Amar Sonar Bangla

আমার সোনার বাংলা / Amar Sonar Bangla

A song by Rabindranath Tagore in praise of the land of Bengal that became the national anthem of Bangladesh in 1971.

Words
Rabindranath Tagore
Music
Rabindranath Tagore, after a melody of Gagan Harkara
Culture
Bengalis; Bangladesh
Language
Bengali
Place
Bengal (present-day India and Bangladesh)
Date
first published September 1905
Type
Anthem · Love song
The words
Public domain (words by Rabindranath Tagore (first published 1905))

The story

"Amar Sonar Bangla" ("My Golden Bengal") is an ode to Mother Bengal written by the Bengali poet Rabindranath Tagore. The exact year it was composed is not known, because the original manuscript was never found. Its melody is derived from "Ami Kothay Pabo Tare", a song of the Baul singer Gagan Harkara, set to the rhythm cycle Dadra tala.

It is linked with the first Partition of Bengal. In 1905 the British authorities split the province of the Bengal Presidency in two: the Viceroy, Lord Curzon, announced the decision on 20 July, and it took effect on 16 October. The division ran along communal lines, with a Muslim majority in East Bengal and Assam and a Hindu majority in West Bengal, and it is claimed to have been politically motivated. With many other songs, this one was meant to revive the unified spirit of Bengal and raise public feeling against the divide. Tagore's biographer Prashanta Kumar Paul held that it was first sung on 25 August 1905 at a gathering in Kolkata. The words first appeared in print in the September 1905 issues of the periodicals Bongodorshon and Baul, and the song with its musical notation appeared the same month in the music journal Shongeet Biggnan Praveshika. The notation was taken down by Tagore's niece Indira Devi as she heard him sing it.

In 1971, during the Bangladesh Liberation War, the Provisional Government of Bangladesh adopted it as the national anthem; the first ten lines of the poem are the version usually sung. The orchestral rendition was composed by Samar Das. When the Constitution of Bangladesh was drafted in 1972, it was chosen over "Dhana Dhanya Pushpa Bhara" by Dwijendra Lal Roy. Syed Ali Ahsan translated it into English.

It has faced criticism since at least 1975. Opponents have argued that it was written against a separate East Bengal, the territory that became Bangladesh, that its author was not a Bangladeshi, and that the mother it addresses is a Hindu goddess. After the coup of 15 August 1975, President Khondaker Mostaq Ahmed set up a committee to replace it, which recommended Kazi Nazrul Islam's "Notuner Gaan" (today the national march) and Farrukh Ahmed's "Panjeri"; the process stopped when he was removed. In 1979 Prime Minister Shah Azizur Rahman proposed Shahnaz Rahmatullah's "Prothom Bangladesh" instead, and under President Ziaur Rahman that song was played after the anthem on national television and at government events until his death in 1981. In 2002 the minister Motiur Rahman Nizami proposed changing its words, which the Cabinet Division did not accept. Calls to replace it were made again in 2024 and 2025.

On 26 March 2014, Bangladesh's independence day, 254,537 people sang it together at the National Parade Ground in Dhaka, a world record for the most people singing a national anthem at once, approved by Guinness World Records on 9 April 2014; India broke the record on 21 January 2017.

What it says

A song of love for the land of Bengal, addressed to it as a beloved mother and praising how precious it is. The mood is tender and devoted.

The words

আমার সোনার বাংলা, আমি তোমায় ভালোবাসি।āmāra sonāra bāṁlā, āmi tomāẏa bhālobāsi.My golden Bengal, I love you.

চিরদিন তোমার আকাশ, তোমার বাতাস, আমার প্রাণে বাজায় বাঁশি॥ciradina tomāra ākāśa, tomāra bātāsa, āmāra prāṇe bājāẏa bām̐śi.Forever your sky, your air play a flute in my heart.

ও মা, ফাগুনে তোর আমের বনে ঘ্রাণে পাগল করে,o mā, phāgune tora āmera bane ghrāṇe pāgala kare,O Mother, in Phalgun the scent of your mango groves drives me mad,

মরি হায়, হায় রে—mari hāẏa, hāẏa re—ah, I could die, ah, ah—

ও মা, অঘ্রানে তোর ভরা ক্ষেতে আমি কী দেখেছি মধুর হাসি॥o mā, aghrāne tora bharā kṣete āmi kī dekhechi madhura hāsi.O Mother, in Aghran, in your full fields, what a sweet smile I have seen!

কী শোভা, কী ছায়া গো, কী স্নেহ, কী মায়া গো—kī śobhā, kī chāẏā go, kī sneha, kī māẏā go—What beauty, what shade, what tenderness, what love—

কী আঁচল বিছায়েছ বটের মূলে, নদীর কূলে কূলে।kī ām̐cala bichāẏecha baṭera mūle, nadīra kūle kūle.what a sari's end you have spread at the foot of the banyan, along the banks of the rivers!

মা, তোর মুখের বাণী আমার কানে লাগে সুধার মতো,mā, tora mukhera bāṇī āmāra kāne lāge sudhāra mato,Mother, the words of your mouth touch my ears like nectar,

মরি হায়, হায় রে—mari hāẏa, hāẏa re—ah, I could die, ah, ah—

মা, তোর বদনখানি মলিন হলে, ও মা, আমি নয়নজলে ভাসি॥mā, tora badanakhāni malina hale, o mā, āmi naẏanajale bhāsi.Mother, when your face grows dim, O Mother, I float in the water of my eyes.

তোমার এই খেলাঘরে শিশুকাল কাটিল রে,tomāra ei khelāghare śiśukāla kāṭila re,In this playhouse of yours my childhood passed;

তোমারি ধুলামাটি অঙ্গে মাখি ধন্য জীবন মানি।tomāri dhulāmāṭi aṅge mākhi dhanya jībana māni.smearing your own dust and earth on my limbs, I count my life blessed.

তুই দিন ফুরালে সন্ধ্যাকালে কী দীপ জ্বালিস ঘরে,tui dina phurāle sandhyākāle kī dīpa jbālisa ghare,When the day runs out, at evening, what a lamp you light in the house!

মরি হায়, হায় রে—mari hāẏa, hāẏa re—Ah, I could die, ah, ah—

তখন খেলাধুলা সকল ফেলে, ও মা, তোমার কোলে ছুটে আসি॥takhana khelādhulā sakala phele, o mā, tomāra kole chuṭe āsi.then, leaving all my play, O Mother, I come running to your lap.

ধেনু-চরা তোমার মাঠে, পারে যাবার খেয়াঘাটে,dhenu-carā tomāra māṭhe, pāre yābāra kheẏāghāṭe,In your fields where the cattle graze, at the ferry landings for crossing over,

সারা দিন পাখি-ডাকা ছায়ায়-ঢাকা তোমার পল্লীবাটে,sārā dina pākhi-ḍākā chāẏāẏa-ḍhākā tomāra pallībāṭe,on your village paths loud with birds all day and covered in shade,

তোমার ধানে-ভরা আঙিনাতে জীবনের দিন কাটে,tomāra dhāne-bharā āṅināte jībanera dina kāṭe,in your courtyards full of rice the days of life pass,

মরি হায়, হায় রে—mari hāẏa, hāẏa re—ah, I could die, ah, ah—

ও মা, আমার যে ভাই তারা সবাই, ও মা, তোমার রাখাল তোমার চাষি॥o mā, āmāra ye bhāi tārā sabāi, o mā, tomāra rākhāla tomāra cāṣi.O Mother, those who are my brothers, all of them, O Mother, are your herdsmen, your farmers.

ও মা, তোর চরণেতে দিলেম এই মাথা পেতে–o mā, tora caraṇete dilema ei māthā pete–O Mother, at your feet I have laid down this head—

দে গো তোর পায়ের ধূলা, সে যে আমার মাথার মানিক হবে।de go tora pāẏera dhūlā, se ye āmāra māthāra mānika habe.give me the dust of your feet: it will be the jewel on my head.

ও মা, গরিবের ধন যা আছে তাই দিব চরণতলে,o mā, garibera dhana yā āche tāi diba caraṇatale,O Mother, what wealth the poor have, that I will give at your feet;

মরি হায়, হায় রে—mari hāẏa, hāẏa re—ah, I could die, ah, ah—

আমি পরের ঘরে কিনব না আর, মা, তোর ভূষণ ব’লে গলার ফাঁসি॥āmi parera ghare kinaba nā āra, mā, tora bhūṣaṇa ba’le galāra phām̐si.I will no longer buy in others' houses, Mother, calling it your ornament, a noose for my neck.

Original: Rabindranath Tagore (1905); Gitabitan, Swadesh 1. Text from Wikisource; public domain.

The romanization is the Institute’s own (ISO 15919).

The English is the Institute’s own translation, made from the original for this page.

Notes on the translation (7)
  • The romanization is a strict transliteration of the Bengali letters (the inherent vowel written as 'a', as in the site's Jana Gana Mana): 'āmāra' is sung āmār, 'bāṁlā' Bāṅlā.
  • line 1.3 and 1.5: Phalgun (Phāgun) is the spring month of February to March; Aghran (Agrahāyaṇ) the harvest month of November to December.
  • lines x.4: 'mari hāẏa', literally 'I die, alas', is an exclamation of overwhelming feeling, here of love and wonder.
  • line 2.2: 'ām̐cala', the loose end of a sari, spread out as a mother spreads it to shelter or seat a child.
  • line 2.5: 'badanakhāni malina hale', literally 'when your face becomes soiled or dim', that is, sad.
  • The singer addresses Bengal both as 'tumi' (your: tomāra) and with the intimate 'tui' (your: tora), as the original alternates.
  • line 5.5: 'pare', others: the foreign goods of the Swadeshi boycott of 1905; the 'ornament' bought from others is a noose.

Listen

On YouTube, from the channel Chhayanaut Digital-Platform. Pressing play loads YouTube’s player. Watch on YouTube

What it inspired

  • National anthem of Bangladesh (first ten lines) 1971adopted as the anthem
  • Orchestral rendition (Samar Das)orchestral arrangement
  • English translation (Syed Ali Ahsan)translation

What it drew on

  • Ami Kothay Pabo Tare (Gagan Harkara)the melody is derived from it

People, places and events

Rabindranath TagoreGagan HarkaraLord CurzonIndira DeviPrashanta Kumar PaulSamar DasDwijendra Lal RoySyed Ali AhsanKhondaker Mostaq AhmedKazi Nazrul IslamFarrukh AhmedShah Azizur RahmanZiaur RahmanShahnaz RahmatullahMotiur Rahman NizamiBengalKolkataDhakaPartition of Bengal (1905)Bangladesh Liberation War15 August 1975 coup

Sources

Cite this page
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). Amar Sonar Bangla. In Songs in History. https://the-epoch-institute.org/songs/amar-sonar-bangla
MLA
“Amar Sonar Bangla.” Songs in History, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/songs/amar-sonar-bangla. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “Amar Sonar Bangla.” Songs in History. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/songs/amar-sonar-bangla.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Amar Sonar Bangla’, Songs in History. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/songs/amar-sonar-bangla (Accessed: ).

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