Happy Anniversary, Estonia and Estonians! Palju õnne, Eesti ja eestlased!

Text Timo Raussi
Photo Andrei Chertkov

“Süda, kuis sa ruttu tõused
kuumalt rinnus tuksuma,
kui su nime suhu võtan,
püha Eesti—isamaa!”

…or, freely translated:

“Oh heart, how fiercely you begin
to beat within my burning breast,
when your name rises to my lips:
sacred Estonia—my fatherland!”

This is what Estonia’s national poet Lydia Koidula wrote in the poem “Eesti muld ja Eesti süda” from her collection published in 1867. These lines are merely a grain of sand among all the patriotic works of poetry and music that have been close to the hearts of Estonians both in the past and today. The Estonian language and the Estonian people’s belief in freedom could not be broken by the decades of Soviet occupation.

Late in the evening of 20 August 1991, the Supreme Council of Soviet Estonia, which corresponded to Estonia’s present-day parliament, the Riigikogu, declared the independence of the Republic of Estonia, which had existed before the period under the yoke of its eastern neighbour, to have been restored. For this reason, some historians consider it incorrect to speak of the restoration of independence, or to celebrate Restoration of Independence Day.

Whatever the terminology, let us be happy and proud of our neighbourly relationship on both sides. Rõõmutsegem ja olgem uhked selle üle, et oleme teine-teisele naabriteks. Happy Anniversary, Estonia!

To learn more about this and similar topics
1991 Estonians Finland Independence Lydia Koidula Republic of Estonia state sovereignty