Culture & History
O Canada: Lyrics and History of Canada's National Anthem
O Canada in English and French: the full lyrics, where the song comes from, when it became the official anthem and why one line changed in 2018.
You will hear “O Canada” before every NHL game, on Canada Day and at citizenship ceremonies. Most Canadians can sing the first verse in English, many in French as well. Here are both versions, plus the story of a song that is older than most people think and only became the official anthem in 1980.
Where O Canada comes from
The song started in French. Calixa Lavallée wrote the music and Judge Adolphe-Basile Routhier the French lyrics for the Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day celebrations in Quebec City. It was first performed on 24 June 1880 at a banquet there.
English Canada sang “God Save the King” and “The Maple Leaf Forever” for decades. Several English versions of O Canada appeared, and the one that stuck was written in 1908 by Robert Stanley Weir, a Montreal lawyer and poet. It is not a translation of the French text. The two versions share the melody and the opening words, but say quite different things.
When it became the official anthem
O Canada was the de facto anthem for a long time, but Parliament only made it official with the National Anthem Act of 1980. The anthem was proclaimed on 1 July 1980, a century after its first performance. Weir’s text became the official English lyrics, with small changes. “God Save the King” (or “the Queen”) remains Canada’s royal anthem.
The 2018 change
Weir’s original line was “True patriot love thou dost in us command”. In a later revision it became “in all thy sons command”, and that is how it stayed for about a century. After a dozen attempts in Parliament, a private member’s bill by MP Mauril Bélanger finally passed. The Senate approved it on 31 January 2018 and it received royal assent on 7 February 2018. The line now reads “in all of us command”. The French version did not need a change.
O Canada lyrics in English (official since 2018)
O Canada! Our home and native land!
True patriot love in all of us command.
With glowing hearts we see thee rise,
The True North strong and free!
From far and wide, O Canada,
We stand on guard for thee.
God keep our land glorious and free!
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.
Ô Canada lyrics in French
Ô Canada! Terre de nos aïeux,
Ton front est ceint de fleurons glorieux!
Car ton bras sait porter l’épée,
Il sait porter la croix!
Ton histoire est une épopée
Des plus brillants exploits.
Et ta valeur, de foi trempée,
Protégera nos foyers et nos droits.
Protégera nos foyers et nos droits.
In English, roughly: “O Canada, land of our forefathers, your brow is wreathed with glorious garlands. Your arm can carry the sword and the cross. Your history is an epic of the most brilliant deeds, and your valour, steeped in faith, will protect our homes and our rights.”
A bilingual version
At many official events and sports games you will hear a mix: the first lines in French and the rest in English, or the other way round. How the lines are split varies from event to event.
Other languages
O Canada has also been translated into Indigenous languages, including Inuktitut, which is spoken in Nunavut and the Inuit regions of the North. German-speaking immigrants once sang their own version too, “O Kanada, mein Heim und Vaterland”. You can find both in our German article on the anthem.
Etiquette
When the anthem is played, people stand, men take off their hats, and most sing along. Nobody expects visitors to know the words, but standing is polite.
Visiting the North? Our guide to the northern lights in Canada and the things to do in Whitehorse are a good place to start.
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