Czech national identity; medieval religious songs; Hospodine, pomiluj ny (“Lord, Have Mercy upon Us”); Buoh všemohúcí (“God Almighty”); Svatý Václave (“Saint Wenceslas”); Jezu Kriste, ščedrý kněže (“Jesus Christ, O Bounteous Priest”); Ktož jsú boží bojovníci (“You Who Are the Warriors of God”); musical symbol; Czechness in the music

This chapter explores how five medieval religious songs with Czech texts transformed into prominent musical signifiers of national identity in the nineteenth century. These songs have largely retained their ideological significance into the present. The following pages focus on the songs Hospodine, pomiluj ny (“Lord, Have Mercy upon Us”), Buoh všemohúcí (“God Almighty”), Svatý Václave (“Saint Wenceslas”), Jezu Kriste, ščedrý kněže (“Jesus Christ, O Bounteous Priest”), and Ktož jsú boží bojovníci (“You Who Are the Warriors of God”). These samples of medieval sacred music gradually shed their predominantly religious functions to become prominent symbols of Czechness in music. As such, they have been discussed by generations of Czech musicologists and critics. These songs reflect both medieval and modern Czech cultural history. In the nineteenthcentury, incorporating these songs into new works was associated with the rise of Czech nationalism, illustrating how modern ethnocentric Czech identity is rooted in ancient traditions dating back to the Middle Ages.This chapter presented the reception of prominent medieval songs from various perspectives. For many centuries, these songs have mirrored social and political developments in the Czech lands. In particular, the reception of these songs delineates the shift in the predominant modes of community identification among the inhabitants of what is now the Czech lands from a focus on religion, region, and the state to one centered on language and ethnicity. The widespread practice of repurposing these songs in later compositions gained prominence in the nineteenth century and continuesuntil the present day. The incorporation of these ancient Czech songs in newer composition remains, and undoubtedly will continue to be, an important technique through which Czech composers infuse their works with national identity.

This chapter explores how five medieval religious songs with Czech texts transformed into prominent musical signifiers of national identity in the nineteenth century. These songs have largely retained their ideological significance into the present. The following pages focus on the songs Hospodine, pomiluj ny (“Lord, Have Mercy upon Us”), Buoh všemohúcí (“God Almighty”), Svatý Václave (“Saint Wenceslas”), Jezu Kriste, ščedrý kněže (“Jesus Christ, O Bounteous Priest”), and Ktož jsú boží bojovníci (“You Who Are the Warriors of God”). These samples of medieval sacred music gradually shed their predominantly religious functions to become prominent symbols of Czechness in music. As such, they have been discussed by generations of Czech musicologists and critics. These songs reflect both medieval and modern Czech cultural history. In the nineteenthcentury, incorporating these songs into new works was associated with the rise of Czech nationalism, illustrating how modern ethnocentric Czech identity is rooted in ancient traditions dating back to the Middle Ages.This chapter presented the reception of prominent medieval songs from various perspectives. For many centuries, these songs have mirrored social and political developments in the Czech lands. In particular, the reception of these songs delineates the shift in the predominant modes of community identification among the inhabitants of what is now the Czech lands from a focus on religion, region, and the state to one centered on language and ethnicity. The widespread practice of repurposing these songs in later compositions gained prominence in the nineteenth century and continuesuntil the present day. The incorporation of these ancient Czech songs in newer composition remains, and undoubtedly will continue to be, an important technique through which Czech composers infuse their works with national identity.