Hail Holy Queen
Sisters/Whoopi Goldberg Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴  Line by Line Meaning ↴Hail holy queen enthroned above
Oh Maria
Hail mother of mercy and of love
Oh Maria
Triumph all ye cherubim
Sing with us ye seraphim
Heaven and earth resound the hymn
Salve, salve, salve, regina
Hail holy queen enthroned above
Oh Maria
Hail mother of mercy and of love
Oh Maria
Triumph all ye cherubim
Sing with us ye seraphim
Heaven and earth resound the hymn
Salve, salve, salve, regina

Our life, our sweetness here below
Oh Maria
Our hope in sorrow and in woe
Oh, oh, oh Maria
Triumph all ye cherubim (Cherubim)
Sing with us ye seraphim (Seraphim)
Heaven and earth resound the hymn
Salve, salve, salve, regina
Alleluia

Mater amaterintermerata
Sanctus, sanctus, dominus
Virgo respice mater ad spice
Sanctus, sanctus, dominus
Alleluia

Our life, our sweetness here below
Oh Maria
Our hope in sorrow and in woe
Oh, oh, oh Maria
Triumph all ye cherubim (Cherubim)
Sing with us ye seraphim (Sweet Seraphim)
Heaven and earth resound the hymn
Salve, salve, salve, regina

Salve regina (wa, oh, oh)
Salve regina

Overall Meaning

The first stanza of "Hail Holy Queen" addresses the Virgin Mary with a repetition of "Hail holy queen enthroned above" followed by "Oh Maria," which is a reference to Mary as the mother of Jesus. The next line "Hail mother of mercy and of love" praises Mary for her nurturing and compassionate nature. The following three lines are an invocation to the celestial choir of angels to sing Mary's praises in triumphant song. The line "Salve, salve, salve, regina" is taken from a Latin hymn, which means "Hail, hail, hail, queen."

The second stanza repeats the praises and the invocation to the choir of angels. The second half of the stanza speaks directly to Mary, describing her as "our life, our sweetness here below," indicating that she is the source of inspiration for humankind. The next line "Our hope in sorrow and in woe" implies that Mary provides solace and comfort in times of distress. The last few lines of the stanza reiterate the call for the angels to sing Mary's praises, finishing with "Alleluia."

The Latin lyrics in the bridge ("Mater amaterintermerata," "Sanctus, sanctus, dominus," and "Virgo respice mater ad spice") are taken from medieval Catholic prayers and songs that pay homage to Mary. They mean "Mother, most amiable, most pure," "Holy, holy, Lord," and "Virgin mother, look to us," respectively. The last stanza is a repetition of the second with a slight variation, ending with the same exclamation: "Salve regina."

Line by Line Meaning

Hail holy queen enthroned above
We pay our respects to the queenly figure who reigns above all others

Oh Maria
We address the queenly figure as Maria

Hail mother of mercy and of love
We acknowledge the queenly figure as a merciful and loving mother

Triumph all ye cherubim
We call upon the cherubim to declare their triumph

Sing with us ye seraphim
We request the seraphim to join us in song

Heaven and earth resound the hymn
We believe that both heaven and earth are sharing in the musical celebration

Salve, salve, salve, regina
We greet the queenly figure with triple salutations

Our life, our sweetness here below
We dedicate our everyday lives and joys to Maria

Our hope in sorrow and in woe
We find solace and hope in Maria during difficult times

Triumph all ye cherubim (Cherubim)
We again request the cherubim to declare their triumph

Sing with us ye seraphim (Sweet Seraphim)
We ask the seraphim, whom we affectionately call 'sweet,' to sing along with us

Heaven and earth resound the hymn
We continue to believe that both heaven and earth are sharing in the musical celebration

Salve, salve, salve, regina
We once again greet the queenly figure with triple salutations

Mater amaterintermerata
We address Maria as an immaculate mother

Sanctus, sanctus, dominus
We exclaim holy praises to the Lord

Virgo respice mater ad spice
We ask the virgin mother to look upon us with kindness

Sanctus, sanctus, dominus
We continue to exclaim holy praises to the Lord

Alleluia
We conclude the song with an exclamation of praise and worship

Salve regina (wa, oh, oh)
We call out to Maria once more, this time in a more casual way

Salve regina
We conclude the song with a final greeting to the queenly figure

Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS

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