Many national anthem lyrics focus on struggle and war between nations. Some, such as "The Star Spangled Banner," focus on a single battle or incident, like the War of 1812. Others stress the bravery, strength, and courage of the soldiers and sometimes the entire nation. Other anthems, such as Brazil's, focus on the beauty and magnificence of the nation. Many nations have incorporated other nations or near nations and those national anthems have disappeared. For example, Texas and California both had their own anthems prior to their incorporation into the United States. Frederick Risinger asks in this article how national anthems could be used to teach social studies. Here he recommends websites that he believes provide a tremendous amount of information about not only a country's national anthem, but often include interesting insight into the history, struggles to escape colonization, and relations with other nations, as well as the multiplicity of ethnicities, religions, and ideas that are represented within its borders. Religion is a primary or underlying theme in many anthems. Assignments and projects could be easily created using information found in the websites provided in this article.