flags and National Anthems

[Flagpatrol]

Are there any other countries that have a national anthemn directed to their flag?

[NAVA1974]

Are there any other countries that have a national anthemn directed to their flag?

It seems that a number of national anthems feature the nation's flag, some more prominently than others:

Pakistan, 3rd Stanza:
This Flag of the Crescent and Star
Leads the way to progress and perfection
Interpreter of our past, glory of our present
Inspiration of our future
Symbol of Almighty's protection

Turkmenistan, 1st stanza:
I am ready to give life for native hearth
The spirit of ancestors descendants are famous for
My land is sacred. My flag flies in the world
A symbol of the great neutral country flies.

Taiwan, alternate "Flag Raising Song"
Lo! The glorious landscape with bountiful goods! Daughters and sons of Emperors Yan and Huang count as heroes of East Asia!
Do not dismiss yourselves! Do not hold yourselves back! Further glorify our nation and work towards harmony!
Creating the nation is difficult, so remember our founders! Maintaining it is not easy either, so do not be short-sighted!
With one heart and one spirit, keep pressing to the goal! Blue Sky, White Sun, and a Wholly Red Earth!
With one heart and one spirit, keep pressing to the goal! Blue Sky, White Sun, and a Wholly Red Earth!

Ghana, 1st stanza:
Lift high the flag of Ghana,
The gay star shining in the sky,
Bright with the souls of our fathers,
Beneath whose shade we'll live and die!
Red for the blood of the heroes in the fight,
Green for the precious¹ farms of our birth-right,
And linked with these the shining golden band
That marks the richness of our Fatherland.

Somalia:
Arise with strength! For we have raised our flag,
The flag which has cost us dear
With extremes of thirst and pain.

Our flag, whose colours are the everlasting green of the earth,
The blue of the sky, and white, the colour of peace;
And in the centre the red star of blood.

Oh flag of ours, what a glorious sight!

Albania Hymn to the Flag:
United around the flag,
With one desire and one goal,
Let us pledge our word of honour
To fight for our salvation

Guess who:
Azerbaijan! Azerbaijan!
O Great Land, your children are heroes.
We are ready to be martyred for you.
We are ready to shed blood for you.
Three-coloured flag, flourish honourably!
Thousands of lives have been sacrificed.
Your bosom has become a battlefield.
Every devoted soldier
Has become a hero.
You are prospering.
My life is always dedicated to you.
My love for you is embedded in my heart
A thousand and one times.
To preserve everything
And to honour her flag
All the youth are willing.
Great Land! Great Land!
Azerbaijan! Azerbaijan!

Vietnam:
Soldiers of Vietnam, we go forward,
With the one will to save our Fatherland,
Our hurried steps are sounding on the long and arduous road.
Our flag, red with the blood of victory, bears the spirit of our country.
The distant rumbling of the guns passes over the bodies of our foes.
Overcoming all hardships, together we build our resistance bases.
Ceaselessly for the people's cause let us struggle,
Let us hasten to the battle-field!
Forward! All together advancing!
Our Vietnam is strong, eternal.
Soldiers of Vietnam, we go forward!
The gold star of our flag in the wind
Leading our people, our native land, out of misery and suffering.
Let us join our efforts in the fight for the building of a new life.
Let us stand up and break our chains
For too long have we swallowed our hatred.
Let us keep ready for all sacrifices and our life will be radiant.
Ceaselessly for the people's cause let us struggle,
Let us hasten to the battle-field!
Forward! All together advancing!
Our Vietnam is strong, eternal.

Have I been memorizing national anthems since I was a kid?

No, I just googled "national anthems of the world" and found nationalanthems.info and used their search feature!

Nick

[Peter Ansoff]

Somalia:
. . .
Our flag, whose colours are the everlasting green of the earth,
The blue of the sky, and white, the colour of peace;
And in the centre the red star of blood.

This is curious -- the current flag of Somalia is light blue with a white star. No green, and no "red star of blood." As far as I know, the current flag has been official since Somalian independence. I wonder what the national anthem was referring to.

It's interesting that, while many of these anthems mention and describe the flag, and relate its design to national attributes, ours seems to be the only one that is actually built around a story dealing with the flag's history.

Peter Ansoff