Nad Tatrou sa blýska

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"Nad Tatrou sa blýska" (Slovak pronunciation: [ˈnat tatrɔw sa ˈbliːska]; English: "Lightning over the Tatras", lit. "Above Tatras it is lightening") is the national anthem of Slovakia. The origins of it are in the Central European activism of the 19th century. Its main themes are a storm over the Tatra mountains that symbolized danger to the Slovaks, and a desire for a resolution of the threat. It used to be particularly popular during the 1848–1849 insurgencies.

It was one of Czechoslovakia's dual national anthems and was played in many Slovak towns at noon; this tradition ceased to exist after Czechoslovakia split into two different states in the early 1990s with the dissolution of Czechoslovakia.

Lyrics[edit]

Slovak IPA transcription English translation

Nad Tatrou1 sa blýska
Hromy divo bijú
Zastavme ich, bratia
Veď sa ony stratia
Slováci ožijú

ˈnat tatrɔw sa ˈbliːska
ˈɦrɔmi ˈdʑiʋɔ ˈbijuː
ˈzastawme ˈix ˈbratɕɪɐ
ˈʋetɕ sa ˈɔni ˈstratɕɪɐ
ˈslɔʋaːtsi ˈɔʐijuː|

There is lightning over the Tatras1
Thunders loudly sound
Let us stop them, brothers
After all they will disappear
The Slovak] will revive

To Slovensko naše
Posiaľ tvrdo spalo
Ale blesky hromu
Vzbudzujú ho k tomu
Aby sa prebralo2

tɔ ˈslɔʋenskɔ ˈnaʂe
ˈpɔsɪɐʎ ˈtʋr̩dɔ ˈspalɔ
ˈale ˈbleski ˈɦrɔmu
ˈvzbudzujuː ɦɔ k ˈtɔmu
ˈabi sa ˈprebralɔ|

That Slovakia of ours
Had been sleeping by now
But the thunder's lightnings
Are rousing the land
To wake it up2

Only the first two stanzas have been legislated as the national anthem

Už Slovensko vstáva
Putá si strháva
Hej, rodina milá
Hodina odbila
Žije matka Sláva3

uʂ ˈslɔʋenskɔ ˈfstaːʋa
ˈputaː si ˈstr̩ɦaːʋa
ɦej ˈrɔdʑina ˈmilaː
ˈɦɔdʑina ˈɔdbila
ˈʐije ˈmatka ˈslaːʋa|

Slovakia is already rising
Tearing off Her shackles
Hey, dear family
The hour has struck
Mother Glory3 is alive

Ešte jedle4 rastú
Na krivánskej5strane
Kto jak Slovák cíti
Nech sa šable chytí
A medzi nás stane

ˈeʂte ˈjedle ˈrastuː
na ˈkriʋaːnskej ˈstrane
ˈktɔ jak ˈslɔʋaːk ˈtsiːtɕi
ˈnex sa ˈʂable ˈxitɕiː
a ˈmedzi naːs ˈstane|

Firs4 are still growing
On the slopes of Kriváň5
Who feels to be a Slovak
May he take a sabre
And stand among us

Lyrical English translation (first two stanzas) :

Far above the Tatras

Lightning bolts are pounding.

These bolts shall we banish,

brothers, they will vanish;

Slovaks are rebounding.

Our Slovakia was,

until now, quiescent.

But the lightning flashing

and the thunder crashing

made it effervescent.

  1. Romantic poets began to employ the Tatras as a symbol of the Slovaks' homeland.
  2. That is, to join the national-ethnic activism already underway among other peoples of Central Europe in the 19th century.
  3. The standard meaning of sláva is "glory" or "fame". The figurative meaning, first used by Ján Kollár in the monumental poem The Daughter Of Sláva in 1824, is "Goddess/Mother of the Slavs".
  4. The idiomatic simile like a fir" (ako jedľa) was applied to men in a variety of positive meanings: "stand tall," "have a handsome figure," "be tall and brawny," etc.
  5. See the article on Kriváň for the mountain's symbolism.

Other translation[edit]

German translation (used 1918–1938 and 1939–1945)[edit]

Ob der Tatra blitzt es,
Dröhnt des Donners Krachen
Doch der Stürme Wehen
wird gar bald vergehen
Brüder, wir erwachen!

Another German translation[edit]

Über der Tatra blitzt es,
Donner schlagen wild.
Lasst sie aufhalten, Brüder,
sie werden sich ja verlieren,
Slowaken leben auf.
Unsere Slowakei
hat bisher hart geschlafen.
Aber Donnerblitze
erwecken sie dazu,
damit sie erwacht.
Noch wachsen Tannen
an Kriváňs Seite.
Wer als Slowake fühlt,
der soll einen Säbel greifen,
und zwischen uns stehen.
Schon steht die Slowakei auf,
reißt sich die Fesseln nieder.
Hey, liebe Familie
die Stunde hat geschlagen,
es lebe Mutter Sláva!

Hungarian translation (used 1920–1938)[edit]

Fenn a Tátra ormán villámok cikáznak,
Fenn a Tátra ormán villámok cikáznak,
Állj meg szlovák testvér, elmúlik a veszély népünk ébredez már.
Állj meg szlovák testvér, elmúlik a veszély népünk ébredez már.

Another Hungarian translation[edit]

A Tátra fölött villámlik, vadul mennydörög,
A Tátra fölött villámlik, vadul mennydörög,
Állítsuk meg őket, testvérek, a szlovákok felélednek,
Állítsuk meg őket, testvérek, a szlovákok felélednek.

Ez a mi Szlovákiánk eddig mélyen aludt.
Ez a mi Szlovákiánk eddig mélyen aludt.
De a mennydörgő villámok felkelésre ösztönzik.
De a mennydörgő villámok felkelésre ösztönzik.