Europe (anthem)

This article is about the anthem of Kosovo. For anthem of Europe/European Union, see Anthem of Europe.
Europe

National anthem of  Kosovo[a]

Also known as

Himni i Republikës së Kosovës

Evropa
Music Mendi Mengjiqi
Adopted 2008

Music sample
Europe (instrumental)

Europe is the national anthem of the Republic of Kosovo.[a][1] It was composed by Mendi Mengjiqi. As with the national anthems of Spain, Bosnia-Herzegovina and San Marino, the anthem has no official lyrics.[2][3] It was adopted on 11 June 2008.[4] It was chosen because it contained no references to any specific ethnic group.[5] It was selected by the Assembly of Kosovo, with 72 MPs voting in favour, while 15 voted against and five abstained.[6]

Competition for the anthem

On 12 March 2008 the Assembly of Kosovo announced an open contest to choose the anthem in Pristina newspapers[7] and on the official website of the Assembly.[6] The rules include:

Unofficial lyrics

Albanian

O mëmëdhe i dashur, vend i trimnisë
Çerdhe e dashurisë
N`ty shqipet fluturojnë dhe yjet ndriçojnë
Vend i të parëve tonë

Ti qofsh bekue për jetë e mot
O nënë e jonë
Ne të dalim Zot

O mëmëdhe i dashur, vend i trimnisë
Çerdhe e dashurisë

Other anthem candidates

Ode to Joy

"Ode to Joy", the anthem of the European Union, was played at the official declaration ceremonies of the Republic of Kosovo. The Kosovo interim government decided to do this as a mark of respect to the European Union for its efforts on helping in gaining independence.[11]

Himni i Flamurit

"Himni i Flamurit", the national anthem of Albania, has been widely used in Kosovo with other Albanian national symbols.[12] It was also the anthem of the unrecognized Republic of Kosova that existed from 1990 until 2000 when the province was taken into the control of the United Nations.

Kur ka ra kushtrimi n'Kosovë

"Kur ka ra kushtrimi n'Kosovë", a song composed by Rauf Dhomi, was proposed by the former President of Kosovo, Ibrahim Rugova, as the anthem in 2000. However, no decision was made back then. The anthem has lyrics in the Albanian language.[13]

Notes

a.   ^ Kosovo is the subject of a territorial dispute between the Republic of Serbia and the Republic of Kosovo. The latter declared independence on 17 February 2008, but Serbia continues to claim it as part of its own sovereign territory. Kosovo's independence has been recognised by 108 out of 193 United Nations member states.

References

  1. ↑ "Kosovo Parliament Adopts National Hymn" novinite.com 11 June 2008 Link accessed 11/06/08
  2. ↑ "Kosovo parliament approves new national anthem" rian.ru 11 June 2008 Link accessed 11/06/08
  3. ↑ "Kosovo MPs choose national anthem" bbc.co.uk 11 June 2008 Link accessed 11/06/08
  4. ↑ "Kosovo Gets National Anthem" redorbit.com 11 June 2008 Link accessed 11/06/08
  5. ↑ "Kosovo adopts wordless national anthem". Hürriyet (Reuters). 2008-06-11. Retrieved 2009-03-28.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 6.5 6.6 6.7 "Assembly approves Kosovo anthem" b92.net 11 June 2008 Link accessed 11/06/08
  7. ↑ "Kosovo seeks own national anthem". BBC. 2008-03-12. Retrieved 2008-03-12.
  8. ↑ "BalkanInsight.com – Kosovo Searches New National Anthem". Balkan Insight. 2008-03-12. Archived from the original on 2008-03-13. Retrieved 2008-03-12.
  9. ↑ "Full text: Kosovo declaration". BBC. 2008-02-17. Retrieved 2008-03-11.
  10. ↑ "Competition for the flag and emblem of Kosovo" (PDF). Express. 2007. Retrieved 2008-03-29.
  11. ↑ "Kosovo declares independence - USATODAY.com". USA Today. 2008-02-17. Retrieved 2008-03-12.
  12. ↑ "Kosovo contest for state symbols". BBC. 2007-06-04. Retrieved 2008-03-11.
  13. ↑ "Himni i Kosovës". Trepca.net. 2002-12-23. Retrieved 2008-03-16.

External links