National anthem of Nepal
"Sayaun Thunga Phulka", or "Sayaun Thunga Phool Ka" (Nepali: सयौँ थुँगा फूलका, pronounced [sʌjʌ̃ũ̯ tʰuŋɡa ɸulka]; "Made of Hundreds of Flowers"), is the national anthem of Nepal. It was officially adopted as the anthem on 3 August 2007 during a ceremony held at the conference hall of National Planning Commission, inside Singha Durbar, by the speaker of the interim parliament, Subash Chandra Nembang.[1][2] The previous Nepalese national anthem, "Shriman Gambhir", had been adopted in 1962 but was dropped following the treaty of the monarchy.[3]
The lyrics of the national anthem were penned by the poet Pradeep Kumar Rai, alias Byakul Maila. The music was composed by the late Amber Gurung. The national anthem is simply worded, praising Nepalese sovereignty, unity, courage, pride, scenic beauty, progress, peace, cultural and biological diversity and respect. In August 2016, the BBC ranked Nepal's national anthem third in its list of Rio 2016: The most amazing national anthems, citing its musical differences compared to other anthems.[4]
Lyrics
| Nepali original[5][6]
|
Transliteration
|
IPA transcription as sung[note 1]
|
English translation
|
𝄆 सयौं थुँगा फूलका हामी, एउटै माला नेपाली
सार्वभौम भई फैलिएका, मेची-महाकाली। 𝄇
प्रकृतिका कोटि-कोटि सम्पदाको आँचल
वीरहरूका रगतले स्वतन्त्र र अटल।
ज्ञानभूमि, शान्तिभूमि, तराई, पहाड, हिमाल
अखण्ड यो प्यारो हाम्रो मातृभूमि नेपाल।
बहुल जाति, भाषा, धर्म, संस्कृति छन् विशाल
अग्रगामी राष्ट्र हाम्रो, जय जय नेपाल।।
|
𝄆 Sayauṃ thuṁgā phūlakā hāmī, euṭai mālā Nepālī,
Sārvabhauma bhaī phailiekā, Mecī-Mahākālī. 𝄇
Prakṛtikā koṭi-koṭi sampadāko āṁcala,
Vīraharūkā ragatale svatantra ra aṭala.
Jñānabhūmi, śāntibhūmi, tarāī, pahāḍa, himāla,
Akhaṇḍa yo pyāro hāmro mātṛbhūmi Nepāla.
Bahull jāti, bhāṣā, dharma, saṃskṛti chan viśāla,
Agragāmī rāṣṭra hāmro, jaya jaya Nepāla.
|
𝄆 [sʌ.jʌ̃ũ̯ tʰuŋ.ɡa ɸul.ka ɦa.mi | eu̯.ʈʌi̯ ma.la ne.pa.li |]
[sar.bʌ.bʱʌu̯m bʱʌi̯ ɸʌi̯.li.e.ka | me.t͡si ma.ɦa.ka.li ‖] 𝄇
[pɾʌ.kɾi.ti.ka ko.ʈi ko.ʈi | sʌm.pʌ.da.ko ã.t͡sʌ.lʌ |]
[bir.ɦʌ.ɾu.ka rʌ.ɡʌ.tʌ.le | so.tʌn.tɾʌ ɾʌ ʌ.ʈʌ.lʌ ‖]
[ɡja.nʌ.bʱu.mi san.ti.bʱu.mi | tʌ.ɾai̯ pa.ɦaɽ ɦi.ma.lʌ |]
[ʌ.kʰʌɳ.ɖʌ jo pja.ɾo ɦam.ɾo | mat.ɾi.bʱu.mi ne.pa.lʌ ‖]
[bʌ.ɦul d͡za.ti bʱa.sa dʱʌɾ.mʌ | sʌ̃s.kɾi.ti t͡sʰʌn bi.sa.lʌ |]
[ʌɡ.ɾʌ.ɡa.mi ɾas.ʈɾʌ ɦam.ɾo | d͡zʌ.e d͡zʌ.e ne.pa.lʌ ‖]
|
𝄆 Woven from hundreds of flowers, we are one Nepali garland,
Sovereignly spread across from Mechi to Mahakali. 𝄇
A shawl of unending natural wealth,
From the blood of the brave, a nation free and immovable.
A land of knowledge and peace, the plains, hills, and mountains tall,
Unscathed, this beloved land of ours, O motherland Nepal.
Diverse races, languages, religions, and cultures of incredible sprawl,
This progressive nation of ours, all hail Nepal!
|
Loose explanation
The following explanation is meant for capturing the true essence of the national anthem:
We Nepalis, from different lingual, racial, religious or cultural background are the individual flower of a whole garland of the Nepali race. We have always been sovereign and we are spread out from our territories of Mechi to Mahakali.
Blessed with Nature's millions gifts and blessed by the blood sacrificed by our Heroes, we are independent and are immovable - standing still with pride.
Nepal - the land where knowledge shines, the peaceful nation consisting of Terai, Hills, and Himalayas - is indivisible. It is our beloved motherland and we shall preserve its sovereignty at any cost.
A melting pot of diverse races, numerous languages, and religions, Nepal is rich in its large diverse culture. We are a progressive people of the progressive nation and we don't look back - Jai Nepal!
"National Anthem of Nepal in easy and Poetic English": (From Madhav Prasad Dahal, Translator)
Like the single one garland,
Made of hundreds of us as flowers.
Stretched as the sovereign state,
Spreading from Mechi to Mahakali.
Rich of countless heritages from the nature,
Freedom and always firm that all owned with the brave martyrs’ blood.
As the land of knowledge and the peace,
Spanning in Terrain, Hills and Mountains.
Dearer is this indivisible motherland, Nepal,
Having diverse races and languages,
Religions and cultures as so great in her.
Long and long live our progressive nation, Nepal…..
History
After the unanimous decision on 19 May 2006 by the interim House of Representatives of the Kingdom of Nepal, the old national anthem was discontinued. On 30 November 2006, the National Anthem Selection Task Team selected poet Byakul Maila's song as the new national anthem of the country. The new national anthem was selected from a total of 1,272 submissions made from across the country. It was officially approved on 20 April 2007.[7]
On 3 August 2007, "Sayaun Thunga Phulka" was officially declared as Nepal's national anthem by the House of Representatives.
The anthem's range is of an octave; having a nadir and apex of D.
Protocol
The public performance of the anthem is regulated by the law. All citizens must stand and show respect to the flag while radio and television stations shall broadcast the anthem during "startup" and "closedown".[citation needed]
Controversy
During the selection process, Byakul Maila was required to prove he was not a royalist and encountered difficulties when it was discovered that he had once edited a book of poetry that contained a contribution from King Gyanendra.[8]
Some of Nepal's Maoist leaders preferred a stronger, more revolutionary anthem akin to the communist "Internationale", and even took their own CDs into the final selection meeting hoping to overturn Byakul Maila's and Amber Gurung's effort.[3][8]
