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"Der er et yndigt land" ("There is a Lovely Land") is the (civil) national anthem of Denmark. If the royal family is present, the royal anthem, "Kong Kristian", is used. In its common use only the first stanza and the three last verses of the fourth are used. Even if the whole song is sung, this usually means three and a half stanza. The first half af the last stanza are rarely heard. The last verse of each stanza is repeated once. The lyrics were written in 1819 by Adam Oehlenschläger for a competition for a Danish national anthem, and bore the motto: "Ille terrarum mihi praeter omnes angulus ridet" (Horace; "This spot smiles at me more than any other"). When it was first published, it had 12 stanzas, but it was shortened to the first, third, fifth, and last stanza in later editions. The music was composed in 1835 by H.E. Krøyer. Later, Thomas Laub and Carl Nielsen both composed alternative tunes, but none of them has gained widespread adoption, and today they are mostly unknown to the general population.
Danish lyrics Der er et yndigt land, det står med brede bøge nær salten østerstrand| Det bugter sig i bakke, dal, det hedder gamle Danmark og det er Frejas sal| Der sad i fordums tid de harniskklædte kæmper, udhvilede fra strid| Så drog de frem til fjenders mén, nu hvile deres bene bag højens bautasten| Det land endnu er skønt, thi blå sig søen bælter, og løvet står så grønt| Og ædle kvinder, skønne mø'r og mænd og raske svende bebo de danskes øer| Hil drot og fædreland! Hil hver en danneborger, som virker, hvad han kan!| Vort gamle Danmark skal bestå, så længe bøgen spejler sin top i bølgen blå| Free metrical translation There is a lovely land with spreading, shady beeches Near Baltic's salty strand| Its hills and valleys gently fall, its ancient name is Denmark, And it is Freya's hall| There in the ancient days the armoured Vikings rested Between their bloody frays| Then they went forth the foe to face, now found in stone-set barrows, Their final resting place| This land is still as fair, the sea is blue around it, And peace is cherished there| Strong men and noble women still uphold their country's honour With faithfulness and skill| Literal translation There is a lovely country it stands with broad beeches near the salty eastern beach It winds itself in hill, valley, it is called old Denmark and it is Freja's hall There sat in former times, the armour-suited warriors, rested from conflict Then they journeyed forwards to their enemies' injury, now their bones are resting behind the mound's menhir That country is still lovely, because the sea waves so blue frolic, and the foliage stands so green And noble women, beautiful maidens, and men and brisk swains inhabit the Danes' islands Hail king and native country! Hail every a Dane-citizen, who works, what he can Our old Denmark shall endure, as long the beech reflects its top in the blue wave | ||||||||
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