File added 001216
Ob"yasnenie latinskoj azbuki vospolzuemoj zdes'
Explanation of Russian transcription used here
| Gimn Sovetskogo Soyuza | Anthem of the Soviet Union |
| Compozitor-- Aleksandr Vasil'evich Aleksandrov (1883-1946) | Music by Alexander Vasil'evich Alexandrov (1883-1946) |
| Slova -- Sergej Vladimirovich Mixalkov (1913- ) | Words by Sergei Vladimirovich Mikhalkov (1913- ) |
| ----- | ----- |
| 1. | 1. |
| Soyuz nerushimyj respublik svobodnyx | An unbreakable Union of free republics |
| Splotila naveki velikaya Rus'. | Great Russia has welded forever; |
| Da zdravstvuet sozdannyj volej narodov, | Created by will of the peoples, long live |
| Edinyj, moguchij Sovetskij Soyuz! | The united, mighty Soviet Union! |
| Xor: | Refrain: |
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| 2. | 2. |
| Skvoz' grozy siyalo nam solnce svobody, | Through tempests shined on us the sun of freedom, |
| I Lenin velikij nam put' ozaril. | And the great Lenin lit us the way. |
| Nas vyrastil Stalin -- na vernost' narodu, | Stalin brought us up -- on loyalty to the people, |
| Na trud i na podvigi nas vdoxnovil. | He inspired us to labor and to heroism. |
| (Xor) | (Refrain) |
| ... | |
| 3. | 3. |
| My armiyu nashu rastili v srazhen'yax, | We developed our army in battles, |
| Zaxvatchikov podlyx s dorogi smetėm! | We will sweep the vile aggressors from the way! |
| My v bitvax reshaem sud'bu pokolenij, | In battles we settle the fate of generations, |
| My k slave Otchiznu svoyu povedėm! | We will lead our Fatherland to glory! |
| (Xor) | (Chorus) |
The following English version, appearing in Todd and Belova p. 67, can be sung. It gave up the accuracy of literal translation to preserve meter and rhyme.
The translator's name did not appear in the source document.
1.
Unbreakable Union of freeborn republics
Great Russia has welded forever to stand;
Created in struggle by will of the peoples,
United and mighty, our Soviet land!
Chorus:
2.
Through tempests the sunrays of freedom have cheered us,
Along the new path where great Lenin did lead.
Be true to the people, thus Stalin has reared us,
Inspired us to labour and valorous deed!
(Refrain)
3.
Our army grew up in the heat of grim battle,
Barbarian invaders we'll swiftly strike down.
In combat the fate of the future we'll settle,
Our country we'll lead to eternal renown!
(Refrain)
The third line of the second stanza was "de-Stalinized" under Khrushchov:
The wartime 3rd stanza was completely replaced:
Parts of the 1943 text were later modified, eg. from a 1977 version
as given in T.M. Cartledge, W.L. Reed, Martin Shaw, and Henry Coleman, editors, National Anthems of the World (5th Ed.), Blandford Press, Poole Dorset UK, 1978; pp. 460-463:
In the refrain, the flag was supplanted by increased reference to the Party:
Slav'sya, Otechestvo nashe svobodnoe,
Be renowned, our free Fatherland,
Druzhby narodov nadėzhnyj oplot!
Reliable bulwark of the friendship of peoples!
Partiya Lenina, sila narodnaya
The Party of Lenin, the strength of the people,
Nas k torzhestvu kommunizma vedėt!
Will lead us to the triumph of Communism!
2.
2.
Skvoz' grozy siyalo nam solnce svobody,
Through tempests shined on us the sun of freedom,
I Lenin velikij nam put' ozaril.
And the great Lenin lit us the way.
Na pravoe delo on podnyal narody,
In a just cause he raised up the peoples,
Na trud i na podvigi nas vdoxnovil.
He inspired us to labor and to heroism.
3.
3.
V pobede bessmertnyx idej Kommunizma,
In the victory of the immortal ideas of Communism,
My vidim gryadushchie(?) nashej strany!
We see the future of our country!
I krasnomu znameni slavnoj otchizny
And we will forever be selflessly loyal
My budem vsegda bezzavetno verny!
To the red flag of the glorious fatherland!
After the Soviet collapse (1992), Russian President Boris Yel'tsin attempted to replace the "Hymn of the Soviet Union" with a piece from Glinka's patriotic opera "A Life for the Tsar." It never caught on, partly because new words were never provided for the Glinka melody, partly because the Yel'tsin era of corruption and relentless economic decline made even the Soviet era look good by comparison. In the spring of 2001, President Vladimir Putin approved the restoration of Alexandrov's popular melody, but with new, post-Soviet words. (Nothing, of course, need prevent nostalgic Communists from singing the original words.)
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