabindranath Tagore
Rabindranath Tagore (; bn, রবীন্দ্রনাথ ঠাকুর; 7 May 1861 – 7 August 1941) was a Bengali polymath who worked as a poet, writer, playwright, composer, philosopher, social reformer and painter. He resh ...
in 1905, while the melody of the hymn was adopted from the
Baul
The Baul ( bn, বাউল) are a group of mystic minstrels of mixed elements of Sufism, Vaishnavism and Tantra from Bangladesh and the neighboring Indian states of West Bengal, Tripura and Assam's Barak Valley and Meghalaya. Bauls constitut ...
singer
Gagan Harkara's song "
Ami Kothay Pabo Tare
''Ami Kothay Pabo Tare'' ( bn, আমি কোথায় পাবো তারে, "Where shall I meet him") is a Bengali song whose lyrics and tune were written by Baul singer Gagan Harkara The melody of the hymn ''Amar Sonar Bangla'', nationa ...
" () set to
Dadra
Dadra is associated with the Hindustani classical music of the Indian subcontinent.
Dadra tala
This is a Hindustani classical '' tala'' (rhythmic cycle), consisting of six beats in two equal divisions of three. The most commonly accepted theka ...
Tala. The modern instrumental rendition was arranged by Bangladeshi musician
Samar Das
Samar Das ( bn, সমর দাস) (10 December 1925 – 25 September 2001) was a Bangladeshi musician and composer. He became one of the most important music directors in Pakistan and subsequently Bangladesh and was the composer of over 2, ...
.
Etymology
The word literally means "made of gold", with meaning gold, and showing possession. It is used as a term of endearment meaning "beloved", but in the song the words may be interpreted to express the preciousness of
Bengal
Bengal ( ; bn, বাংলা/বঙ্গ, translit=Bānglā/Bôngô, ) is a geopolitical, cultural and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal, predom ...
.
History
![Rabindranath Tagore in 1909](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/91/Rabindranath_Tagore_in_1909.jpg)
The song was written in 1905 during the
first partition of Bengal, when the ruling British Empire had an undivided province of
Bengal Presidency
The Bengal Presidency, officially the Presidency of Fort William and later Bengal Province, was a subdivision of the British Empire in India. At the height of its territorial jurisdiction, it covered large parts of what is now South Asia and ...
split into two parts; the decision was announced on 20 July by the then-Viceroy of India
Lord Curzon
George Nathaniel Curzon, 1st Marquess Curzon of Kedleston, (11 January 1859 – 20 March 1925), styled Lord Curzon of Kedleston between 1898 and 1911 and then Earl Curzon of Kedleston between 1911 and 1921, was a British Conservative statesman ...
, taking effect on 16 October. This divide of Bengal, being along communal lines–
East Bengal and Assam
Eastern Bengal and Assam was an administrative subdivision (province) of British India between 1905 and 1912. Headquartered in the city of Dacca, it covered territories in what are now Bangladesh, Northeast India and Northern West Bengal.
Hist ...
having a majority of Muslims and
West Bengal
West Bengal (, Bengali: ''Poshchim Bongo'', , abbr. WB) is a state in the eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabitants within an area of . West Bengal is the fourt ...
having a majority of Hindus–is claimed to have undermined India's national movement against the UK's imperialism and to have been politically motivated. Along with a host of others, songs such as this were meant to rekindle the unified spirit of Bengal, to raise public consciousness against the communal political divide. The lyrics first appeared in the September issues of ''
Bongodorshon
''Bangadarshan'' ( bn, বঙ্গদর্শন) was a Bengali literary magazine, founded by Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay in 1872, and resuscitated in 1901 under the editorship of Rabindranath Tagore. The magazine had a defining influence on th ...
'' and ''Baul'' simultaneously, in 1905. The song along with the musical notation (referred to as in Bengali), first appeared in the periodical musical journal ''Shongeet Biggnan Probeshika'' in the same month and year.
Indira Devi
Indira Devi, born as Indira Raje (19 February 1892 – 6 September 1968), was the Maharani of the princely state of Cooch Behar, British India. She was the daughter of Chimnabai II. She broke her arranged engagement to marry Jitendra Narayan ...
, Tagore's niece,
Satyendranath Tagore
Satyendranath Tagore (1 June 1842 – 9 January 1923) was an Indian Bengali civil servant, poet, composer, writer, social reformer and linguist from Kolkata, West Bengal. He was the first Indian who became an Indian Civil Service officer in 186 ...
's daughter, jotted down the musical notation hearing it from Tagore himself (this was the common norm, Tagore singing the song, and someone formally jotting down the musical notations).
Official adaption
The first ten (10) lines of this song constitute
Bangladesh's national anthem, adopted in 1971 during its
liberation war
Wars of national liberation or national liberation revolutions are conflicts fought by nations to gain independence. The term is used in conjunction with wars against foreign powers (or at least those perceived as foreign) to establish separat ...
. Only those lines are given in the following section. The instrumental orchestra rendition was composed by
Samar Das
Samar Das ( bn, সমর দাস) (10 December 1925 – 25 September 2001) was a Bangladeshi musician and composer. He became one of the most important music directors in Pakistan and subsequently Bangladesh and was the composer of over 2, ...
.
Lyrics
Original poem
The following provides the lyrics of the "" as written by Rabindranath Tagore. Only the first ten lines of this song currently constitute Bangladesh's national anthem.
Lyrics as sung
The following are the lyrics of the national anthem as sung, which differ slightly from the original poem.
Notable performances and covers
The Ministry of Cultural Affairs planned to stage an event on Bangladesh's 44th
independence day
An independence day is an annual event commemorating the anniversary of a nation's independence or statehood, usually after ceasing to be a group or part of another nation or state, or more rarely after the end of a military occupation. Man ...
, in a bid to have the world record of the most people singing a national anthem simultaneously. Consequently, on 2 March, the ministry launched a program titled ''"Lakho Konthe Sonar Bangla"'' whose main objective was to hold an event with the cooperation of
Bangladesh Armed Forces
The Bangladesh Armed Forces ( bn, বাংলাদেশ সশস্ত্র বাহিনী, Bangladesh Sashastra Bahinī) are the Armed forces, combined military forces of the Bangladesh, People's Republic of Bangladesh. It consists ...
where approximately 300,000 people would sing the national anthem. Several popular Bangladeshi musicians and cultural groups later joined the program.
The record was broken at 11:20 on 26 March 2014 by 254,537 participants at Dhaka's National Parade Ground. The event was attended by the
Prime Minister of Bangladesh
The Prime Minister of Bangladesh ( bn, বাংলাদেশের প্রধানমন্ত্রী, translit=Bangladesher Prodhanmontri), officially Prime Minister of the People's Republic of Bangladesh ( bn, গণপ্রজা ...
,
Speaker of the Jatiya Sangsad
The Speaker of the Jatiya Sangsad is the presiding officer of the Parliament of Bangladesh. The speaker is elected generally in the first meeting of the parliament following general elections. Serving for a term of five years, the speaker chos ...
, and all the members of the cabinet. After receiving the required evidence, the
Guinness Book of World Records
''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing world ...
approved the record on 9 April 2014. The record was broken by
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
on 21 January 2017.
See also
*
Notuner Gaan
Notuner Gaan ( bn, নতুনের গান, ''The Song of Youth''), more popularly known (after its first line) as Chol Chol Chol, is the national March (music), march ( bn, রণ-সঙ্গীত) of Bangladesh, whose lyrics and tune wer ...
, the national march of Bangladesh, written by
Kazi Nazrul Islam
Kazi Nazrul Islam ( bn, কাজী নজরুল ইসলাম, ; 24 May 1899 – 29 August 1976) was a Bengali poet, Bengali literature, writer, Bangladeshi music, musician, and is the national poet of Bangladesh. Nazrul is regarded as one ...
.
*
Ekusher Gaan
"Ekusher Gaan" ( bn, একুশের গান "The Song of Twentyfirst"), more popularly known (after its first line) as "''Amar Bhaier Rokte Rangano''" ( bn, আমার ভাইয়ের রক্তে রাঙানো "My Brothers' ...
, a song in the memory of the martyrs of the
Bengali language movement
*
Jana Gana Mana
"" (Sanskrit: जन गण मन) is the national anthem of the Republic of India. It was originally composed as '' Bharoto Bhagyo Bidhata'' in Bengali by polymath Rabindranath Tagore. The first stanza of the song ''Bharoto Bhagyo Bidhata' ...
, national anthem of India, also written by
Rabindranath Tagore
Rabindranath Tagore (; bn, রবীন্দ্রনাথ ঠাকুর; 7 May 1861 – 7 August 1941) was a Bengali polymath who worked as a poet, writer, playwright, composer, philosopher, social reformer and painter. He resh ...
*
Banga Mata
*
Joy Bangla
Joy Bangla ( bn, জয় বাংলা) is a slogan and war cry used in Bangladesh and India's West Bengal, Tripura, Barak Valley and Manbhum District to indicate nationalism towards the geopolitical, cultural and historical region of Ben ...
Notes
References
External links
*
{{authority control
Bangladeshi songs
Songs written by Rabindranath Tagore
Asian anthems
Bengali-language songs
Bengali-language poems
Bangladeshi patriotic songs
National anthem compositions in A-flat major
Poems by Rabindranath Tagore
Rabindra Sangeet