The support for O Canada gathered momentum 1966 when in 1967 was the 100th anniversary of Canada as an independent country. PS: Sorry I havent been over to your blog for a few weeks, I am blown away at the way the days are zooming. I pitied them 🎤, oh never be ashamed of things we are learning – I recently heard a cool quote – something like when we “broaden our horizons with our work – it is never about better or best – it is about us broadening what we know….” How cool is that 😀. I think the song implies that we are all different, just because you might be from Asian cultures doesn’t mean it doesn’t apply to you, everyone, as you said, the song doesn’t have reference to the first peoples here, so it is all about coming here from another place. I got married in Japan and several of my relatives came to the wedding. Very interesting to hear from someone who didn’t sing the national anthem in school because, well, it’s not part of school life in Germany. As far as multiculturalism goes — the US is an immigrant country and so is Australia. Advance Australia fair replaced its predecessor God Save the Queen in an attempt to switch to a more uniquely Australian representation of our culture. – Sandy, only slightly kidding…. I think maybe sometimes we can not go to choose our life, such as work, school or other life planning, parents have a lot of time and perhaps make plans for us, we are unable to choose and make decisions, but regardless there even is a national, as well as identity and integration environment is the best way, although this is difficult to start, or to remember where it came from their own, do not forget you father is Chinese, I hope you do not have of ambivalence. During my school time, student and teacher were compulsory to sing Indonesia Raya (the national anthem) every Monday morning as opening for raising flag ceremony. Ohh that is a difficult situation right? (The words happen to have been written by a president of the women’s college I graduated from, but objectively speaking they’re beautiful.) It is a folk song about a homeless hobo who steels a sheep, not very representative of our nation, then or now. “America the Beautiful”. I think politics is always a sensitive subjects right? And yes, the melody comes from a popular pub song back in the day — when your singers and audience are drunk, no one notices if the tricky high notes are hit. Maybe it’s a song that you’re meant to belt out and that’s why. It’s quite a stirring song, especially the last verse. “Free” seems to be a common theme among many national anthems. However, it could also be because we want a reason to say how there is a better anthem than our country’s 😀. 'Advance Australia' and 'Fair' are the key words and title of their anthem and it appears that they were extracted from the 'White Australia March' songbook which materialised a few years after Federation in 1901. You say it so well. yes, he was, stern and spontaneous, we had so many monikers for him, it was fun creating them. With joyful hearts then let us sing, advance . It made me rethink the meaning of the first line – Advance Australia Fair. It's certainly not the adults banging on about how she should be chastised. Well said. In the words on the anthem section of the government website the judges “decided the entries did not meet the high standards of Australia’s traditional songs Advance Australia Fair, Waltzing Matilda and Song of Australia”. The tune of a gentlemen’s club – what an interesting fact about your national anthem. So maybe not all Canadians then. Okay, then Sandy must be telling the truth 😀 I played it on the piano as a kid and thought it had a nice melody. The tourists love it because it’s so weird and it’s like time has stopped. They were all “drunk” apparently and couldn’t help themselves, so why should we. Really, the US national anthem is hard to sing? I honestly have no idea what the national anthem of Australia is. 😀, Yes, sport really pull us Brazilians together!! Thanks for sharing, Tina. Ohh I’m sorry about that! I’m not too sure how I feel about “I Still Call Australia Home”. Really what you find is a nation struggling for an identity and not really knowing what we were. Certainly when I was at school we never sang the National Anthem, Mabel. How Australian. Apologies to the writer but it's also poorly crafted lyrically, is largely meaningless sentimentality and is a substandard melody. Better learn a bit of the language before I go there, it might come in handy. Experiencing many cultural environments is not only a advantage but also a challenge but I think with all countries you have been through, your love for them is precious and sincere 🙂. It’s true, I think a very different feeling compared to how Brazilians feel about their national song. In joyful strains then let us sing, "Advance Australia fair!" " Advance Australia Fair is an anthem that is racist at so many levels, written for a white Australia that is irrelevant, or should be. Yes, football is very important to Brazilians, especially during the World cup 😀 That is an interesting bit of information form the History Teachers Association of Victoria, and you bring up a valid point. I suppose the Lord’s Prayer was a short verse you recited in South Africa in regards to faith. Now I know, thank you for explaining that. Just What Is Australia’s National Dish? It’s an interesting reading, Mabel. Thankfully they canned it after a few weeks. In Belgium, it’s very complicated, because the country is divided into 3 different regions, so we have a lot of national anthems (a Flemish, and French and a German one). In Quebec most will be in French. So, in school we often sang the more melodious “America the Beautiful.” At least it has “and crown thy good with brotherhood from sea to shining sea” as a last line — a friendly thought, and typical of the day in including the sisterhood among “man”kind. But it seems that there is an anthem for each region as you said, so sort of something for everyone. I remember a story from the Olympic Games in Sydney in 2000. You are more tech savvy than me, I’m ashamed of that 👌, In the mornings during assembly in Singapore, there was always one prefect or student who had to sing the national anthem through the microphone. Reading between the lines, racist undertones seem to nestle within Advance Australia Fair. The one that we use as our national anthem (Ja, vi elsker dette landet) is not, and has never been, the official national anthem. The words “young and free” and “boundless plains to share” touch upon the true-blue, fair dinkum Aussie spirit. Anything is better than God save our Queen, long may use reign over us…etc… Mindless crappy song. I had to teach my South African pupils the national anthem, but the black pupils refused to sing the last verse which was in the Afrikaans language, and the white pupils didn’t like singing the Zulu first part, so it was usually a very halfhearted affair. Along with Negaraku, you might also remember the Rukunegara. Well, I think many people ignored that directive, and they can’t really round up people for not standing up, so they canned the initiative themselves. It was first sung by Andrew Fairfax, accompanied by a concert band conducted by McCormick, at a function of the Highland Society of New South Wales in Sydney on 30 November 1878 (Saint Andrew's Day). 'Advance Australia Fair is an anthem that is racist at so many levels'. The note sounds triumphant, but still…, I like your idea of the next version of our anthem. six o’clock sharp in the morning before ceremony started. But the atmosphere of a stadium on a warm summer night under the lights…..very fun! Some might say we sing the national anthem half-heartedly. I’ve never bothered to learn the words – fear of Nationalism I guess. "There are certainly more ways to show our love for our country than singing a song.". In 1974 I was in the second last year of high school. Beneath our radiant Southern Cross We'll toil with hearts and hands To make this Commonwealth of ours Renowned of all the lands For those who've come across the seas We've boundless plains to share, With courage let us all combine To Advance Australia Fair. In today’s politically correct world, … What I say is: Long may we wave! Here the street signs are in English. Up until this day I still remember the lyrics of both songs and the meaning behind them – Bahasa Melayu lyrics nonetheless, a language foreign to me. I attended a private school for years 5, 6 & 7, and we had a huge drama/music culture, so it was always lots of fun. Loud cheers for players on the field. Even worse, in the 1950’s, the words were changed from “one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all” to “one nation, under God,” which runs afoul of our vaunted separation of church and state. It is a gorgeous clock isn’t it? Since that idea is the absolute antithesis of Thomas Jefferson’s Declaration of Independence and the origins of the government of the United States, I find it appalling. Oh yes. “sung at times when we’re surrounded by other people at special event.” Great observation, Maamej. Maybe one day South Africa will sing their national anthem in unison. Never knew it was a battle song. I much prefer “The Star Spangled Banner,” with its soaring melody and ambiguous lyrics to a pledge that borders on fascism! Growing up in the States, we use to sing the National Anthem at sporting events and since sports makes up such a big part of our culture it is a song I think everyone is familiar with…and it is funny as the tune itself is the official song of the Anacreontic Society, an 18th-century gentlemen’s club who basically loved to drink. … it is a song about war … with Great Britain … our closest friend …, Six Months in a Leaky Boat was a popular rock song by a New Zealand group but it did do very, very well on the Australian music charts 🙂. I feel incredibly blessed to have been born in Canada and to experience the benefits of being Canadian. On Australia Day, Advance Australia Fair is played during town hall flag raising ceremonies around the country but those of us watching aren’t asked to sing it. So perhaps that is why many Australians aren’t fond of calling Australia an island – we have realised how vast geographically it is (but really any land is an island). Interesting topic, Mabel! Log in now to tell us what you think this song means. "Advance Australia Fair" is the national anthem of Australia. I thought most Canadians know the French version as well (as Constance and Sue have mentioned). 😀 That would be veeeery cool! It's time for the whingeing faux patriotic grown-ups to grow up. To me you are already a famous writer 😀, Hahaha. As Maamej said in her comment, maybe it’s because we’re drawn to music that we like to listen to other country’s national anthem. Look it up on youtube some time, it is very beautiful how people kept singing the Anthem even after the song stopped. Singing the national anthem at school in Malaysia and Singapore was a different story altogether. Your email address will not be published. The line girt by sea is meant to mean our home is surrounded by sea, and it is, Australia is completely surrounded by sea. I suppose you know as you schooled in Malaysia before. On Australia Day, Advance Australia Fair is played during town hall flag raising ceremonies around the country but those of us watching aren’t asked to sing it. It seems that as we grow older we sing the national anthem less and less. People probably rebelled by sitting down and eating their movie snacks, as you said, ignored the directive. Our anthem is really long, so they never play it all on games, etc.. and yes it is in Portuguese 😀, That is amazing, and so patriotic of Brazilians to sing their national anthem even after the song has stopped playing. At the end of the day, we each have a right and a choice on whether we want to sing our country’s national anthem or not, just as we have a choice on deciding what being a citizen of country means to us. To me, Canada’s anthem does speak to the geographic “stretch” (7,000+ km. 'Advance' means to move forward - a synonym is 'progress'. We said the pledge of allegiance to the flag everyday before class started. Your wedding sounds fabulous. They were boring. I think I would be speechless if I met you, very famous travel Brazilian blogger living in Germany ❤. even now, i can recall most of it. You are right. We of course sing our national anthem before baseball games and other sporting events. I don’t know of any famous Australian writers personally, so I can’t introduce you to them 😀, hahahahaha while I was in Canada for 1 year I learned their national anthem, so shame on me for not having learned the German one after 3 years living in the country! If the Australian national anthem was played before films in cinemas in Australia today (as per the other comments, this is common in some countries), I wonder if we would stand for it. People seem to like the song for its melody and tune. I can sing Waltzing Matilda but I dont know the words of Advance Australia Fair. Politics separates us 😦, Australians are very divided when it comes to nationalism and politics too. I had no idea that there was a Pledge of Allegiance in the States. As one. But I kind if like the tune.I grew up with Gid save the Queen, my kids with A A Fair… Seems like progress. In joyful strains then let us sing “Advance Australia fair!” While other nations of the globe Behold us from afar, We’ll rise to high renown and shine Like our glorious southern star; From England, Scotia, Erin’s Isle, Who come our lot to share, Let all combine with heart and hand To advance Australia fair! Real change has to mean that we are advancing the values that matter to mainstream Australians - not left wing activists or elites. While it acknowledges “those who’ve come across the seas” in the second verse, there’s no hint of the First Peoples or Aboriginal culture in the song. fair. And sounds fun. Singing The National Anthem: What Does Advance Australia Fair Mean? 😦 I hope with time things resolve in your country and people can agree with an anthem and about republic or monarchy. Monikers and nicknames for the headmaster and teachers. and I would pity that person too – oh the things adults need to learn sometimes – and this post is another example of some who need some broadening of options…. It is the line “True patriot love in all thy sons command” that is coming under attack. … I have been thinking all this time that the Australian National Anthem was that “Six Months in a Leaky Boat” song. I really can’t explain that either, I don’t think it’s got anything to do with the actual words. I suppose at the end of the day we can take that line to mean what we want it to be, and if we don’t believe in that line, then don’t sing it. In 1976, under the Fraser government, ‘God Save the Queen’ was reinstated and another national poll was sent out to find a song for Australian ceremonial purposes; once again, ‘Advance Australia Fair’, came out on top. Yes, I do hope so. 😀. As Australians, we all have different views on nationalism and some national anthem’s lyrics are lost on us. Wow, two national anthems you sung at school and you were aware of two cultures from a young age. Too bad it is hardly ever done right! I of course have never heard the Australian anthem. There Really Isn’t One, http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/o-canada/. Create an account with SongMeanings to post comments, submit lyrics, and more. Don’t have an account? In Malaysia (and Singapore), you cannot NOT sing the national anthem during assembling. I love your Dad’s thoughts on what the Australian anthem was. Hope to visit Brazil someday and see a happy country proud of their culture! 🎶🎶 The joys of typing on a phone or mobile device with emojis! Australians weren’t proud to be Australian. The monarchy is BIG in Thailand, but the old ways are changing…change is in the air. 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