The Royal Anthem of Norway is called Kongesangen which means King’s Song. It is to honor the King (or one day, perhaps Queen) of Norway. It is used on ceremonial occasions, for example, before His Majesty’s annual New Year’s Eve speech.

It is separate and different from the National Anthem of Norway which honors the country, or the Norwegian National Psalm.

The lyrics for the modern Norwegian Royal Anthem were written for the coronation of King Haakon VII in 1906 by Gustav Jensen. Inspired by the British royal and national anthem, it has the same music as “God Save the Queen”.

Norwegian Royal Anthem Lyrics in Norwegian

Gud sign vår konge god!

Sign ham med kraft og mod

Sign hjem og slott!

Lys for ham ved din Ånd,

Knytt med din sterke hånd

Hellige troskapsbånd

Om folk og drott!

Høyt sverger Norges mann

hver i sitt kall, sin stand,

troskap sin drott.

Trofast i liv og død,

tapper i krig og nød,

alltid vårt Norge lød

Gud og sin drott.

Norwegian Royal Anthem Lyrics in English

God bless our gracious king!

Bless him with strength and courage,

Bless home and castle!

Guide him with Your Spirit,

Tie with Your strong Hand

Holy bands of allegiance

Around people and sovereign!

Loudly pledge men of Norway

each in his calling, his station,

loyalty to the sovereign.

Loyal in life and death,

courageous in war and distress,

always our Norway obeyed

God and its sovereign.

Norwegian Royal Anthem Sheet Music

You can download the Norwegian Royal Anthem sheet music online in a few places for about $5. (You can also use the score for God Save the Queen, just changing the words, if you already have it on hand.)

Feedback on the Norwegian Royal Anthem, Please!

I hope you enjoy this brief history of the Norwegian Royal Anthem. We would love your comments on what this means to you or how you will use it!