"O Canada" (French: Ô Canada) is the national anthem of Canada. The song was originally commissioned by Lieutenant Governor of Quebec Théodore Robitaille for the 1880 Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day ceremony; Calixa Lavallée composed the music, after which French-language words were written by the poet and judge Sir Adolphe-Basile Routhier.
The original French lyrics were translated to English in 1906. Multiple English versions ensued, with Robert Stanley Weir's 1908 version (which was not a translation of the French lyrics) gaining the most popularity; the Weir lyrics eventually served as the basis for the official lyrics enacted by Parliament.[Weir's English-language lyrics have been revised three times, most recently when An Act to amend the National Anthem Act (gender) was enacted in 2018. The French lyrics remain unaltered.
"O Canada" had served as a de facto national anthem since 1939, officially becoming the country's national anthem in 1980 when Canada's National Anthem Act received royal assent and became effective on July 1 as part of that year's Dominion Day (today's Canada Day) celebrations.
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Creation:Governor Sir Cavendish Boyle composed the poem in 1902, inspired by the "Ode to Ireland".
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Music:The original score was composed by E. R. Krippner, a German bandmaster, but Boyle sought a more dignified setting, which led to Sir Hubert Parry composing two settings.
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Re-adoption:Newfoundland and Labrador re-adopted the "Ode to Newfoundland" as its official provincial anthem in 1980, making it the first province in Canada to do so.
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Tradition:The anthem is still sung at public events as a tradition, and typically only the first and last verses are sung.
The other provincial anthems of Canada can be provided upon request such as: Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Prince Edward Island, Quebec, and Saskatchewan.