[[Image:National anthem booth - floriade.jpg|thumb|250px|The National Anthem booth at the [[2005]] [[Floriade, Canberra]] - on the J. Verbeeck [[fairground organ]].]]
'''Advance Australia Fair''' is the official [[national anthem]] of [[Australia]]. Composed by [[Peter Dodds McCormick]], the song was first performed in 1878, but did not gain its status as the official anthem until 1984. Until then, the song was sung in Australia as a patriotic song. In order for the song to become the anthem, it had to face a vote between the Royal anthem ''[[God Save the Queen]]'' and the "unofficial anthem" ''[[Waltzing Matilda]].'' Other songs and marches have been influenced from ''Advance Australia Fair,'' such as the Australian Vice-Regal salute.

==History==
''Advance Australia Fair'' was composed by [[Peter Dodds McCormick]] under the pen-name 'Amicus' (which means 'friend' in Latin), in the late [[19th century]], and first performed by [[Andrew Fairfax]] at a [[Highland Society]] function in [[Sydney]] on [[30 November]] [[1878]]. The song quickly gained popularity and an amended version was sung by a choir of 10,000 at the inauguration of the [[Commonwealth of Australia]] on [[1 January]] [[1901]]. In 1907 the Australian Government awarded McCormick £100 for his composition.

Before its adoption as Australia's national anthem, ''Advance Australia Fair'' saw considerable use elsewhere. For example, Australia's national broadcaster, the [[Australian Broadcasting Corporation|Australian Broadcasting Commission]], used it to announce its news bulletins until 1952.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.screensound.gov.au/services/soa-media/index.html|title=Media Resources - Images and Audio files for Download|publisher=[[National Film and Sound Archive]]|accessdate=2007-11-01}} (1943 - The Majestic Fanfare by Charles Williams, the ABC radio news theme )</ref> It was also frequently played at the start or end of official functions.

In 1973 the [[Whitlam]] government decided that the country needed an anthem that could represent Australia with "distinction" and started a competition to find one. The [[Australia Council for the Arts]] organised the contest which was dubbed as the ''Australian National Anthem Quest''. The contest was held in two stages; the first seeking lyrics and the second music, each having a [[Australian dollar|AUD]] $5,000 prize for the winning entry. On the recommendation of the Council for the Arts, none of the new entries were felt worthy enough, so the contest ended with the suggestions for ''Advance Australia Fair'', ''Waltzing Matilda'' and ''Song of Australia''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.itsanhonour.gov.au/symbols/anthem.cfm#history|title=Australian National Anthem - History|publisher=Australian Government|date=10 July 2007|accessdate=2007-11-01}}</ref>

''Advance Australia Fair'' emerged as the most popular choice for the national anthem after an opinion poll in 1974 (the Australian Bureau of Statistics polled 60,000 nationally).

At the same time as the [[Australian referendum, 1977|1977 referendum]], a national [[Australian plebiscite, 1977 (National Song)|plebiscite was held to choose the National Song]]. ''Advance Australia Fair'' received 43.6% of the vote, defeating the three alternatives: ''[[Waltzing Matilda]]'' (28.5%), ''[[Song of Australia]]'' (9.7%), and the then-current national anthem ''[[God Save the Queen]]'' (18.7%).

''Advance Australia Fair'' was adopted as the national anthem on [[19 April]] [[1984]] by a decision of the [[Australian Labor Party|Labor]] government of [[Bob Hawke]] and a proclamation by the [[Governor-General of Australia|Governor-General]] [[Ninian Stephen|Sir Ninian Stephen]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.aph.gov.au/library/handbook/national_symbols/index.htm|title=Parliamentary Handbook of the Commonwealth of Australia - National Symbols|publisher=[[Parliament of Australia]]|date=21 September 2005|accessdate=2007-11-01}} (proclamation by Governor General dated 19 April 1984)</ref>

==Criticism==
Both the lyrics and melody of the anthem have been criticised in some quarters as being dull and unendearing to the Australian people. [[National Party of Australia|National Party]] Senator [[Sandy Macdonald]] said in 2001 that ''Advance Australia Fair'' is so boring that the nation risks singing itself to sleep, with boring music and words impossible to understand.<ref name=>{{cite web|url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2001/06/22/waust22.xml|title=Call to scrap Australia's 'dull' anthem|author=Barbie Dutter|publisher=[[telegraph.co.uk]]|date=2001-6-27|accessdate=2007-12-20}}</ref> His Parliamentary colleague [[Peter Slipper]] thought Australia should consider another anthem.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/politics/2001/06/item20010621121726_1.htm|title=Senator reignites debate over national anthem|publisher=[[Australian Broadcasting Corporation|ABC]]|date=2001-6-21|accessdate=2007-12-20}}</ref>

[[Australian Labor Party]] politician [[Craig Emerson]] took aim at one famously [[Archaism|archaic]] word in the lyrics: "Our home is girt by sea. This must rank as one of the worst lines of any national anthem. That Australia is an island should be pretty obvious, but is our anthem girt by a sea of mediocrity?"<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.hamilton.net.au/advance/links.html|title=Advance Australia Fair: Selected WWW links|publisher=hamilton.net.au|accessdate=2007-12-20}}</ref> However, Mr Emerson's party leader, [[Kim Beazley]] argued "Well, look. I stand up on behalf of girt. Girt by sea needs to be celebrated and if we can't do that regularly when Australia enjoys its sporting triumphs, at the beginning or our school assemblies and I think something would be lost that is new and decent and essential to the Australian character."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://web.archive.org/web/20010718044509/http://www.alp.org.au/media/0601/kbmcact210601.html|title=Kim Beazley - Doorstop Interview (transcript)|publisher=[[Australian Labor Party]]|date=2001-06-21|accessdate=2007-12-20}} (Archived copy)</ref>

==Lyrics==
===Current===
It is currently under investigation if the current lyrics are sufficiently free of copyright to include on Wikipedia - see [[Talk:Advance Australia Fair#Official lyrics are copyrighted]]. In the interim the complete lyrics can be found here: <ref name=anthem>{{cite web|url=http://www.dfat.gov.au/facts/nat_anthem.html|title=The Australian National Anthem|publisher=[[Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (Australia)|Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade]]|accessdate=2007-11-01}}</ref>

</div>
{| class="navbox collapsible collapsed" style="padding-left:20px;"
|-
! class="plainlinksneverexpand" | '''Australian National Anthem''' (1984)<ref name=anthem/>: '''''Advance Australia Fair'''''
|-
|
; 1
: Australians all let us rejoice,
: For we are young and free;
: We've golden soil and wealth for toil;
: Our home is girt by sea;
: Our land abounds in nature's gifts
: Of beauty rich and rare;
: In history's page, let every stage
: Advance Australia Fair.
: In joyful strains then let us sing,
: Advance Australia Fair.

;2
: Beneath our radiant Southern Cross
: We'll toil with hearts and hands;
: To make this Commonwealth of ours
: Renowned of all the lands;
: For those who've come across the seas
: We've boundless plains to share;
: With courage let us all combine
: To Advance Australia Fair.
: In joyful strains then let us sing,
: Advance Australia Fair.
|-
|}

===Original===
</div>
{| class="navbox collapsible collapsed" style="padding-left:20px;"
|-
! class="plainlinksneverexpand" | '''McCormick's original lyrics''' (1879)<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nla.gov.au/apps/cdview?pi=nla.mus-an24220024-s1-e|title=Digital Collections - Advance Australia Fair|publisher=[[National Library of Australia]]|accessdate=2007-11-01}}</ref> '''''Advance Australia Fair'''''
|-
|
; 1
: Australia's sons let us rejoice,
: For we are young and free;
: We've golden soil and wealth for toil,
: Our home is girt by sea;
: Our land abounds in Nature's gifts
: Of beauty rich and rare;
: In hist'ry's page, let ev'ry stage
: Advance Australia fair.
: In joyful strains then let us sing,
: Advance Australia fair.

; 2
: When gallant Cook from Albion sailed,
: To trace wide oceans o'er,
: True British courage bore him on,
: Til he landed on our shore.
: Then here he raised Old England's flag,
: The standard of the brave;
: "With all her faults we love her still"
: "Britannia rules the wave."
: In joyful strains then let us sing
: Advance Australia fair.

;3
: While other nations of the globe
: Behold us from afar,
: We'll rise to high renown and shine
: Like our glorious southern star;
: From England soil and Fatherland,
: Scotia and Erin fair,
: Let all combine with heart and hand
: To advance Australia fair.
: In joyful strains then let us sing
: Advance Australia fair.

;4
: Should foreign foe e'er sight our coast,
: Or dare a foot to land,
: We'll rouse to arms like sires of yore,
: To guard our native strand;
: Britannia then shall surely know,
: Though oceans roll between,
: Her sons in fair Australia's land
: Still keep their courage green.
: In joyful strains then let us sing
: Advance Australia fair.<nowiki>*</nowiki>

<small><nowiki>*</nowiki> For its adoption as the national anthem, the second and fourth verses were dropped from the "Official Lyrics" and verse two of Official Lyrics was based on the third verse of the adaptation sung at Federation in 1901, rather than the original third verse and the first line was changed from "'''Australia's sons''' let us rejoice" to "'''Australians all''' let us rejoice".

Three lines were changed since the original song was written:
* the first line of the first verse: "'''Australia's sons''' let us rejoice" to "'''Australians all''' let us rejoice".
* verse 3A (verse 2 of Official Lyrics), line 3 : "To make this '''youthful Commonwealth'''" to "To make this '''Commonwealth of ours'''".
* verse 3A (verse 2 of Official Lyrics), line 5 : "For '''loyal sons beyond''' the seas" to "For '''those who've come across''' the seas".</small>
|-
|}

===Federation Adaptation, 1901===
</div>
{| class="navbox collapsible collapsed" style="padding-left:20px;"
|-
! class="plainlinksneverexpand" | '''1901 adaptation''' of '''''Advance Australia Fair'''''
|-
|
:
: '''''Verse 3 of the original was changed to''''';

: Beneath our radiant Southern Cross,
: We'll toil with hearts and hands;
: To make our youthful Commonwealth
: Renowned of all the lands;
: For loyal sons beyond the seas
: We've boundless plains to share;
: With courage let us all combine
: To advance Australia fair.
: In joyful strains then let us sing
: Advance Australia fair!<nowiki>*</nowiki>

<small><nowiki>*</nowiki> Note: some modern sources erroneously include both versions of the third verse.</small>
|-
|}

==='Missing' verse?===
Some have claimed there is a missing sixth verse.<ref name=sixth>{{cite web|url=http://www.awakening.org.au/media/2k0606lost.htm|title=Lost verse puts Christ into the National Anthem|date=6 June 2000}}</ref> This verse has an overtly [[Christian]] overtone. The first performance in recent memory of this verse was during the Global March for [[Jesus]] in 1998.<ref name=sixth/> The most recent known performance of the verse was at a special service at St. Andrew's Cathedral, Sydney, on [[10 July]] [[2005]] with Prime Minister [[John Howard]] present. However the verse is in fact not McCormick's. It is not known who the true author of the verse is, nor when it was first penned and used.

</div>
{| class="navbox collapsible collapsed" style="padding-left:20px;"
|-
! class="plainlinksneverexpand" | 'Missing' verse?<ref name=sixth/> '''''Advance Australia Fair'''''
|-
|

: With Christ our head and cornerstone,
: We'll build our Nation's might.
: Whose way and truth and light alone
: Can guide our path aright.
: Our lives, a sacrifice of love
: Reflect our Master's care.
: With faces turned to heaven above
: Advance Australia fair.
: In joyful strains then let us sing
: Advance Australia fair!
|-
|}

===Copyright status===
Even though any copyright of Peter Dodds McCormick' original lyrics has expired as he died in 1916, the Commonwealth of Australia does copyright the officially proclaimed lyrics and particular arrangements of music. Non-commercial use of the anthem is permitted without case-by-case permission, but commercial use does require permission.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.itsanhonour.gov.au/symbols/anthem.cfm#commercial|title=Australian National Anthem - Commercial use|publisher=Australian Government|date=10 July 2007|accessdate=2007-11-01}}</ref>

== Media ==
{{multi-listen start}}
{{multi-listen item|filename=Advance Australia Fair instrumental.ogg|title=Instrumental|description=Recording by the [[United States Navy]] Band|format=[[Ogg]]}}
{{multi-listen end}}

== References ==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
{{Wikisource}}
*[http://www.hamilton.net.au/advance.html Brief history]
*Australian Government websites:
**[http://www.itsanhonour.gov.au/symbols/anthem.cfm#download Official published words, music with band parts and sound recordings]
**[http://www.itsanhonour.gov.au/symbols/docs/AusNatAnthem_VOCALSCORE.pdf Four-part musical score & words PDF 169 KB]
**[http://www.itsanhonour.gov.au/symbols/docs/anthem_vocal.mp3 Australian National Anthem Audio for download (MP3 3.12 MB)]
**[http://www.dfat.gov.au/facts/nat_anthem.html Department of Foreign Affair and Trade's webpage on Advance Australia Fair]
**[http://www.musicaustralia.org/apps/MA?function=searchResults&searchInitiated=true&scope=scope&simpleTerm=advance+australia+fair&searchbutton.x=36&searchbutton.y=14 Online scores held by Australian government libraries (The MusicAustralia collaboration)]

{{Nationalanthemsofoceaniaandthepacificislands}}

<!--Categories-->
[[Category:National anthems]]
[[Category:National symbols of Australia]]
[[Category:Australian songs]]

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[[ca:Advance Australia Fair]]
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[[ko:오스트레일리아의 국가]]
[[hr:Advance Australia Fair]]
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[[it:Advance Australia Fair]]
[[he:המנון אוסטרליה]]
[[lt:Australijos himnas]]
[[hu:Ausztrália himnusza]]
[[ms:Advance Australia Fair]]
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[[ja:アドヴァンス・オーストラリア・フェア]]
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[[pl:Hymn Australii]]
[[pt:Hino nacional da Austrália]]
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[[ru:Гимн Австралии]]
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[[vi:Advance Australia Fair]]
[[tg:Суруди миллии Австралия]]
[[zh:前进的澳大利亚]]