"Negaraku" (English: "My Country") is the national anthem of Malaysia. "Negaraku" was selected as a national anthem at the time of the Federation of Malaya's independence from Britain in 1957. The tune was originally used as the state anthem of Perak^[1]. The tune was also used for a popular song of that time, Terang Bulan^[2], which was later borrowed by the song Mamula Moon, sang by Felix Mendelssohn and his Hawaiian Serenaders. A national anthem is a generally patriotic musical composition that evokes and eulogizes the history, traditions and struggles of its people, recognized either by a countrys government as the official national song, or by convention through use by the people. ... The Federation of Malaya, or in Malay Persekutuan Tanah Melayu, was formed in 1948 from the British settlements of Penang and Malacca and the nine Malay states and replaced the Malayan Union. ... For other uses, see Perak (disambiguation). ... Terang Bulan is an Indonesian folk song. ... Portrait of Mendelssohn by the English miniaturist James Warren Childe (1778-1862), 1839 Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy, born and generally known as Felix Mendelssohn (February 3, 1809 – November 4, 1847) is a German composer, pianist and conductor of the early Romantic period. ...

Lyrics

Negaraku, tanah tumpahnya darahku,
Rakyat hidup, bersatu dan maju,
Rahmat bahagia, Tuhan kurniakan,
Raja kita, selamat bertakhta.
Rahmat bahagia, Tuhan kurniakan,
Raja kita, selamat bertakhta.

In English[1]:

My country, land where my blood was spilt,
The people live united and in progress,
Blessings of happiness, may God grant,
(And that) our King may reign in peace.
Blessings of happiness, may God grant,
(And that) our King may reign in peace.

History

At the time of independence, each of the eleven States of Malaya that made up the Federation had their own anthem, but there was no anthem for the Federation as a whole. Tunku Abdul Rahman, at the time the Chief Minister and Minister for Home Affairs, organized and presided over a committee for the purpose of choosing a suitable national anthem. On his suggestion, a worldwide competition was launched. 514 entries were received from all over the world. None were deemed suitable. Peninsular Malaysia (or Semenanjung Malaysia in the Malay language) is the part of Malaysia which lies on the Malay Peninsula, and shares a land border with Thailand in the north. ... Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra Al-Haj ibni Almarhum Sultan Abdul Hamid Shah (February 8, 1903–December 6, 1990) usually known as the Tunku (a princely title in Malaysia), and also called Bapa Kemerdekaan (Father of Independence) or Bapa Malaysia (Father of Malaysia), was Chief Minister of the Federation of Malaya...

Next the committee decided to invite selected composers of international repute to submit compositions for consideration. The composers chosen were Benjamin Britten, Sir William Walton who had recently composed the march for Queen Elizabeth II's coronation, the American opera composer Gian Carlo Menotti and Zubir Said, who later composed the National Anthem of Singapore. They were all turned down too. Edward Benjamin Britten, Baron Britten, OM CH (November 22, 1913 Lowestoft, Suffolk - December 4, 1976 Aldeburgh, Suffolk) was a British composer, conductor, and pianist. ... Sir William Turner Walton, OM (March 29, 1902–March 8, 1983) was a British composer whose style was influenced by the works of Stravinsky, Sibelius and jazz. ... Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Windsor; born 21 April 1926) is Queen of sixteen sovereign states, holding each crown and title equally. ... Gian Carlo Menotti, photographed by Carl Van Vechten, 1944 Gian Carlo Menotti (July 7, 1911 – February 1, 2007) was an Italian-born American composer and librettist who wrote the classic Christmas opera Amahl and the Night Visitors among about two dozen other operas intended to appeal to popular taste. ... Zubir Said (also Zubir Syed) (22 July 1907 – 16 November 1987) is a film composer who composed the national anthem of Singapore, Majulah Singapura. ...

The Committee then turned to the Perak State Anthem. On August 5 1957 it was selected on account of the "traditional flavour" of its melody. New lyrics for the National Anthem were written jointly by the Panel of Judges— with the Tunku himself playing the leading role. Allah Lanjutkan Usia Sultan is the state anthem of Perak, Malaysia. ...

At the time this melody was, while still the State Anthem of Perak, Allah Lanjutkan Usia Sultan. Allah Lanjutkan Usia Sultan is the state anthem of Perak, Malaysia. ...

The song had been very popular on the island of Mahé in the Seychelles. where the Sultan of Perak had formerly been living in exile. He heard it at a public band concert on the island, a song to a popular French melody, originally composed by the lyricist Pierre Jean de Beranger (1780-1857), who was born and died in Paris. When a member of the Perak royal family was invited to a reception in Europe, he was asked what his state anthem was. Realizing that his state did not in fact possess an anthem, he, in order not to appear backward in front of his hosts, proceeded to hum the aforementioned tune. Thus was an anthem born. Pierre-Jean de Béranger (August 19, 1780 - July 16, 1857), was a French songwriter. ...

The song was later introduced into an Indonesian Bangsawan (Opera), which was performing in Singapore. In no time at all, the melody became extremely popular and was given the name Terang Bulan. Aside from its dignity and prestige as the Perak State Anthem, the song became a Malayan "evergreen", playing at parties, in cabarets and sung by almost everybody in the 1920s and 1930s. (Today, of course, since independence, it is not played as a popular melody, and any such use is proscribed by statute.) Bangsawan is a type of traditional Malay opera. ...

The anthem was given a new quick march beat in 1992, which proved unpopular. Some Malaysians have gone as far as to say that the altered tempo resembled circus music, and was the subject of much derision. In July, 2003 it was reported in the Malaysian press that the anthem would be rearranged for the second time and the title and lyric would be changed from Negaraku to Malaysiaku. There was a public outcry of dismay and the change of name was scrapped, but the anthem was re-arranged and returned to the pre-1992 pace by composer Wah Idris.

Recordings

Instrumental Recording (US Navy Band) Image File history File links Negaraku_instrumental. ...

Trivia

In 2005, an antique disc collector found an old song (whose music is identical to the Negaraku) from his collection.[2] It later become a news headline for local newspaper. The song was a Hawaiian Song call 'Mamula Moon' believed the record dated back to the 1940s. Manufacturers put records inside protective and decorative cardboard jackets and an inner paper sleeve to protect the grooves from dust and scratches. ...

Parody

Main article: Wee Meng Chee

In 2007, a YouTube video featuring Negaraku caused controversy in Malaysia. The video, named Negarakuku, features Wee Meng Chee, a Malaysian student studying in Taiwan along with the national flag and weaves the Negaraku into a Chinese language rap. The subject of this article may not satisfy the notability guideline for Biographies. ... YouTube is a popular video sharing website where users can upload, view and share video clips. ... Chinese (written) language (pinyin: zhōngw n) written in Chinese characters The Chinese language (汉语/漢語, 华语/華語, or 中文; Pinyin: H nyǔ, Hu yǔ, or Zhōngw n) is a member of the Sino-Tibetan family of languages. ...

See also

• "Perajurit Tanah Air" aka "Inilah Barisan Kita" (Patriotic songs)

Perajurit Tanah Air or Inilah Barisan Kita is a patriotic Malaysian national song. ...

References

History of the Negaraku with further comments

Other

• M. J. Bristow, F.R.G.S., "History of 28 national anthems".
• BBC, "New Anthem Marks Malaysia's Independence Day"
• The Star, "Is Negaraku from a Hawaiian melody?"
• Negaraku was a rip off from Mamula Moon?

External links

• History of Negaraku and The State Anthem of Perak (With MP3 files)
• Description of Negaraku by AllMalaysia.info
• Negaraku with vocal
• Youtube - Negaraku performed by Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra