 Tautiška giesmė ( The National Hymn ) is the national anthem of Lithuania , also known by its opening words " Lietuva , <unk> mūsų " ( official translation of the lyrics : " Lithuania , Our Homeland " , literally : " Lithuania , Our <unk> " ) and as " <unk> <unk> " ( Hymn of Lithuania ) . The music and lyrics were written in 1898 by <unk> Kudirka , when Lithuania was still part of the Russian Empire . The fifty @-@ word poem was a condensation of Kudirka 's <unk> of the Lithuanian state , the Lithuanian people , and their past . Shortly before his death in 1899 , the anthem was performed for Lithuanians living in Saint Petersburg , Russia . 
