What Is The Pakistan National Anthem: English Translation, Original Lyrics And History

What Is The Pakistan National Anthem: English Translation, Original Lyrics And History. Photo: National Anthems Channel

The "Qaumī Tarānāh" (also known as "Pāk Sarzamīn", 'Thy Sacred Land'), is the national anthem of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. It was written by Hafeez Jalandhari in 1952 and the music was produced by Ahmad G. Chagla in 1949, preceding the lyrics.

The National Anthem of Pakistan approved by the Government in August 1954, is a harmonious rendering of a three-stanza composition with a tune based on eastern music but arranged in such a manner that it can be easily played by foreign bands.

The Anthem is evocative in spirit, extolling Pakistan as the centre of faith and freedom, a land of beauty and strength drawn from the people and the country. The words touch upon the various facets of national life, with an invocation for integrity of Pakistan.

Take a look at the article below for its history, original lyrics and English translation of Pakistan National Anthem.

History of the Pakistan National Anthem

In early 1948, A. R. Ghani, a Muslim from South Africa's Transvaal, offered two prizes of five thousand rupees each for the poet and composer of a new national anthem for the newly independent state of Pakistan. The prizes were announced through a government press advertisement published in June 1948. In December 1948, the Government of Pakistan established the National Anthem Committee (NAC) with the task of coming up with the composition and lyrics for the official national anthem of Pakistan. The NAC was initially chaired by the Information Secretary, Sheikh Muhammad Ikram, and its members included several politicians, poets and musicians, including Abdur Rab Nishtar, Ahmad G. Chagla and Hafeez Jullundhri. The NAC encountered early difficulties in finding suitable music and lyrics.

When President Sukarno of Indonesia became the first foreign head of state to visit Pakistan on 30 January 1950, there was no Pakistani national anthem to be played. In 1950, the impending state visit of the Shah of Iran added urgency to the matter and resulted in the government of Pakistan asking the NAC to submit a state anthem without further delay. The NAC chairman, then Federal Minister for Education, Fazlur Rahman, asked several poets and composers to write lyrics but none of the submitted works were deemed suitable. The NAC also examined several different tunes and eventually selected the one presented by Ahmed G. Chagla and submitted it for formal approval. On 21 August 1950, the Government of Pakistan adopted Chagla's tune for the national anthem.

The anthem, without lyrics, was performed for the first time for a foreign head of state on the state visit of the Shah of Iran to Pakistan in Karachi on 1 March 1950 by a Pakistan Navy band.

It was later played for Prime Minister Liaquat Ali Khan during his official visit to the United States on 3 May 1950. It was played before the NAC on 10 August 1950. Official recognition to the national anthem, however, was not given until August 1954. The NAC distributed records of the composed tune amongst prominent poets, who responded by writing and submitting several hundred songs for evaluation by the NAC. Eventually, the lyrics written by Hafeez Jullundhri were approved and the new national anthem was broadcast publicly for the first time on Radio Pakistan on 13 August 1954, sung by Hafeez Jullundhri himself. Official approval was announced by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting on 16 August 1954. The composer, Ahmed G. Chagla, died in 1953, before the new national anthem was officially adopted. In 1955, there was a performance of the national anthem involving 11 major singers of Pakistan, including Ahmad Rushdi, Kaukab Jahan, Rasheeda Begum, Najam Ara, Naseema Shaheen, Zawar Hussain, Akhtar Abbas, Ghulam Dastagir, Anwar Zaheer and Akhtar Wasi Ali.

Music

The "Qaumī Tarānah" is a melodious and harmonious rendering of a three-stanza composition with a tune based on eastern music but arranged in such a manner that it can be easily played by foreign bands.

The music, composed by the Pakistani musician and composer, Ahmad G. Chagla in 1949, reflects his background in both eastern and western music. Typically twenty-one musical instruments and thirty-eight different tones are used to play the "Qaumi Taranah", the duration of which is usually around 80 seconds.

Pakistan National Anthem in Original Lyrics

Pak sar zamin shad bad

Kisware haseen shad bad

Tunishane azmealishan arze Pakistan

Markazeyaqin shadbad.

Pak sarzamin ka nizam, quwate akhuwati awam

Qaum, mulk, sultanat

Painda ta binda bad, shad bad man zele murad.

Parchame sitarao hilal

Rahbare tarraqio kamal

Tarjumane mazishane hal jane istaqbal

Sayyai, Khudae zul jalal.

Pakistan National Anthem in English Translation

Blessed be sacred land,

Happy be bounteous relam,

Symbol of high resolve, Land of Pakistan.

Blessed be thou citadel of faith.

The Order of this Scared Land

Is the might of the brotherhood of the people.

May the nation, the country, and the State

Shine in glory everlasting.

Blessed be the glory everlasting.

This flag of the Cresent and the Star

Leads the way to progress and perfection,

Interpreter of our past, glory of our present, Inspiration of our future,

Symbol of Almighty's protection.

Lyrics video of the Pakistan National Anthem

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