"Amhrán na bhFiann", called "The Soldier's Song" in English, is the national anthem of Ireland. The music was composed by Peadar Kearney and Patrick Heeney, the original English lyrics by Kearney, and the Irish-language translation, now usually the version heard, by Liam Ó Rinn. The song has three verses, but only the choral refrain is used as the national anthem.
English lyrics sheet, c. 1916
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 European nations tend towards more ornate and operatic pieces, while those in the Middle East, Oceania, Africa, and the Caribbean use a more simplistic fanfare. Some countries that are devolved into multiple constituent states have their own official musical compositions for them ; their constituencies' songs are sometimes referred to as national anthems even though they are not sovereign states.
Early version of the "Wilhelmus" as preserved in a manuscript of 1617 (Brussels, Royal Library, MS 15662, fol. 37v-38r)
Holographic copy of 1847 of Il Canto degli Italiani, the Italian national anthem since 1946
Rouget de Lisle performing "La Marseillaise" for the first time