The National Anthem of Mexico - The Significance

Conceived in a bedroom, decorated with images and clippings about great Mexican battles, the lyrics to Mexico's National Anthem was born. Previously we talked about the ability of the lyrics to conjure feelings of national unity and pride for the Fatherland. But has the anthem had a cultural significance and what has it done for the country long term, if anything? Is the anthem a cherished part of Mexican culture that is still relevant in the 21st century, or does it belong to a time forgotten.

The country was still recovering from a nasty war with the USA, when Francisco Gonzalez sat down in that dark bedroom in 1853, and started working on his composition. The Mexican-American War was just two years long, ending in 1848 with the US as the victor, and Mexico was humbled and dejected by its outcome. In addition, there was a great deal of cultural rivalry in Mexico, and half of their territory was also lost to America (Upper California and Texas). The caste system, although not official, was still present and slavery had not yet been eradicated. The National Anthem emerged as a symbol for all groups to come together in unison, for the cause of their nation.

In 2004 the 150th anniversary of the Mexican National Anthem marked an event that symbolized just how important the composition is in Mexican culture. The government organized a nationwide singing of the anthem, from coast to coast; Mexicans living in other countries even participated once they were notified. No matter where a person of Mexican heritage happened to be in the world, they felt unity for those few minutes that they sang their nation's anthem.

The Mexican National Anthem is such a major part of the Mexican culture that it is even used as a sort of litmus test to see if a person is actually of Mexican descent. Two men were caught breaking into a building in Tokyo in 2006, for instance. Forged passports were produced by them, but the Mexican authorities were doubtful of their legitimacy. The men were tested in their ability to sing Mexico's National Anthem. Once it was discovered that they were unable to sing the Nation Anthem, they confessed to being citizens of Colombia, with fake passports.

A similar incident occurred on Mexican soil, in which a young Afro-Mexican man was stopped by police on suspicion of being an illegal immigrant from Nicaragua. The officers asked the man to sing the anthem, and when he sang it correctly, the police knew the young man had been honest, and allowed him to move on. It may seem a little unusual to use the national anthem as a means of proving or disproving a person's nationality, but in the absence of official documents in a country that is often fraught with illegal immigrants, it seems a good alternative.

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