title: Mer Hayrenik
text: Mer Hajrenikh (,  ; "Our Fatherland") is the national anthem of Armenia, composed by Barsegh Kanachyan and written by Mikael Nalbandian in 1861. It was first adopted in 1918 as the anthem of the First Republic of Armenia, but when the country became part of the Soviet Union, this song became banned and was instead replaced by the Armenian SSR anthem. In 1991, after the collapse of the Soviet Union, Mer Hajrenikh was successfully restored with minor changes to the lyrics.
  
  Lyrics
  
  Current lyrics
  
  Poetic English translation
  Our Fatherland, free, independent,
  That has fo' centuries liv'd,
  Now summoneth its descendents
  To free, independent Armenia.
  
  Here a flag for thee, my br'er,
  That I have sewn by my hand
  O'er the nights which felt fore'er,
  Bath'd in my tears now so grand.
  
  O, look at it, tricolour'd,
  Fo' us 'tis a symbol priz'd.
  Letteth it shine forth 'gainst thy foe.
  Mayeth Armenia with grace glow.
  
  Death is no different anywhere
  He who dieth but even once,
  Bless'd is he who sacrificeth
  Fo' the freedom o' his land.
  
  Original lyrics
  This is the original version of Mer Hayrenik, based on the first, third, fourth, and sixth stanzas of the poem The Song of an Italian Girl.
  
  References
  
  Armenia
  National anthems
  Asian anthems
  European anthems