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 Europea ...

of the

Dominican Republic The Dominican Republic ( ; es, República Dominicana, ) is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean region. It occupies the eastern five-eighths of the island, which it shares with ...

( es, Himno nacional de República Dominicana), also known by its incipit Valiant Quisqueyans ( es, Quisqueyanos valientes), was composed by José Rufino Reyes y Siancas (1835–1905), and its lyrics were authored by Emilio Prud'Homme (1856–1932).

History

José Reyes was inspired to create a national anthem for the Dominican Republic after having seen the

Argentine National Anthem The "Argentine National Anthem" ( es, Himno Nacional Argentino) is the national anthem of Argentina. Its lyrics were written by the Buenos Aires-born politician Vicente López y Planes and the music was composed by the Spanish musician Blas P ...

in the Parisian newspaper ''El Americano''. In 1883, he invited his friend Emilio Prud'Homme to write lyrics for the anthem. The first version of Prud'Homme's lyrics was published in the weekly newspaper ''El Eco de la Opinion'' on 16 August 1883, and the first public performance of the anthem took place the next day on 17 August in Respectable Hope Lodge No. 9 in

Santo Domingo , total_type = Total , population_density_km2 = auto , timezone = AST (UTC −4) , area_code_type = Area codes , area_code = 809, 829, 849 , postal_code_type = Postal codes , postal_code = 10100–10699 ( Distrito Nacional) , webs ...

. Though the music was an instant success, several objections were made to the lyrics for having various historical inaccuracies. In 1897, Prud’Homme submitted revised lyrics, which stand to this day. On 7 June 1897, the Congress of the Dominican Republic passed an act adopting "Himno Nacional" with the original music and revised lyrics as the country's official national anthem; however, then-

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

Ulises Heureaux Ulises Hilarión Heureaux Leibert (; October 21, 1845 – July 26, 1899) nicknamed Lilís, was president of the Dominican Republic from September 1, 1882 to September 1, 1884, from January 6, 1887 to February 27, 1889 and again from April 30, 18 ...

(1846–1898) vetoed the act, because the lyric's author, Prud’Homme, was an opponent of the president and his administration. In 1899, Heureaux was assassinated, and the political disorder that ensued prevented the national anthem's legal adoption until 30 May 1934, when "Himno Nacional" was officially adopted and signed into law.

Lyrics

The

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

name of the Dominican Republic, "", is never used in the anthem's official Spanish lyrics, nor is the demonym for Dominicans, "". Rather, the indigenous word for the island of Hispaniola, "", is used twice, and its derivative demonym, "", is used once. However, research later showed that these words do not seem to derive from the original

Arawak The Arawak are a group of indigenous peoples of northern South America and of the Caribbean. Specifically, the term "Arawak" has been applied at various times to the Lokono of South America and the Taíno, who historically lived in the Great ...

Taíno language Taíno is an extinct Arawakan language that was spoken by the Taíno people of the Caribbean. At the time of Spanish contact, it was the most common language throughout the Caribbean. Classic Taíno (Taíno proper) was the native language of th ...

. In public, the national anthem is usually performed through the end of the lyric's fourth paragraph.

References

External links

Ceremonial performance of the Dominican Republic's national anthem

Vocal
{{Nationalanthemsofnorthamerica Dominican Republic music National symbols of the Dominican Republic

Spanish-language songs National anthems National anthem compositions in E-flat major