National Anthems of the World

Why National Anthems? -- When a ship is ported in a foreign port, during morning colors, the National ensign is raised to the United States national anthem followed by the host country's national anthem.

Additionally, at Department of State functions the national anthems of visiting foreign country(ies) is/are also played.

We truly believe that knowledge of other nations and cultures will help lead to further peace and understanding in the world, and learning about other anthems is a good beginning.

A National Anthem is generally a patriotic musical composition - usually in the form of a song or hymn of praise - that evokes and eulogizes the history, traditions, or struggles of a nation or its people. National anthems can be officially recognized as a national song by a country's constitution or by an enacted law, or simply by tradition. Although most anthems contain lyrics, some do not.

Most nation states have an anthem and are either marches or hymns in style. A royal anthem is a patriotic song similar to a national anthem, but it specifically praises or prays for a monarch or royal dynasty. Such anthems are usually performed at public appearances by the monarch or during other events of royal importance. Some states use their royal anthem as the national anthem, such as the state anthem of Jordan.

Most anthems are usually written in the most common language of the state, whether de facto or official. States with multiple national languages may offer several versions of their anthem. For instance, Switzerland's national anthem has different lyrics for each of the country's four official languages: French, German, Italian, and Romansh.

Besides that we just thought it would be FUN!