Meaning of the Mexican national anthem
What is the Mexican National Anthem:
The national anthem is one of the three national symbols of Mexico, along with the flag and the shield. It is a lyrical song with a war theme, which celebrates the homeland and warns about the importance of defending it from the enemy.
The Mexican national anthem It is used since 1854, when its composition was completed, but it was not made official until 1943, thanks to a decree of President Manuel Ávila Camacho.
The Mexican anthem was created thanks to a contest called to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the Battle of Tampico, the last confrontation against the Spanish Crown for Mexican territory.
The letter contest was won by the poet Francisco González Bocanegra, while the music was composed by the Spanish Jaime Nunó.
The original version of the hymn contained, in addition to the chorus, ten stanzas. However, when it was made official it was reduced to only four stanzas.
The cut stanzas contained references to Antonio López de Santa Ana and the first emperor, Agustín de Iturbide, characters that were later considered villains by much of Mexican historiography, hence their exclusion.
The use of the Mexican national anthem is regulated by the Law on the National Shield, Flag and Anthem, and is restricted to commemorations of an official nature.
Interpretation and analysis of the Mexican national anthem
The Mexican national anthem is a lyrical poem with a war theme that celebrates Mexican victories in battles and highlights the importance of defending the homeland. It reflects the situation of constant conflicts that Mexico experienced in the 19th century.
The official hymn is made up of a chorus and four stanzas (stanzas I, V, VI, and X). The chorus is made up of six verses, while the stanzas count eight each.
In its interpretation, the hymn opens with the chorus, which is inserted between each of the stanzas and closes the song.
The chorus constitutes a call to war for Mexicans, who are instructed to be prepared for battle.
The first stanza refers to the expected war victories (the olive crown, for example, symbolizes victory), since it is believed that God has prepared a destiny for Mexico glorious.
The second part of this stanza, for its part, already warns that, if there is a foreign threat, the children of Mexico must be willing to defend the homeland.
The next stanza of the hymn insists, with bloody metaphors, on the importance of fighting against anyone who intends to stain the emblems of the country, and the importance of the union and the Liberty.
The stanza that follows points out the importance of the homeland being defended by its children, who will die in war and become heroes, rather than bend their neck to the enemy.
The last stanza of the official version of the anthem results in the idea that Mexicans have the duty to defend the country with courage to be remembered with honor.
But, What is, deep down, the meaning of the Mexican national anthem?
It should be remembered that in the years prior to its composition, Mexico had lost half of its territory (Texas, Alta California and New Mexico) due to the aggressive expansionist policy of USA.
Mexico, during the years of the American invasion (1846-1848), was deeply divided due to political conflicts internally, which had a decisive influence on his not being able to prepare and present a firm defense to the claims Americans.
Hence, the national anthem of Mexico insists, above all, on the importance of the union to defend the homeland from the attacks of foreign enemies.
Mexican national anthem lyrics
Music of the Mexican national anthem
Literature professional, graduated from the Universidad de Los Andes. He is passionate about literature, history and philosophy. He has worked creating, writing and proofreading in publishing, advertising, journalism and digital content since 2008.
