La Espero

La Espero
English: The Hope
L. L. Zamenhof, the author of La Espero.

anthem of Esperanto
LyricsL. L. Zamenhof
MusicFélicien Menu de Ménil
Adopted1891
Audio sample
Instrumental recording
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"La Espero" (Esperanto pronunciation: [la esˈpero], English: "The Hope") is a poem written by Polish-Jewish doctor L. L. Zamenhof, the initiator of the Esperanto language. The song is often used as the (unofficial) anthem of Esperanto, and is now usually sung to a triumphal march composed by Félicien Menu de Ménil in 1909 (although there is an earlier, less martial tune created in 1891 by Claes Adelsköld, along with a number of other lesser-known tunes). It is sometimes referred to as the hymn of the Esperanto movement.