"Kassaman", or "Qassaman" ( ar, قَسَمًا, "we pledge", "the oath" or "we swear"), is the

national anthem A national anthem is a patriotic musical composition symbolizing and evoking eulogies of the history and traditions of a country or nation. The majority of national anthems are marches or hymns in style. American, Central Asian, and Europea ...

Algeria ) , image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Algiers , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , relig ...

. Moufdi Zakaria authored the lyrics, while the music was composed by Egyptian composer Mohamed Fawzi. The song was adopted as the national anthem in 1962, when the country gained independence from

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

History

The French invaded Ottoman Algeria in 1830 and made it an integral part of

Metropolitan France Metropolitan France (french: France métropolitaine or ''la Métropole''), also known as European France (french: Territoire européen de la France) is the area of France which is geographically in Europe. This collective name for the European ...

within its colonial empire. For the next century, the native population were given very few political rights. Consequently, a nationalist movement began in the 1920s and gained traction after

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, when a commitment by the government to grant French Algeria autonomy failed to materialize. A prominent member of this movement was Moufdi Zakaria, a Mozabite Berber poet affiliated with the Algerian People's Party (PPA). He was jailed and tortured on several occasions between the 1920s and 1962. It was during one of these experiences, in April 1955, that he penned the words to "Kassaman". Since he did not have access to

paper Paper is a thin sheet material produced by mechanically or chemically processing cellulose fibres derived from wood, rags, grasses or other vegetable sources in water, draining the water through fine mesh leaving the fibre evenly distrib ...

writing instruments A writing implement or writing instrument is an object used to produce writing. Writing consists of different figures, lines, and or forms. Most of these items can be also used for other functions such as painting, drawing and technical drawing, ...

while incarcerated in Barberousse Prison, Zakaria reportedly wrote the lyrics with his own blood on the walls of his jail cell. The musical portion of the anthem was subsequently composed by Mohamed Fawzi, who was asked to undertake this effort after two earlier submissions by other composers – one of which was by – were rejected. Both the lyrics and music were officially adopted in 1962; in that same year, the

Évian Accords The Évian Accords were a set of peace treaties signed on 18 March 1962 in Évian-les-Bains, France, by France and the Provisional Government of the Algerian Republic, the government-in-exile of FLN (), which sought Algeria's independence ...

were signed, paving the way for a referendum in which Algerians overwhelmingly voted in favour of independence, which was duly granted. Although "Kassaman" was only intended to be a provisional national anthem, it has endured to this day.

Lyrics

The lyrics of "Kassaman" are reflective of a

war song A war song is a musical composition that relates to war, or a society's attitudes towards war. They may be pro-war, anti-war, or simply a description of everyday life during war times. It is possible to classify these songs by historical confl ...

, This is because it promotes nationalistic ideals and principles on the front line, glorifies the actions of the National Liberation Front (FLN), as well as espousing armed uprising and how it is the sole route to attaining independence. It is also noteworthy in that it alludes to another country – France – specifically concerning the violent struggle against them for independence. The song foreshadows how "the day of reckoning" will befall Algeria's former colonial ruler.

Legal protection

Even though "Kassaman" was adopted in 1962, it was not until November 2008 that an amendment to Article 5 of the

Constitution of Algeria An Algerian Constitution was first adopted by a referendum in 1963, following the Algerian War of Independence (1954–62); originally, it was to be drafted by a constitutional assembly led by Ferhat Abbas, but this body was sidelined by Algeria' ...

was made declaring it as "immutable", given its association with the country's revolution. It also confirmed that the national anthem comprises all of the song's verses, thus ending the deliberation over whether it was still appropriate to include the unfavourable reference to France in the present day.

Notes

References

External links

Streaming Audio, Lyrics and Infoarchive link
*

* ttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hjD8vFVW74Q The People's National Army's Republican Guards Singing the Algerian Anthem {{authority control Algerian patriotic songs Arabic-language songs National symbols of Algeria Political party songs Anthems of Algeria 1955 songs National anthem compositions in B-flat major