Malawi National Anthem
As a child I was quite familiar with the Malawi National Anthem – it was played quite frequently. Every time we went to the cinema we would stand while the music played and the cinema displayed Dr Banda the president.
I looked into a good guide book here at the Mango Drift bar called ‘Spectrum Guide to Malawi’. Of the guide books commonly available in the bookshops the Bradt Guide is best for Malawi but at a glance this other one looks quite good. The Spectrum Guide was published in 2003 so is perhaps out of print.
I spotted the national anthem in this Spectrum Guide and thought that would save me too much thought for a blog post. I asked the barman for the second line of the national anthem and he struggled…he did not know it. The reason for the question was that I thought that the second word of the second line was ‘Her’ but it seems as though it is ‘It’.
Here it is:
O God Bless our land of Malawi
Keep It a Land of Peace
Put down each and every enemy,
Hunger, disease, envy.
Join together all our hearts as one,
That we be free from fear.
Bless our leader, each and everyone,
And Mother Malawi
Our own Malawi, this land so fair,
Fertile and brave and free.
With it’s lakes, refreshing mountain air,
How greatly blest are we.
Hills and valleys, soil so rich and rare,
Give us bounty free.
Wood and forest, plains so broad and fair,
All beauteous Malawi.
Freedom ever, let us all unite,
To build up Malawi.
With our love, our zest and loyalty.
Bringing our best to her.
In time of war, or in time of peace,
One purpose and one goal.
Men and women serving selflessly,
In building in Malawi.
Destination Malawi 