Kde domov můj

Kde domov můj? (Where is My Home?) is the national anthem of the Czech Republic.

The song was written by the composer František Škroup and the playwright Josef Kajetán Tyl as a part of the comedy Fidlovačka aneb Žádný hněv a žádná rvačka (Fidlovačka, Or No Anger And No Brawl). It was performed for the first time in the Stavovské divadlo (Estates Theatre) in Prague on December 21, 1834. The original song consists of two strophes (see below). Although J. K. Tyl is said to had considered leaving the song out of the play, not convinced of its quality, it soon became very popular among Czech folks and was accepted as an informal anthem of a nation willing to revive its identity within the Hapsburg Empire.

Soon after Czechoslovakia was formed in 1918, the first strophe of the song became the Czech part of the national anthem, followed by the first strophe of the Slovak song Nad Tatrou sa blýska. The lyrics were slightly corrected towards contemporary ortography (stkví-skví, jest-je), not affecting its actual meaning. The split of Czechoslovakia in 1992 divided also the Czechoslovak anthem. While Slovaks have extended their anthem adding a second strophe, the Czech national anthem has been legaly adopted unextended, at its one-strophe version.

Czech national anthem lyrics

Kde domov můj, kde domov můj?

Voda hučí po lučinách,

bory šumí po skalinách,

v sadě skví se jara květ,

zemský ráj to na pohled!

A to je ta krásná země,

země česká domov můj,

země česká domov můj!

(Lyrics according to Appendix 6 of Czech Act No. 3/1993 Coll., as adapted by Act No. 154/1998 Coll.)

Original Czech lyrics (from Fidlovačka, 1834)

Kde domov můj!? Kde domov můj!?

Voda hučí po lučinách

bory šumí po skalinách,

v sadě stkví se jara květ

zemský ráj to na pohled!

a to jest ta krásná země,

země česká domov můj!

Kde domov můj!? Kde domov můj!?

V kraji znáš-li bohumilém

duše outlé v těle čilém,

mysl jasnou, znik a zdar

a tu sílu vzdoru zmar,

to je Čechů slavné plemě

mezi Čechy domov můj!

English translation

Where is my home? Where is my home?

Water murmurs across meadows

Pinewoods rustle over the rockies,

Bloom of spring shines in the orchard,

Paradise on Earth to see!

And that is the beautiful country,

The Czech land, my home!

Where is my home? Where is my home?

If, in a heavenly land, you have met

Tender souls in agile frames,

Of clear mind, vigorous and prospering,

And with a strength that frustrates all defiance,

That is the glorious race of Czechs,

Among Czechs (is) my home!

Among Czechs, my home!

External links

Czech culture | National anthems

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Czech national anthem lyrics

Original Czech lyrics (from Fidlovačka, 1834)

English translation

External links