<Tr> <Td_colspan="2"> <Ul> <Li> </Li> <Li> </Li> <Li> </Li> </Ul> </Td> </Tr> <Ul> <Li> </Li> <Li> </Li> <Li> </Li> </Ul> <P> "O Canada" (French: Ô Canada) is the national anthem of Canada . The song was originally commissioned by Lieutenant Governor of Quebec Théodore Robitaille for the 1880 Saint - Jean - Baptiste Day ceremony; Calixa Lavallée composed the music, after which, words were written by the poet and judge Sir Adolphe - Basile Routhier . The lyrics were originally in French; an English version was created in 1906 . Robert Stanley Weir wrote in 1908 another English version, which is the official and most popular version, one that is not a literal translation of the French . Weir's lyrics have been revised twice, taking their present form in 1980, but the French lyrics remain unaltered . "O Canada" had served as a de facto national anthem since 1939, officially becoming Canada's national anthem in 1980 when the Act of Parliament making it so received royal assent and became effective on July 1 as part of that year's Dominion Day (now known as Canada Day) celebrations . </P> <P> The Queen - in - Council established set lyrics for "O Canada" in Canada's two official languages, English and French . The lyrics are as follows: </P>

When did o canada became the official national anthem