| English: Oh, Bright Dawn of May | |
|---|---|
| Ој, свијетла мајска зоро | |
National anthem of Montenegro | |
| Lyrics | Unknown (partly edited by Sekula Drljević), 19th century |
| Music | Unknown (arranged by Žarko Mirković), 19th century |
| Adopted | 12 July 2004 (official) |
| Audio sample | |
U.S. Navy Band instrumental version
| |
"Oj, svijetla majska zoro" (Cyrillic: "Ој, свијетла мајска зоро", Montenegrin pronunciation: [ˈoj sʋjêːtʎa mâjska zǒro]; "Oh, Bright Dawn of May") is the national anthemofMontenegro adopted in 2004. Before its adoption, it was a popular folk song with many variations of its text. The oldest version dates back to the second half of the 19th century.[1][2]
Although these are the official lyrics, many verses are repeated in order to follow the rhythmic composition.
| Montenegrin Cyrillic (sole official)[2] | Montenegrin Latin (romanization) | IPA transcription | Metered English translation |
|---|---|---|---|
𝄆 Ој свијетла мајска зоро. 𝄇 |
𝄆 Oj svijetla majska zoro. 𝄇 |
𝄆 [ˈoj sʋjêːtʎa mâjska zǒro] 𝄇 |
𝄆 O bright dawn of May blazes forth 𝄇 |
The following is the oldest known version of the anthem, known as "Oh, Bright Dawn of Bravery, oh!" ("Oj, Junaštva Svjetla Zoro, oj!"). It was played in public for the first time in 1863 in the national theater in Belgrade. It was a component song of the "Battle of Grahovo or blood feud in Montenegro" (Бој на Грахову или крвна освета у Црној Гори) heroic play in three parts.[3] The play and the Montenegrin folk song was also played/sung in the National Theater again in 1870 and 1876.[4][5]
| Serbo-Croatian (Cyrillic) | Serbian-Croatian (Latin) | English translation |
|---|---|---|
Ој, јунаштва свјетла зоро, |
Oj, junaštva svjetla zoro, |
Oh, bright dawn of bravery, |
In 1944, Sekula Drljević, a Montenegrin fascist collaborator, rearranged the lyrics of the Montenegrin patriotic song "Oj, svijetla majska zoro" to celebrate the creation of the Montenegrin puppet regime that had been established in July 1941.[6]
| Serbo-Croatian (Latin) | Serbo-Croatian (Cyrillic) | English translation |
|---|---|---|
Vječna naša Crna Goro, |
Вјечна наша Црна Горо, |
Eternal Our Montenegro, |
The song survived until today under various names as a popular Montenegrin folk song under the name "Oh, Bright Dawn of May" ("Oj svijetla majska zoro"). This version of the song has been one of the several versions proposed in 1993 during the first discussion on the official state anthem, however, on which there was no consensus because of the disputed melodic value.[7]
| Montenegrin and Serbian (Cyrillic) | Montenegrin and Serbian (Latin) | English translation |
|---|---|---|
Ој свијетла мајска зоро, |
Oj svijetla majska zoro, |
Oh bright dawn of May, |
As the president of Montenegro, Filip Vujanović participated on several occasions public debates regarding the disputed parts of the national anthem, which was made official in 2004. On that occasion, the official text of the anthem also included two stanzas (third and fourth) sung by the Montenegrin fascist and war criminal Sekula Drljević.[8] Controversy over the disputed parts of the anthem in the following years led to open divisions among the citizens of Montenegro,[9] and Vujanović himself on various occasions publicly criticized the adoption of Drljevic's stanzas, from which he distanced himself, advocating changes to the official text of the anthem.[10][11] Vujanović repeatedly pointed out that the adoption of Drljevic's verses was not acceptable because their creator was a fascist or Nazi, and on the same occasion he warned of the danger of strengthening extreme Montenegrin nationalism and chauvinism.[12][13]
