Length: 159 words
Anthem lyrics (use the arrow on the left to collapse this section):
Alcanzamos por fin la victoria
En el campo feliz de la unión;
Con ardientes fulgores de gloria
Se ilumina la nueva nación.
Es preciso cubrir con un velo
Del pasado el calvario y la cruz;
Y que adorne el azul de tu cielo
De concordia la espléndida luz.
El progreso acaricia tus lares.
Al compás de sublime canción,
Ves rugir a tus pies ambos mares
Que dan rumbo a tu noble misión.
Alcanzamos por fin la victoria
En el campo feliz de la unión;
Con ardientes fulgores de gloria
Se ilumina la nueva nación.
En tu suelo cubierto de flores
A los besos del tibio terral,
Terminaron guerreros fragores;
Sólo reina el amor fraternal.
Adelante la pica y la pala,
Al trabajo sin más dilación,
Y seremos así prez y gala
De este mundo feraz de Colón.
Alcanzamos por fin la victoria
En el campo feliz de la unión;
Con ardientes fulgores de gloria
Se ilumina la nueva nación.
Historical context:
The lyrics of the Panamanian national anthem were authored by Jerónimo de la Ossa, a diplomat and engineer who was born in Nueva Granada, the predecessor state to modern-day Colombia and Panama. (The music was composed by a Spanish-born immigrant, Santos Jorge Amátrian.)The need for an official anthem almost immediately followed the independence of Panama in 1903. Shortly after independence, the first official diplomatic envoy from the United States of America arrived, William I. Buchanan. By this time, protocol was increasingly including the playing of a national song, and the new Panamanian authorities felt that an anthem was needed, even if it were unofficial. (Note that the United States did not have an official anthem at that time, and would not have one until almost 30 years later.)
As such, they determined they would use a composition that Santos Jorge had made a few years prior. The piece did not yet have lyrics, so Jorge asked his friend de la Ossa to write them.
Interestingly, despite the official circumstances surrounding its adoption, Panama did not adopt it as its official anthem immediately. Indeed, three years passed until it was “provisionally” made official, a state of affairs that lasted until 1941 when it received the official sanction it enjoys today.
The music accompanying the anthem’s verses are not as martial as many other Spanish-language anthems in the hemisphere. The lyrics are less martial, as well, focusing more on work than on war (similar to the anthem of Costa Rica). As Panama’s independence came almost a century after the Spanish American wars of independence began, this may not be surprising.
The chorus and first verse are typically sung at events.
Performance: