Arise, ye who refuse to be slaves;
With our very flesh and blood
Let us build our new Great Wall!
The Peoples of China are in the most critical time,
Everybody must roar his defiance.
Arise!
Arise!
Arise!
Millions of hearts with one mind,
Brave the enemy’s gunfire,
March on!
Brave the enemy’s gunfire,
March on!
March on!
March on, on!

Originally called March of the Volunteers, our national anthem was the theme song to the 1935 movie Sons and Daughters of the Storm – a film about how Chinese intellectuals fought bravely in the War of Resistance against the Japanese. The rousing tune, composed by Nie Er (with lyrics by Tian Han) in an occupied city, calls on the people to unite and fight against imperial aggression and defend the motherland. It was chosen as China’s national anthem on September 27, 1949, just a few days before Mao Zedong proclaimed the founding of the People’s Republic on October 1, 1949.

Happy National Day.