"Asturias, Homeland Beloved" (; ) is the
regional anthem of the
autonomous community
The autonomous communities () are the first-level administrative divisions of Spain, created in accordance with the Spanish Constitution of 1978, with the aim of guaranteeing limited autonomy to the nationalities and regions that make up Sp ...
of
Asturias
Asturias (; ; ) officially the Principality of Asturias, is an autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in northwest Spain.
It is coextensive with the provinces of Spain, province of Asturias and contains some of the territory t ...
, Spain.
This adaptation of a much slower song from the neighbouring lands of
Cantabria
Cantabria (, ; ) is an autonomous community and Provinces of Spain, province in northern Spain with Santander, Cantabria, Santander as its capital city. It is called a , a Nationalities and regions of Spain, historic community, in its current ...
() was appointed as official anthem after a contest in
Oviedo
Oviedo () or Uviéu (Asturian language, Asturian: ) is the capital city of the Principality of Asturias in northern Spain and the administrative and commercial centre of the region. It is also the name of the municipality that contains th ...
in the 1890s. It has both a Spanish and an Asturian version. It is also a popular melody for bagpipers.
In the mid-2000s, it was discovered that the first song lyrics were written in
Cuba
Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...
. The father of the author had returned to his beloved Asturias to die, the author—
Ignacio Piñeiro—dedicated the song to his father. The music was different; it is believed to be a melody that
Upper Silesia
Upper Silesia ( ; ; ; ; Silesian German: ; ) is the southeastern part of the historical and geographical region of Silesia, located today mostly in Poland, with small parts in the Czech Republic. The area is predominantly known for its heav ...
n miners from the area of
Opole Silesia—that worked in Asturian coal mines at the beginning of the 20th century—had brought to Asturias. In fact, the song is still known in
Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...
, where it used to be taught as a patriotic song (with the lyrics brought back by
Polish brigadistas).
"''El himno de Asturias suena a polaco en Avilés''"
, published in ''La Nueva España'', accessible in "''Polonia en España''" (polonia-es.com).
A few versions of the anthem were created by the Republican side of the Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil War () was a military conflict fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republican faction (Spanish Civil War), Republicans and the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalists. Republicans were loyal to the Left-wing p ...
, therefore the anthem was seen as a miners song (it is said the miners' revolt in Asturias in 1934 was a wake-up call to the civil war) and as a left-wing song by right-wing people.
Lyrics
Current version
Asturian miners' strike version
See also
* Anthems of the autonomous communities of Spain
References
Fernando de la Puente documents Asturian anthem history
i
Asturies.com
(in Asturian)
* Asturian Newspape
''La Nueva España''
reports o
news
about anthem history (in Spanish).
{{Asturias topics
Spanish anthems
Regional songs
Culture of Asturias
Songs in Spanish
Anthems of non-sovereign states
Drinking songs