Lyrics Kašpar Pivoda, 1904 | Music Václav Novotný, 1867 | |
Also known as Ó MoravoEnglish: Oh Moravia | ||
Jsem Moravan (English: I am a Moravian), sometimes also called Ó Moravo (English: Oh, Moravia), is a song composed by Václav Novotný in late 19th century. Jsem Moravan is along with songs Moravo, Moravo and Bože cos ráčil considered one of the anthems of historical region Moravia in the Czech Republic. Out of these three Jsem Moravan is the most commonly recognized as primary unofficial anthem, although it is rarely used nowadays.
The exact date of composition of the song is not known, but it very likely that Novotný composed it during his stay in the moravian town of Ivančice. Jsem Moravan was first published in the Písně pro školní mládež (English: Songs for school youth) collection in 1867. The lyrics were later rewritten by Kašpar Pivoda and released in 1904 as part of the Sokolský zpěvník (English: Sokol song-book). The newer version song has become popular among members of an all-age gymnastics organization Sokol, which also promoted czech nationalism amongst czech people in opposition to Austrian and Hungarian dominance within Austria-Hungary. Sokol was disbanded in Czechoslovakia after Communist coup d'état in 1948 due to ideological reasons and the fact that many Sokol members participated as part of Western resistance against Nazi Germany. Although the Sokols reappeared briefly during the Prague Spring of 1968, the Sokol movement was revived again after the 1989 revolution. Jsem Moravan is sometimes sung by Sokols on important occasions since then.