November 11. Święto Niepodległości. Independence Day. I wrote about it last year, if I remember correctly.

So, this year, let’s celebrate it a little bit differently – with a song (and dance, but that’s optional).

I have to say that I’m very undereducated when it comes to pieśni patriotyczne (patriotic songs). I remember something my grandma used to sing about ułani and their horses. And something about rozmaryn (rosemary). And of course, I was taught to sing “Rota“, which during the Partition was something of an unofficial Polish national song.

So, I thought it would be nice to share some of these songs with you. If you want, I can even dig out the lyrics and translate them. Or you can simply listen to the songs and enjoy them as they are.

Let’s start with the ułani song, which I think was one of my favorites when I was little. Even though I had no clue what an uhlan was.

And here’s “Rota” (The Oath). The lyrics were written by a famous Polish author – Maria Konopnicka and the song was once proposed as the official Polish national anthem.

And this is, in my opinion at least, probably the best Polish patriotic song ever. “O mój rozmarynie” (I’ve seen this one translated into English as “Death Will Kiss Me, But Not You”, even though the Polish title is something like “Oh, My Rosemary” – talking about an herb here, of course). Anyway, in this song a guy is singing that he will go to his girlfriend and ask if she loves him. If she says no, he will become an uhlan and go to war, where he will die, and hence the English words – “death will kiss me, but not you.” This is an original recording from the 30s.