National anthem of Belarus

Дзяржаўны гімн Рэспублікі Беларусь

English: State Anthem of the Republic of Belarus
Dzyaržaŭny himn Respubliki Belarus'.
National anthem of  Belarus
Also known as	Мы, беларусы English: We, Belarusians
Lyrics	Mikhas Klimkovich and Uladzimir Karyzny, 2002
Music	Niescier Sakałoŭski, 1944
Adopted	24 September 1955 (music) 2 July 2002 (lyrics)
Audio sample
"My Belarusy" (Vocal) file help

"We Belarusy" (Belarusian: Мы, беларусы (My, Bielarusy); "We Belarusians") is the unofficial title of the national anthem of Belarus and the first line of its lyrics. Officially, "My Belarusy" is titled "the State Anthem of the Republic of Belarus" (Belarusian: Дзяржаўны гімн Рэспублікі Беларусь, Russian: Государственный гимн Республики Беларусь). The anthem was originally written and adopted in 1955 for use in the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic. The music of the Byelorussian SSR anthem was composed by Niescier Sakałoŭski and the lyrics were written by Mikhas Klimkovich. After the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the music composed by Sakałoŭski was kept and the lyrics were discarded. New lyrics, which were written by Klimkovich and Uladzimir Karyzny, were adopted by a presidential decree issued on July 2, 2002. The lyrics of the anthem now sing of a friendly Belarus, honoring past military battles and looking forward to the future. The music was kept due to the historical connections it has to Belarus.

"My Belarusy" was originally used as the anthem of the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic (Belarusian: гімн Беларускай Савецкай Сацыялістычнай Рэспублікі, Russian: гимн Белорусской Советской Социалистической Республики) starting from February 24, 1955. The original anthem was composed by Sakałoŭski and the lyrics were written by Maxim Klimkovich. It was presented in front of a jury in 1944, but it took 11 years of modifications before it was officially adopted. Soon after Belarus became an independent country, the national anthem was modified to drop the Communist-era lyrics. An attempt was made in 1995 to adopt Natalla Arsiennieva's poem "O God Almighty" as the national anthem, but the suggestion was not acted on even though it was supported by a parliamentary committee.