Il Canto degli Italiani (The Song of Italians), best known amongst Italians as Fratelli d’Italia (Brothers of Italy) or Inno di Mameli (Mameli’s Hymn), is the Italian national anthem, and what better day to talk about it than Italy’s national holiday, La Festa della Repubblica?
Written by Goffredo Mameli and set to music by Michele Novaro, it was chosen as the provisional anthem on October 12th 1946 and remained the de facto anthem until 2017 when it received the status of national anthem de jure.
Below are the lyrics to the first verse and the chorus of Il Canto degli Italiani, which are the parts commonly performed on official occasions. The first verse is sung twice, followed by the chorus and finally a loud Sì! at the end. We’ve also provided the translation in English so that you can learn the meaning of the anthem.
To be honest, you may want to think twice about singing it out loud, especially if your children are present. Like most national anthems, it’s an ode to war and dying for one’s country. But at least it doesn’t make you tremble in your shoes like France’s La Marseillaise!
Fratelli D’Italia – Italian National Anthem Lyrics (Short Version)
Fratelli d’Italia,
l’Italia s’è desta,
dell’elmo di Scipio
s’è cinta la testa.
Dov’è la Vittoria?
Le porga la chioma,
ché schiava di Roma
Iddio la creò.
Stringiamci a coorte,
siam pronti alla morte.
Siam pronti alla morte,
l’Italia chiamò.
Stringiamci a coorte,
siam pronti alla morte.
Siam pronti alla morte,
l’Italia chiamò! Sì!
Fratelli D’Italia – Italian National Anthem English Translated
Brothers of Italy,
Italy has awoken,
with Scipio’s helmet
Upon her head.
Where is Victory?
Let her bow down,
For God has made her
A slave of Rome.
Let us join in a cohort,
we are ready to die.
We are ready to die,
Italy has called.
Let us join in a cohort,
We are ready to die.
We are ready to die,
Italy has called! Yes!
Heather Broster is a graduate with honours in linguistics from the University of Western Ontario. She is an aspiring polyglot, proficient in English and Italian, as well as Japanese, Welsh, and French to varying degrees of fluency. Originally from Toronto, Heather has resided in various countries, notably Italy for a period of six years. Her primary focus lies in the fields of language acquisition, education, and bilingual instruction.
