Amar Sonar Bangla

"Amar Sonar Bangla", also

Rabindranath Tagore, writer
of the song
arranged by Samar Das.
pronounced "Amar Shonar Amar Sonar Bangla
Bangla" (Bengali: আমার সানার English: My Golden Bengal
বাংলা, pronounced [amar ʃonar আমার সানার বাংলা
baŋla] English: "My Golden
Bengal"), is the national anthem
of Bangladesh.[1][2] An ode to
Mother Bengal, the lyrics was
written by Bengali polymath
Rabindranath Tagore in 1905
while the melody of the hymn was
adopted from the Baul singer
Gagan Harkara's song "Ami
Kothay Pabo Tare" (আিম কাথায়
পােবা তাের) set to Dadra
Tala.[3][4][5] The modern
instrumental rendition was

Contents National anthem of

Bangladesh
Etymology
History Lyrics Rabindranath Tagore,
Official adaption 1905

Lyrics Music Gagan Harkara, 1889

(arranged by Samar
Notable performances and covers
Das, 1972)
See also
Adopted 1971 (provisional)
References
1972 (official)
External links
Preceded Tarana-i-Pakistan
by

Etymology Audio sample

The word sonar literally means "made of gold", with "sona"

meaning gold, and "ar" showing possession. It is used as a term of 0:00 / 0:00
endearment meaning "beloved", but in the song the words sonar
Bangla may be interpreted to express the preciousness of Bengal. "Amar Shonar Bangla"
(instrumental)
History file · help
The song was written in 1905 during the first partition of Bengal, when the ruling British Empire had an
undivided province of Bengal Presidency split into two parts; the decision was announced on 19 July by
the then-Viceroy of India Lord Curzon, taking effect on 16 October. This divide of Bengal, being along
communal lines–East Bengal and Assam having a majority of Muslims and West Bengal having a majority
of Hindus–is claimed to have undermined India's national movement against the UK's imperialism and to
have been politically motivated. Along with a host of others, songs such as this were meant to rekindle the
unified spirit of Bengal, to raise public consciousness against the communal political divide. The lyrics first
appeared in the September issues of "Bongodorshon" and "Baul" simultaneously, in 1905. The song along
with the musical notation (referred to as swaralipi in Bengali), first appeared in the periodical musical
journal Shongeet Biggnan Probeshika in the same month and year. Indira Devi, Tagore's niece,
Satyendranath Tagore's daughter, jotted down the musical notation hearing it from Tagore himself (this was
the common norm, Tagore singing the song, and someone formally jotting down the musical notations).

Official adaption
The first ten (10) lines of this song constitute Bangladesh's national anthem, adopted in 1971 during its
liberation war. Only those lines are given in the following section. The instrumental orchestra rendition was
composed by Samar Das.[6]

Lyrics
Bengali text Romanisation English translation

Āmāra sōnāra bānlā, āmi

আমার সানার বাংলা, tōmāẏa bhālōbāsi.
My golden Bengal, I love you.
আিম তামায় ভােলাবািস। Ciradina tōmāra ākāśa,
Forever thy skies, thy air set my
িচরিদন তামার আকাশ, tōmāra bātāsa, āmāra
heart in tune as if it were a flute,
তামার বাতাস, আমার prāṇē bājāẏa bām̐śi.
O, mother! The aroma of the mango
ােণ বাজায় বঁািশ॥ Ō mā, phāgunē tōra āmēra
orchard in Falgun drives me crazy,
ও মা, ফা েন তার আেমর banē ghrāṇē pāgala karē,
Ah, what a thrill!
বেন ােণ পাগল কের, Mari hāẏa, hāẏa rē —
O, mother! In Ogrohayon time sees
মির হায়, হায় র— Ō mā, aghrāṇē tōra bharā
sweet smiles all through mature
ও মা, অ ােণ তার ভরা kṣētē āmi kī dēkhēchi
fields of paddy.
েত আিম কী দেখিছ madhura hāsi.
মধুর হািস॥
What beauty, what shades, what
Kī śōbhā, kī chāẏā gō, kī
affection, what tenderness!
কী শাভা, কী ছায়া গা, কী snēha, kī māẏā gō —
What a quilt hast thou spread at the
হ, কী মায়া গা— Kī ām̐cala bichāẏēcha
feet of banyan trees and along the
কী আঁ চল িবছােয়ছ বেটর baṭēra mūlē, nadīra kūlē
bank of every river,
মূেল, নদীর কূেল কূেল। kūlē.
Oh mother mine, words from thy lips
মা, তার মুেখর বাণী Mā, tōra mukhēra bāṇī
are like nectar to my ears.
আমার কােন লােগ সুধার āmāra kānē lāgē sudhāra
Ah, what a thrill!
মেতা, matō,
If sadness, O mother! casts a gloom
মির হায়, হায় র— Mari hāẏa, hāẏa rē —
on your face, my eyes are filled with
মা, তার বদনখািন মিলন Mā, tōra badanakhāni
tears!
হেল, ও মা, আিম malina halē, ō mā, āmi
নয়নজেল ভািস॥ naẏanajalē bhāsi.

Notable performances and covers

The Ministry of Cultural Affairs planned to stage an event on Bangladesh's 44th independence day, in a bid
to have the world record of the most people singing a national anthem simultaneously. Consequently, on 2
March, the ministry launched a program titled "Lakho Konthe Sonar Bangla" whose main objective was to
hold an event with the cooperation of Bangladesh Armed Forces where approximately 300,000 people
would sing the national anthem.[7] Several popular Bangladeshi musicians and cultural groups later joined
the program.[8]

The record was broken at 11:20 on 26 March 2014 by 254,537 participants at Dhaka's National Parade
Ground. The event was attended by the Prime Minister of Bangladesh, Speaker of the Jatiya Sangsad, and
all the members of the cabinet.[9] After receiving the required evidence, the Guinness Book of World
Records approved the record on 9 April 2014.[10] The record was broken by India on 21 January 2017.[11]

See also
Notuner Gaan, the national march of Bangladesh, written by Kazi Nazrul Islam.
Ekusher Gaan, a song in the memory of the martyrs of the Bengali language movement
Jana Gana Mana, national anthem of India, also written by Rabindranath Tagore
Banga Mata
Joy Bangla

References
1. "The Constitution of the People's Republic of Bangladesh - 4. National anthem, flag and
emblem" (http://bdlaws.minlaw.gov.bd/sections_detail.php?id=367&sections_id=24551).
Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs.
2. "Bangladesh: Amar Shonar Bangla" (http://nationalanthems.me/bangladesh-amar-shonar-b
angla). NationalAnthems.me. Retrieved 9 August 2011.
3. Folk singer, Swapan Basu (http://www.swapanbasu.com/), demonstrates (https://www.youtu
be.com/watch?v=DnZvc73nQCk) the similarity in a live recitation (0:43/8:46 to 1:21/8:46)
4. Chakrabarti, Santosh (2004). Studies in Tagore: Critical Essays (https://books.google.com/b
ooks?id=MNWktZZciy8C&q=Gagan+Harkara&pg=PA111). Atlantic Publishers & Dist.
p. 108. ISBN 9788126903405.
5. http://tagoreweb.in/Render/ShowContent.aspx?ct=Essays&bi=72EE92F5-BE50-40D7-
AE6E-0F7410664DA3&ti=72EE92F5-BE50-4A47-7E6E-0F7410664DA3
6. Komol, Khalid Hasan (2012). "Das, Samar" (http://en.banglapedia.org/index.php?title=Das,_
Samar). In Islam, Sirajul; Jamal, Ahmed A. (eds.). Banglapedia: National Encyclopedia of
Bangladesh (Second ed.). Asiatic Society of Bangladesh.
7. "Logo of 'Lakho Konthe Sonar Bangla' unveiled" (http://www.theindependentbd.com/index.p
hp?option=com_content&view=article&id=206715:logo-of-lakho-konthe-sonar-bangla-unveil
ed&catid=182:city-life&Itemid=220). The Independent. Retrieved 3 June 2014.
8. "Bangladesh prepares for another record" (https://web.archive.org/web/20140606224938/htt
p://www.newagebd.com/detail.php?date=2014-03-23&nid=87534). New Age. Archived from
the original (http://www.newagebd.com/detail.php?date=2014-03-23&nid=87534) on 6 June
2014. Retrieved 3 June 2014.
9. "Bangladesh sets world record singing nat'l anthem" (https://web.archive.org/web/20140607
002115/http://newagebd.com/detail.php?date=2014-03-26&nid=87943). New Age. Archived
from the original (http://newagebd.com/detail.php?date=2014-03-26&nid=87943) on 7 June
2014. Retrieved 3 June 2014.
10. "Guinness accepts national anthem record" (https://www.dhakatribune.com/bangladesh/201
4/apr/09/guinness-accepts-bangladesh-national-anthem-record). Dhaka Tribune. Retrieved
3 June 2014.
11. http://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/most-people-singing-a-
nationalregional-anthem-simultaneously/

External links
Works related to My Golden Bengal at Wikisource

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Amar_Sonar_Bangla&oldid=1036282048"

This page was last edited on 30 July 2021, at 15:23 (UTC).

Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License; additional terms may apply. By using
this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia
Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization.