Spain selects anthem lyrics —after 250 years

SPAIN has finally chosen a set of lyrics for its national anthem, starting with the words “Viva España”.

But although they may echo the light-hearted top 10 pop song so loved by a generation of Britons in the 1970s, they are causing controversy in their native land.

Many Spaniards today associate the phrase with the nationalist fervour of the right-wing regime of the late General Franco.

The words go on to say “ama a la patria” — or “love the fatherland” — another phrase that smacks of Spain’s rightist past.

Carmen Calvo, Spain’s former culture minister, pulled no punches. “I just read it and I don’t like it at all,” she said at parliament. It has “expressions that are completely antiquated and sound like something from an anthem of the past”, she said.

The music for Spain’s national hymn dates back to 1761. In June 2007, the Spanish Olympic committee decided to seek suggestions for lyrics. The committee received 7,000 suggestions, and a jury settled on one. Now they must collect at least half a million signatures and take the lyrics to parliament to seek formal approval.