HatikvaーIsrael's National Anthem

◇Lyrics
כל עוד בלבב פנימה　　　Kol od balevav p'nimah
נפש יהודי הומיה　　　Nefesh Yehudi homiyah
ולפאתי מזרח קדימה　　　Ulfa'atey mizrach kadimah
עין לציון צופיה　　　Ayin l'tzion tzofiyah
עוד לא אבדה תקותנו　　　Od lo avdah tikvatenu
התקוה בת שנות אלפים　　　Hatikvah bat shnot alpayim
להיות עם חופשי בארצנו　　　L'hiyot am chofshi b'artzenu
ארץ ציון וירושלים　　　Eretz Tzion v'Yerushalayim　

As long as deep in the heart,The soul of a Jew yearns,
And forward to the East,To Zion, an eye looks.　
Our hope will not be lost,The hope of two thousand years,
To be a free nation in our land,The land of Zion and Jerusalem.

◇MP3（By　Enrico　Macias）　◇SCORE

◇History
The title of the national anthem, HATIKVA, means "The Hope." It was written by Naftali Herz Imber (1856-1909), who moved to Palestine in 1882 from Galicia. The melody was arranged by Samuel Cohen, an immigrant from Moldavia, from a musical theme in Smetana's "Moldau" that is partly based on a Scandinavian folk song.
Hatikva expresses the hope of the Jewish people, that they would someday return to the land of their forefathers as prophesied in the Hebrew Bible. The Jewish people were exiled from Israel in 70 C.E. by the Roman army led by Titus who destroyed the Temple in Jerusalem. During the two thousand years of exile, the Jewish people said special daily prayers for return to Israel while facing the East in the direction of Jerusalem. They celebrated the holidays according to Hebrew seasons and calendar. Zion is synonymous with Israel and Jerusalem.