Hatikvah
| English: The Hope | |
|---|---|
| HaTikvah | |
The lyrics of 'Hatikvah' above a half transparentflag of Israel.
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National anthem of  Israel | |
| Lyrics | Naphtali Herz Imber, 1878 |
| Music | Samuel Cohen, 1888 |
| Adopted | 1897 (First Zionist Congress) 1948 (unofficially) 2004 (officially) |
| Music sample | |
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  Israeli music |
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| Religious |
| Secular |
| Dance |
| Israel |
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| Piyyutim |
| Music for Holidays |
"Hatikvah" (Hebrew: הַתִּקְוָה, pronounced [hatikˈva], lit. English: The Hope) is the national anthem of Israel. Its lyrics are adapted from a poem written byNaphtali Herz Imber, a Jewish poet from Złoczów, Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria, Austro-Hungarian Empire, (today, Zolochiv, Ukraine).[1] Imber wrote the first version of his poem in 1877 while being hosted as a guest by a Jewish scholar in the city of Iasi, Romania. The romantic anthem's theme reflects the nearly 2000-year-old hope of the Jewish people to return to the Land of Israel—their ancient homeland—and to restore it and reclaim it as a sovereign nation.
Contents
History
Lyrics
The text of Hatikvah was written in 1878 by Naphtali Herz Imber, a Jewish poet from Zolochiv, a city often referred to by its nickname "The City of Poets",[2] in the Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria, Austro-Hungary, today Zolochiv,Ukraine. NH Imber emigrated to Eretz Israel in the early 1880s and lived in two or more of the first Jewish colonies . The foundation of Hatikvah is Imber's nine-stanza poem named Tikvatenu [Our Hope]. In this poem Imber puts into words his thoughts and feelings in the wake of the establishment of Petah Tikva, one of the first Jewish settlements in Ottoman Palestine. Published in Imber's first book Barkai [The Shining Morning Star], Jerusalem, 1886, the poem was subsequently adopted as an anthem by the "Hovevei Zion" and later by the Zionist Movement at the First Zionist Congress in 1897. The text was later revised by the settlers of Rishon LeZion, subsequently undergoing a number of other changes.
Before the Establishment of the State of Israel
The British Mandate government briefly banned its public performance and broadcast from 1919, in response to an increase in Arab anti-Zionist political activity.[3]
A former member of the Sonderkommando reports that the song was spontaneously sung by Czech Jews in the entryway to the Auschwitz-Birkenaugas chamber in 1944. While singing they were beaten by Waffen-SS guards.[4]
Adoption as national anthem
When the State of Israel was established in 1948, Hatikvah was unofficially proclaimed the national anthem. However, it did not officially become the national anthem until November 2004, when it was sanctioned by the Knessetin an amendment to the Flag and Coat-of-Arms Law (now renamed the Flag, Coat-of-Arms, and National Anthem Law).
In its modern rendering, the official text of the anthem incorporates only the first stanza and refrain of the original poem. The predominant theme in the remaining stanzas is the establishment of asovereign and free nation in the Land of Israel, a hope largely seen as fulfilled with the founding of the State of Israel.
Music
The melody for Hatikvah derives from La Mantovana, a 16th-century Italian song, composed by Giuseppe Cenci(Guiseppino del Biado) ca. 1600 with the text "Fuggi, fuggi, fuggi da questo cielo". Its earliest known appearance in print was in the del Biado's collection of madrigals. It was later known in early 17th-century Italy as Ballo di Mantova. This melody gained wide currency in Renaissance Europe, under various titles, such as the Pod Krakowem (folk song) (in Polish),Cucuruz cu frunza-n sus [Maize with up-standing leaves] (in Romanian) and the Kateryna Kucheryava (in Ukrainian).[5] This melody was also famously used by the Czech composer Bedřich Smetana in his symphonic poem celebrating Bohemia, Má vlast, as Vltava (Die Moldau).
The adaptation of the music for Hatikvah was done by Samuel Cohen in 1888. Cohen himself recalled many years later that he had hummed Hatikvah based on the melody from the song he had heard in Romania, Carul cu boi [The Ox Driven Cart].
The harmony of Hatikvah follows a minor scale, which is often perceived as mournful in tone and is rarely encountered in national anthems. There is a modulating shift to Major key as the words Tikvatenu and Hatikva appear, both mingled with a romantic octave leap which gives new dramatic energy to the melodic line. As the title "The Hope" and the words suggest, the import of the song is optimistic and the overall spirit uplifting.
Official text
The official text of the national anthem corresponds to the first stanza and amended refrain of the original nine-stanza poem by Naftali Herz Imber. Along with the original Hebrew, the corresponding transliteration[a] and English translation are listed below.
| Hebrew | Transliteration | English translation |
|---|---|---|
| כֹּל עוֹד בַּלֵּבָב פְּנִימָה | Kol‘od balevav penimah | As long as in the heart, within, |
| נֶפֶשׁ יְהוּדִי הוֹמִיָּה | Nefesh yehudi homiyah, | A Jewish soul still yearns, |
| וּלְפַאֲתֵי מִזְרָח, קָדִימָה, | Ul(e)fa’atei mizrach kadimah, | And onward, towards the ends of the east, |
| עַיִן לְצִיּוֹן צוֹפִיָּה, | ‘Ayin letziyon tzofiyah; | An eye still gazes toward Zion; |
| עוֹד לֹא אָבְדָה תִּקְוָתֵנוּ, | ‘Od lo avdah tikvateinu, | Our hope is not yet lost, |
| הַתִּקְוָה בַּת שְׁנוֹת אַלְפַּיִם | Hatikvah bat sh(e)not ’alpayim, | The hope of two thousand years, |
| לִהְיוֹת עַם חָפְשִׁי בְּאַרְצֵנוּ, | Lihyot ‘am chofshi b(e)’artzeinu, | To be a free people in our land, |
| אֶרֶץ צִיּוֹן וִירוּשָׁלַיִם. | ’Eretz-Tziyon viy(e)rushalayim. | The land of Zion and Jerusalem. |
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BBC recording from 20 April 1945 of Jewish survivors of the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp singing Hatikvah, only five days after their liberation by Allied forces. The words sung are from the original poem by Imber.
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| Problems playing this file? See media help. | |
Some people compare the first line of the refrain, “Our hope is not yet lost” (“עוד לא אבדה תקוותנו”), to the opening of the Polish national anthem, Poland Is Not Yet Lost (Jeszcze Polska nie zginęła), or to theUkrainian national anthem, Ukraine Has Not Yet Perished (Ще не вмерла Україна; Šče ne vmerla Ukrajina). This line may also be aBiblical allusion to Ezekiel’s “Vision of the Dried Bones” (Ezekiel 37: “…Behold, they say, Our bones are dried, and our hope is lost”), describing the despair of the Jewish people in exile, and God’s promise to redeem them and lead them back to the Land of Israel.
The official text of Hatikvah is relatively short; indeed it is a single complex sentence, consisting of two clauses: thes ubordinate clause posits the condition (“As long as… A soul still yearns… And… An eye still watches…”), while theindependent clause specifies the outcome (“Our hope is not yet lost… To be a free nation in our own land”).
Text of Tikvateinu by Naftali Herz Imber
Below is the full text of the original nine-stanza poem Tikvateinu by Naftali Herz Imber. The current version of the Israeli national anthem corresponds to the first stanza of this poem and the amended refrain.
| Hebrew | Transliteration | English translation |
|---|---|---|
| –I– | ||
| כל עוד בלבב פנימה | Kol-‘od balevav penimah | As long as in the heart, within, |
| נפש יהודי הומיה, | Nefesh yehudi homiyah, | A Jewish soul still yearns, |
| ולפאתי מזרח קדימה, | Ul(e)fa’atei mizrach kadimah, | And onward, towards the ends of the east, |
| עין לציון צופיה; | ‘Ayin letziyon tzofiyah; | An eye still looks toward Zion; |
| חזרה | Refrain | |
| עוד לא אבדה תקותנו, | ‘Od lo avdah tikvateinu, | Our hope is not yet lost, |
| התקוה הנושנה, | Hatikvah hannoshanah, | The ancient hope, |
| לשוב לארץ אבותינו, | Lashuv le’eretz avoteinu, | To return to the land of our fathers, |
| לעיר בה דוד חנה. | La‘ir bah david k'hanah. | The city where David encamped. |
| –II– | ||
| כל עוד דמעות מעינינו | Kol ‘od dema‘ot me‘eineinu | As long as tears from our eyes |
| יזלו כגשם נדבות, | Yizzelu kegeshem nedavot, | Flow like benevolent rain, |
| ורבבות מבני עמנו | Urevavot mibbenei ‘ammeinu | And throngs of our countrymen |
| עוד הולכים על קברי אבות; | ‘Od hol(e)chim ‘al kivrei avot; | Still pay homage at the graves of (our) fathers; |
| חזרה | Refrain | |
| –III– | ||
| כל עוד חומת מחמדינו | Kol-‘od chomat mach(a)maddeinu | As long as our precious Wall |
| לעינינו מופעת, | Le‘eineinu mofa‘at, | Appears before our eyes, |
| ועל חרבן מקדשנו | Ve‘al churban mikdasheinu | And over the destruction of our Temple |
| עין אחת עוד דומעת; | ‘Ayin achat ‘od doma‘at; | An eye still wells up with tears; |
| חזרה | Refrain | |
| –IV– | ||
| כל עוד מי הירדן בגאון | Kol ‘od mei hayarden bega’on | As long as the waters of the Jordan |
| מלא גדותיו יזלו, | Melo’ gedotav yizzolu, | In fullness swell its banks, |
| ולים כנרת בשאון | Uleyam kinneret besha’on | And (down) to the Sea of Galilee |
| בקול המולה יפֹלו; | Bekol hamulah yippolu; | With tumultuous noise fall; |
| חזרה | Refrain | |
| –V– | ||
| כל עוד שם עלי דרכים | Kol ‘od sham ‘alei drachayim | As long as on the barren highways |
| שער יכת שאיה, | Sha‘ar yukkat she’iyah, | The humbled city gates mark, |
| ובין חרבות ירושלים | Uvein charvot yerushalayim | And among the ruins of Jerusalem |
| עוד בת ציון בוכיה; | ‘Od bat tziyon bochiyah; | A daughter of Zion still cries; |
| חזרה | Refrain | |
| –VI– | ||
| כל עוד דמעות טהורות | Kol ‘od dema‘ot tehorot | As long as pure tears |
| מעין בת עמי נוזלות, | Me‘ein bat ‘ammi nozlot, | Flow from the eye of a daughter of my nation, |
| ולבכות לציון בראש אשמורות | Velivkot letziyon berosh ’ashmorot | And to mourn for Zion at the watch of night |
| עוד תקום בחצי הלילות; | ‘Od takum bachatzi halleilot; | She still rises in the middle of the nights; |
| חזרה | Refrain | |
| –VII– | ||
| כל עוד נטפי דם בעורקינו | Kol ‘od nitfei dam be‘orkeinu | As long as drops of blood in our veins |
| רצוא ושוב יזלו | Ratzo’ vashov yizzolu, | Flow back and forth, |
| ועלי קברות אבותינו | Va‘alei kivrot avoteinu | And upon the graves of our fathers |
| עוד אגלי טל יפלו; | ‘Od eglei tal yippolu; | Dewdrops still fall; |
| חזרה | Refrain | |
| –VIII– | ||
| כל עוד רגש אהבת הלאום | Kol ‘od regesh ahavat halle’om | As long as the feeling of love of nation |
| בלב היהודי פועם, | Beleiv hayhudi po‘eim, | Throbs in the heart of the Jew, |
| עוד נוכל קוות גם היום | ‘Od nuchal kavvot gam hayyom | We can still hope even today |
| כי עוד ירחמנו אל זועם; | Ki ‘od yerachmeinu ’eil zo‘eim; | That a wrathful God may still have mercy on us; |
| חזרה | Refrain | |
| –IX– | ||
| שמעו אחי בארצות נודִי | Shim‘u achai be’artzot nudi | Hear, O my brothers in the lands of exile, |
| את קול אחד חוזינו, | Et kol achad chozeinu, | The voice of one of our visionaries, |
| כי רק עם אחרון היהודִי | Ki rak ‘im acharon hayhudi | (Who declares) That only with the very last Jew — |
| גם אחרית תקותנו! | Gam acharit tikvateinu! | Only there is the end of our hope! |
| חזרה | Refrain | |
| –X– (unofficial) | ||
| לֵךְ עַמִּי, לְשָׁלוֹם שׁוּב לְאַרְצֶךָ, | Lekə ʻammiy, ləshalom shov ləʼarəṣeka | Go, my people, return in peace to your land |
| הַצֱּרִי בְגִלְעָד, בִּירוּשָׁלַיִם רוֹפְאֶךָ, | Haṣṣeriy vəgiləʻad, biYrushalayim rofəʼka | The balm in Gilead, your healer in Jerusalem, |
| רוֹפְאֶךָ יְיָ, חָכְמַת לְבָבוֹ, | rofəʼka yəya, ḥakəmat ləvavo | Your healer is God, the wisdom of His heart, |
| לֵךְ עַמִּי לְשָׁלוֹם, וּרְפוּאָה קְרוֹבָה לָבוֹא... | lekə ʻammiy ləshalom, orəfuʼah qərovah lavoʼ...` | Go my people in peace, healing is imminent... |
Alternate proposals and objections
Religious objections to Hatikvah
Main article: HaEmunah
Some observant Jews object to Hatikvah on the grounds that the anthem is too secular and lacks sufficient religious emphasis, such as not mentioning God or the Torah. Thus, some religious Zionists have altered the song by switching the word "חופשי" (free, which in modern Hebrew can allude to a secular Jew being free of mitzvot) with the word "קודש" (holy), thus reading the line: "To be a holy nation", referring to the verse in Exodus 19:6 "וְאַתֶּם תִּהְיוּ לִי מַמְלֶכֶת כֹּהֲנִים וְגוֹי קָדוֹש" (you shall be for Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation).
Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook objected to the secular thrust of Hatikvah and wrote an alternative anthem titled “HaEmunah” ("The Faith") in the hope that it would replace Hatikvah as the Israeli national anthem. Rav Kook did not object to the singing of Hatikvah (and in fact endorsed it) as he had great respect for secular Jews, indicating that even in their work it was possible to see a level of kedushah (holiness).[6]
Objections by non-Jewish Israelis
Some Arab Israelis object to Hatikvah due to its explicit allusions to Judaism. In particular, the text’s reference to the yearnings of “a Jewish soul” is often cited as preventing non-Jews from personally identifying with the anthem. In 2001,Saleh Tarif, the first Arab appointed to the Israeli cabinet in Israel's history, refused to sing "Hatikvah".[7] Ghaleb Majadale, who in January 2007 became the first Muslim to be appointed as a minister in the Israeli cabinet, sparked a controversy when he publicly refused to sing the anthem, stating that the song was written for Jews only.[8] In 2012, Salim Joubran, an Israeli Arab justice on Israel's Supreme Court, did not join in singing "Hatikva" during a ceremony honoring the retirement of the court's chief justice, Dorit Beinisch[9]
From time to time proposals have been made to change the national anthem or to modify the text in order to make it more acceptable to non-Jewish Israelis.[10][11] To date no such proposals have succeeded in gaining broad support.[citation needed]
See also
Notes
- ^ In the transliterations that appear on this page, a right quote (’) is used to represent the Hebrew letter aleph (א) when used as a consonant, while a left quote (‘) is used to represent the Hebrew letter ‘ayin (ע). The letter e in parentheses, (e), indicates aschwa that should theoretically be voiceless, but is usually pronounced as a very short e in modern Israeli Hebrew. In contrast, the letter a in parentheses, (a), indicates a very short a that should theoretically be pronounced, but is usually not voiced in modern Israeli Hebrew.
References
- ^ Jewish-Ukrainian bibliography, Infoukes
- ^ Weiss, Jakob (2011), The Lemberg Mosaic, New York: Alderbrook, p. 59.
- ^ Morris, B (1999), Righteous victims: a history of the Zionist-Arab conflict, 1881–1999, Knopf.
- ^ Gilbert, Shirli, Music in the Holocaust: Confronting Life in the Nazi Ghettos and Camps, p. 154.
- ^ IV. Musical examples: Baroque and classic eras; Torban Tuning and repertoire, Torban.
- ^ Kook, Rav, Response to Hatikvah, "In more recent years, some Israeli Mizrahi (Eastern) Jews have criticized the song's western perspective. For Iraqi and Persian Jews, for example, the Land of Israel was in the west, and it was to this direction that they focused their prayers."
- ^ "Not All Israeli Arabs Cheer Appointment of Druse Minister". Jewish Telegraphic Agency. 2001-03-06. Retrieved 2012-04-26. "It is the Jewish anthem, it is not the anthem of the non-Jewish citizens of Israel."
- ^ "Majadele refuses to sing national anthem". Ynet News. 2007-03-17. Retrieved 2007-05-09. "I fail to understand how an enlightened, sane Jew allows himself to ask a Muslim person with a different language and culture, to sing an anthem that was written for Jews only."
- ^ Bronner, Ethan (3 March 2012). "Anger and Compassion for Arab Justice Who Stays Silent During Zionist Hymn".The New York Times. Retrieved 29 April 2012.
- ^ Philologos. "Rewriting 'Hatikvah' as Anthem for All".The Jewish Daily Forward. Retrieved 29 April 2012.
- ^ Carlebach, Neshama. "An Anthem For All?". The Jewish Daily Forward (recording). Retrieved 29 April 2012.. A proposed modified version.
External links
- "Israel: Hatikvah" (audio with information and lyrics), National anthem.
- Hatikvah – Hadracha Guide, Jewish Agency for Israel.
- Israel’s National Anthem – Hatikva, Jewish Virtual Library.
- "Cucuruz cu frunza-n sus", You tube, Google.
- "Hatikvah", You tube, Google with lyrics translated into English.
- ben Zion, Ilan (16 April 2013), How an unwieldy romantic poem and a Romanian folk song combined to produce ‘Hatikva’, The Times of Israel.
