WORLD CUP 2022
Costa Rican anthem: what are the lyrics and what is its origin and meaning?
The Costa Rican national team is preparing for its participation in the Qatar 2022 World Cup. Learn the lyrics, origin and meaning of its anthem.
Some of the best soccer teams have come together to celebrate the FIFA World Cup 2022 in Qatar. There are 32 teams that will represent their respective countries and, as part of the protocol, the national anthems of each will be played before matches.
In the case of the American continent, the United States, Canada, Mexico, Argentina, Brazil, Ecuador and Uruguay will be there, as well as Costa Rica, who got the place after beating New Zealand in June in the international playoffs.
Get to know the Costa Rica anthem
The music of the anthem was written in 1852 by Manuel Mara Gutiérrez Flores, who dedicated it to French adventurer Gabriel-Pierre Lafond de Lurcy. The music was composed to welcome delegates from the United Kingdom and the United States to the Webster-Crampton Treaty that year. It is believed to be the first national anthem of Central America.
The current lyrics were written for a contest held by the government of Ascensión Esquivel Ibarra in 1903 to give the anthem lyrics that reflected the idea of being Costa Rican. José Mara Zeledón Brenes won the competition.
The lyrics of the anthem were made official by the Founding Junta of the Second Republic, led by José Figueres Ferrer, in 1949. President Rodrigo Carazo Odio made the music official in 1979.
It’s worth noting that there were several attempts at lyrics made over the preceding years, many that have long since been forgotten. So what are those lyrics?
Lyrics of the Costa Rican National Anthem
¡Noble patria!, tu hermosa bandera
expresión de tu vida nos da;
bajo el límpido azul de tu cielo
blanca y pura descansa la paz.
En la lucha tenaz, de fecunda labor,
que enrojece del hombre la faz;
conquistaron tus hijos, labriegos sencillos,
eterno prestigio, estima y honor.
¡Salve, oh tierra gentil!
¡Salve, oh madre de amor!
Cuando alguno pretenda tu gloria manchar,
verás a tu pueblo, valiente y viril,
la tosca herramienta en arma trocar.
¡Salve, oh patria!, tu pródigo suelo
dulce abrigo y sustento nos da;
bajo el límpido azul de tu cielo,
¡vivan siempre el trabajo y la paz!
Costa Rica anthem in English
Noble fatherland! Your beautiful flag
gives us expression of your life;
under the limpid blue of your sky,
white and pure, rests peace.
In the tenacious struggle, of fruitful labour,
that makes the face of man red;
your children, simple peasants, conquered
eternal prestige, esteem and honour.
Hail, oh gentle land!
Hail, oh mother of love!
When someone intends to stain your glory,
you will see in your people, brave and virile,
the rustic tool turn into a weapon.
Hail, oh fatherland! Your prodigal soil
gives us sweet shelter and sustenance;
under the limpid blue of your sky,
may work and peace always live!
As can be read, the anthem, more than being a war song, tells the history of the Costa Rican people, as well as recognizing their way of life and work.