God zij met ons Suriname explained
| Dutch; Flemish: italic=no|God zij met ons Suriname |
| English Title: | God be with our Suriname |
| Alt Title: | Sranan Tongo: italic=no|Opo kondreman |
| En Alt Title: | Rise, countrymen |
| Prefix: | National |
| Author: | Cornelis Atses Hoekstra (1893) and Henry de Ziel (1959) |
| Composer: | Johannes Corstianus de Puy |
| Music Date: | 1876 |
| Adopted: | 1959 |
| Sound: | Surinamese national anthem, performed by the U.S. Navy Band.ogg |
| Sound Title: | U.S. Navy Band instrumental version (one verse) |
"Dutch; Flemish: italic=no|God zij met ons Suriname" (in Dutch; Flemish pronounced as /ˌɣɔt ˈsɛi mɛt ɔns ˌsyːriˈnaːmə/; "God be with our Suriname"), or "Sranan Tongo: italic=no|Opo kondreman" ("Rise, countrymen" in Sranan Tongo), is the national anthem of Suriname. It has two verses: the first in Dutch and the second in Sranan Tongo.
History
The original version of the anthem was written by Cornelis Atses Hoekstra in 1893 and based on a 1876 melody by Johannes Corstianus de Puy. It was written to replace the old anthem "Wien Neêrlands Bloed". The anthem did not have an official status. In 1959, the Government of Suriname appointed Surinamese writer Henri Frans de Ziel to add a stanza about the unity of the country to Hoekstra's anthem.[1] De Ziel was concerned about the negative nuance in the original and started to transform the anthem into a positive message. He combined this with a poem he wrote in Sranan Tongo on the death of Ronald Elwin Kappel. His anthem was unanimously approved by the Government of Suriname on 7 December 1959.[2] De Ziel originally used a melody by Surinamese composer Johannes Helstone, however the government preferred the original 1876 melody.[2]
Lyrics
| Dutch verse[3] [4] | IPA transcription | English translation | |
|---|
| Dutch; Flemish: italic=no|God zij met ons Suriname
Hij verheff'ons heerlijk land
Hoe wij hier ook samen kwamen
Aan zijn grond zijn wij verpand
Werkend houden w'in gedachten
Recht en waarheid maken vrij
Al wat goed is te betrachten
Dat geeft aan ons land waardij. | pronounced as /wrap=none/ | God be with our SurinameMay He elevate our lovely landHow we came here togetherWe are dedicated to its soilWorking we keep in mindJustice and truth will set freeAll that is good to devote oneself toWill give value to our land | |
| Sranan Tongo verse[5] | IPA transcription | English translation | Dutch translation |
|---|
| Sranan Tongo: italic=no|Opo, kondreman un' opo!
Sranangron e kari un'.
Wans' ope tata komopo
Wi mu' seti kondre bun.
Strey de f' strey, wi no sa frede.
Gado de wi fesiman.
Eri libi te na dede
Wi sa feti gi Sranan. | pronounced as /wrap=none/ | Rise countrymen, rise!The soil of Suriname is calling you.Wherever our ancestors came fromWe should take care of our country.There is a fight to fight, we shall not be afraid.God is our leader.Our whole life until death,We shall fight for Suriname. | Dutch; Flemish: italic=no|Sta op, landgenoten, sta op!
De Surinaamse grond roept je.
Waar onze voorouders ook vandaan kwamen
We moeten voor ons land zorgen.
Er is een strijd om te strijden, we zullen niet bang zijn.
God is onze leider.
Ons hele leven tot aan de dood,
We zullen vechten voor Suriname. | |
External links
Notes and References
- Web site: Een geschiedenis van de Surinaamse literatuur. Deel 3. Michiel van Kempen. Michiel van Kempen. 2002. Digital Library for Dutch Literature. nl. 7 September 2020.
- News: Trefossa en het volkslied van Suriname. Star Nieuws. 7 September 2020. nl.
- Web site: Historiana : Case Study : Caribbean immigrants in the 1950, an example . 2022-03-17 . historiana.eu . 2022-11-23 . https://web.archive.org/web/20221123003005/https://historiana.eu/case-study/caribbean-immigrants/text-national-anthem-suriname . dead .
- Web site: Suriname . Suriname - Paramaribo . 2022-03-17 . www.suriname.nu . NL.
- Book: Arends, Jacques . Language and Slavery: A social and linguistic history of the Suriname creoles . 2017-07-26 . John Benjamins Publishing Company . 978-90-272-6580-7 . en . 305.
