"God zij met ons Suriname" ("God be with our Suriname"), or "Opo kondreman" ("Rise, countrymen"), is the national anthem of Suriname. It has two verses: the first in Dutch and the second in Sranan Tongo.
The original version of the anthem was written by Cornelis Atses Hoekstra in 1893 and based on a 1876 melody by Johannes Corstianus de Puy. It was written to replace the old anthem "Wien Neêrlands Bloed". The anthem did not have an official status. In 1959, the Government of Suriname appointed Surinamese writer Henri Frans de Ziel to add a stanza about the unity of the country to Hoekstra's anthem. De Ziel was concerned about the negative nuance in the original and started to transform the anthem into a positive message. He combined this with a poem he wrote in Sranan Tongo on the death of Ronald Elwin Kappel. His anthem was unanimously approved by the Government of Suriname on 7 December 1959. De Ziel originally used a melody by Surinamese composer Johannes Helstone, however the government preferred the original 1876 melody.

Lyrics in Dutch:
God zij met ons Suriname
Hij verheff'ons heerlijk land
Hoe wij hier ook samen kwamen
Aan zijn grond zijn wij verpand
Werkend houden w'in gedachten
Recht en waarheid maken vrij
Al wat goed is te betrachten
Dat geeft aan ons land waardij.

Lyrics in Sranan Tongo:
Opo, kondreman un' opo!
Sranangron e kari un'.
Wans' ope tata komopo
Wi mu' seti kondre bun.
Strey de f' strey, wi no sa frede.
Gado de wi fesiman.
Eri libi te na dede
Wi sa feti gi Sranan.

English Translation for Dutch:
God be with our Suriname
May He elevate our lovely land
How we came here together
We are dedicated to its soil
Working we keep in mind
Justice and truth will set free
All that is good to devote oneself to
Will give value to our land

English Translation for Sranan Tongo:
Rise countrymen, rise!
The soil of Suriname is calling you.
Wherever our ancestors came from
We should take care of our country.
There is a fight to fight, we shall not be afraid.
God is our leader.
Our whole life until death,
We shall fight for Suriname.


#nationalanthemofsuriname #nationalanthem #suriname

свернуть