I am sure many of us Singaporeans will remember the tune of our National Anthem, which was sang (or mumbled grudgingly early in the morning) numerous times in the past when we were still schooling. Unfortunately nowadays, many of us would have forgotten majority or parts of the lyrics. Two key reasons often cited are that the lyrics are in Malay and that after we have left school, there are really not much opportunities to sing the song again.
Let us refresh our memories by watching the below funny instructional video on how to sing Singapore’s National Anthem, “Majulah Singapura”. The video is by the Forgotten Merlion.
“Majulah Singapura” (“Onward Singapore”) is the national anthem of Singapore. Composed by Zubir Said in 1958 as a theme song for official functions of the City Council of Singapore, the song was selected in 1959 as the island’s anthem when it attained self-government. Upon full independence in 1965, “Majulah Singapura” was formally adopted as Singapore’s national anthem. By law the anthem may only be sung with its original Malay lyrics, although there exist authorized translations of the lyrics of the anthem in Singapore’s three other official languages: English, Mandarin and Tamil.
The national anthem is regularly performed or sung in schools and armed forces camps at ceremonies held at the beginning and/or the end of each day, during which the national flag is also raised and lowered and the national pledge is taken. Singaporeans are especially encouraged to sing the national anthem on occasions of national celebration or national significance such as at the National Day Parade, at National Day observance ceremonies conducted by educational institutions and government departments, and at sporting events at which Singapore teams are participating.
The below video shows the actual Majulah Singapura being sang, with Malay lyrics:
Related posts:
- Senior Pastor Rony Tan Video on YouTube – The Singapore Song
- Singapore National Day Parade 2009 – Full Video Collections on Wayang Times
- Singapore National Pledge and Its Origins Meaning
- Singapore National Day Message 2009 by PM Lee Hsien Loong
- Funny Miss Singapore World 2009 Pilar Arlando’s Interview Video: When Did Merlion Become Extinct?