Coat of arms of Bosnia and Herzegovina

Last updated
Coat of arms of
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Coat of arms of Bosnia and Herzegovina.svg
Versions
Flag of Bosnia and Herzegovina.svg
The banner of arms, which serves as national flag
Armiger Bosnia and Herzegovina
Adopted18 May 1998
Shield Per bend: 1st Or, 2nd Azure seven mullets in bend Argent

The coat of arms of Bosnia and Herzegovina was adopted in 1998, replacing the previous design that had been in use since 1992 when Bosnia and Herzegovina gained independence. It follows the design of the national flag. The three-pointed shield is used to symbolize the three major ethnic groups of Bosnia, as well as allude to the shape of the country.

Contents

Historic arms

One of the early representations of coats of arms attributed to Bosnia come from the Fojnica Armorial, which was completed in 17th century. The Fojnica arms are shown upon a gold shield, two black ragged staffs are crossed in saltire with two Moor's heads surmounting the upper portion of each staff. Overall is a red escutcheon that was charged with an eight-pointed star and crescent. In the past centuries, European sources have attributed arms to Bosnia that were close or full analogue to this depiction. [1]

Coat of arms of the Kingdom of Bosnia Coat of arms of Kingdom of Bosnia.svg
Coat of arms of the Kingdom of Bosnia

The coat of arms of the Kings of Bosnia, who ruled from 1377 until 1463 over the area that is present-day Bosnia-Herzegovina and Dalmatia, consisted of a blue shield with six golden lilies displayed around a white bend, all within a gold bordure; the golden lily is the Lilium bosniacum , which is a native lily to the area. The crest is a plume of peacock feathers that sit within a coronet of lilies. The House of Kotromanić reigned until 1463 when the Ottomans conquered the region, ceasing then the use of the royal coat of arms in Bosnia. The heraldic display of the kings would later be the basis for the arms adopted by the republic in 1992. There are ancient artifacts that suggest that the Lilium bosniacum has been used as a symbol for Bosnia since the 7th century.

After Herzegovina and Bosnia were occupied by the Austrian-Hungarian Empire in 1878, both condominia received arms from the Empire. The heraldic achievement of Hrvoje Vukčić Hrvatinić served as inspiration, who was a fifteenth-century nobleman that ruled over the region as Grand Duke of Bosnia and Herzeg of Split. His armorial bearings displayed both a red armoured arm brandishing a sword and a red lion rampant upon a white shield, with two red bars running across the chief. Herzegovina would be given a red shield with a bare arm holding a broken lance for its coat of arms in this same fashion. The coat of arms of Bosnia would be gold with a red armoured arm issuing out of clouds, brandishing a sword. Though both condominia fell under the crown of Hungary, only Bosnia would be included in the greater arms of the Hungarian Kings.

In the nineteenth century, the nationalist movement that had risen against both the former Ottoman rule and contemporary Austro-Hungarian occupation temporarily revived the arms from the Fojnica armorial.

Coat of arms of Bosnia (9th century).svg
Fojnica Armorial
17th century. A similar coat of arms is shown in the Korenić-Neorić Armorial (1595).
CoA of Herzegovina under the Hungarian Crown.png
Escutcheon assigned to Herzegovina as a territory of the Hungarian Crown
late 19th century
Coat of arms of Austrian Bosnia.svg
Austro-Hungarian condominium of Bosnia and Herzegovina
1878–1918

Communist era

Emblem of the Socialist Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina during the Yugoslav period. Coat of Arms of the Socialist Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina.svg
Emblem of the Socialist Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina during the Yugoslav period.

The emblem, along with the flag, of the socialist Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina was adopted on 31 December 1946. The description of the emblem was similar to the other Yugoslav republics. The device had two crossing stems of wheat in front of scheme of a neighbourhood with two factory chimneys out of which there is smoke. Around the decorative branches and wheat, there is a red track that spirals around. At the top of the emblem is a red star with a golden frame. The red star symbolizes the socialism and communism of Yugoslavia at the time.

The device represents the industry Bosnia and Herzegovina had at the time. The factory chimneys show the industry of several important Bosnian, then Yugoslav, towns and their vital influence towards the economy. All of the Yugoslav republics had similar emblems, but Bosnia and Herzegovina was the only that did not portray nationalistic symbols, representing its multiethnic composition.

The national emblem of the Socialist Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina was exactly the same as was the previous device of the People's Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina and defined in its Constitution. This was the first emblem ever in the history of both the regions of Herzegovina and Bosnia that was specific to the entire modern country of Bosnia and Herzegovina. [2]

Modern arms

Coat of arms used from 1992 until 1998, taken from the arms of Tvrtko I of Bosnia. Coat of arms of Bosnia and Herzegovina (1992-1998).svg
Coat of arms used from 1992 until 1998, taken from the arms of Tvrtko I of Bosnia.

The coat of arms of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina was adopted on 4 May 1992 and is aesthetically similar to that of the Kotromanić dynasty. It had a blue background divided by a diagonal white line (called bendlet or riband in heraldry). The diagonal white line is supposed to symbolize the sword of Tvrtko and his might as a ruler. The coat of arms was designed in a hurry, right at the beginning of the Bosnian War, which lasted for three years. At the end of the war, there came uproar from the Bosnian Serbs arguing that the coat of arms solely represented Bosniaks.[ citation needed ] The international community, represented in Bosnia and Herzegovina through the High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina, was the instrument to solve the controversy. In early 1998, a commission for the flag change was created and the same year the current coat of arms was adopted in order to help alleviate the tensions among the country's various ethnicities.

Official description

The official description of the coat of arms is as follows: [3]

The coat of arms of Bosnia and Herzegovina is blue and in shape of a shield with a pointed end. In the upper right corner of the shield is located a yellow triangle. Parallel to the left side of the triangle stretches a row of white five-pointed stars.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fleur-de-lis</span> Stylized lily, heraldic symbol

The fleur-de-lis, also spelled fleur-de-lys, is a common heraldic charge in the shape of a lily. Most notably, the fleur-de-lis is depicted on the traditional coat of arms of France that was used from the High Middle Ages until the French Revolution in 1792, and then again in brief periods in the 19th century. This design still represents France and the House of Bourbon in the form of marshalling in the arms of Spain, Quebec and Canada, for example.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coat of arms of Croatia</span> National coat of arms of the Republic of Croatia

The coat of arms of the Republic of Croatia consists of one main shield and five smaller shields which form a crown over the main shield. The main coat of arms is a checkerboard (chequy) that consists of 13 red and 12 white fields. It is also informally known in Croatian as šahovnica. The five smaller shields represent five different historical regions within Croatia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flag of Bosnia and Herzegovina</span> National flag

The flag of Bosnia and Herzegovina contains a medium blue field with a yellow right triangle separating said field, and there are seven full five-pointed white stars and two half stars top and bottom along the hypotenuse of the triangle.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coat of arms of Armenia</span> Coat of arms of Armenia

The national coat of arms of Armenia was adopted on April 19, 1992, by resolution of the Armenian Supreme Council. On June 15, 2006, the Armenian Parliament passed the law on the state coat of arms of Armenia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flag of Equatorial Guinea</span> National flag

The flag of Equatorial Guinea was adopted on August 21, 1979. The six stars on the flag represent Equatorial Guinea's mainland and five islands. Under the rule of dictator Francisco Nguema the flag was modified and a different national emblem was used in it. After he was deposed the original flag was restored.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coat of arms of Serbia</span> National coat of arms of the Republic of Serbia

The coat of arms of the Republic of Serbia consists of two main heraldic symbols which represent the identity of the Serbian state and Serbian people across the centuries: the Serbian eagle and the Serbian cross. The coat of arms also features the Serbian historical crown; while unusual for republics, it is not unprecedented, as can be seen in coat of arms of numerous European countries with republican form of government.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coat of arms of Slovenia</span> National coat of arms of the Republic of Slovenia

The Slovene coat of arms is an emblem that consists of a red bordered blue shield on which there is a stylised white Mount Triglav, under which there are two wavy lines representing the sea and the rivers of the country. Above Mount Triglav, there are three golden six-pointed stars representing the Counts of Celje. It was designed in 1991 by Marko Pogačnik and adopted on 24 June 1991.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Red star</span> Symbol associated with communist ideology

A red star, five-pointed and filled, is a symbol that has often historically been associated with communist ideology, particularly in combination with the hammer and sickle, but is also used as a purely socialist symbol in the 21st century. It has been widely used in flags, state emblems, monuments, ornaments, and logos.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">West Herzegovina Canton</span> Canton in Bosnia and Herzegovina

The West Herzegovina Canton is one of the cantons of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The West Herzegovina Canton is in the Herzegovina region in the southwest of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Its seat of government is in Široki Brijeg, while other municipalities within the Canton are Grude, Ljubuški and Posušje. It has 94,898 inhabitants, of whom more than 98% are ethnic Croats. Economically, it is the most developed part of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Serbian cross</span> National symbol of Serbia

The Serbian cross, also known as the Firesteels, is one of national symbols of Serbia. It is present on the coat of arms and flag of Serbia. The cross is based on a tetragrammic cross emblem of the Palaiologos dynasty of the Byzantine Empire, with the difference in Serbian use being that the cross is usually white on a red background, rather than gold on a red background.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flag of the Croatian Republic of Herzeg-Bosnia</span>

The flag of the abolished Croatian Republic of Herzeg-Bosnia (1992–96) consists of three equal size, horizontal stripes in the pan-Slavic colours arranged in Croat tricolour: red, white and blue. In the middle is the coat of arms of the Croatian Republic of Herzeg-Bosnia stylised with a triple wattle at the top. In 1997 and 1998 the Constitutional Court of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina ruled its usage as a canton flag unconstitutional, since the symbols of cantons and municipalities cannot represent just one ethnic group.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Seal of Republika Srpska</span> Coat of arms in Bosnia

The Seal of Republika Srpska with the description: the flag of Republika Srpska and the Cyrillic letters "РС" ("RS"), the red-blue-white tricolor are in the center of the seal, twisted with the golden Oak leaves, a traditional pre-Christian symbol sacred to most Slavs. On the edge of the seal there is an inscription Republika Srpska. The open crown of Kotromanić is shown in the bottom of the seal and the seal itself is topped with a heraldic royal crown.

<i>Lilium bosniacum</i> Species of lily

Lilium bosniacum is a lily native to Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is also known as zlatni ljiljan and Bosanski ljiljan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Serbian eagle</span>

The Serbian eagle is a double-headed heraldic eagle, also known as the White eagle, a common symbol in the history of Serbian heraldry and vexillology. The double-headed eagle and the Serbian cross are the main heraldic symbols which represent the national identity of the Serbian people across the centuries, originating from the medieval Nemanjić dynasty. The eagle, defaced with the cross, has been used in the coat of arms of the Kingdom of Serbia from 1882 to 1918 and in contemporary coat of arms of the Republic of Serbia since 2004.

The national symbols of North Macedonia, as stated in the constitution, are the coat of arms, the flag and the anthem. After the independence of North Macedonia from Yugoslavia, the country made some changes in the national symbols. The flag was changed two times and today's flag includes an eight-ray sun on a red background, while the coat of arms from the Socialist Republic of Macedonia was retained, except the red star which was removed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Proposed coat of arms of North Macedonia</span>

The Macedonian lion is an unofficial symbol of North Macedonia. After the independence of the Republic of Macedonia from Yugoslavia, the lion was proposed as a coat of arms of the new independent state several times.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National emblem of North Macedonia</span> National emblem of North Macedonia

The national emblem of North Macedonia depicts two curved garlands of sheaves of wheat, tobacco leaves and opium poppy fruits, tied by a ribbon decorated with embroidery of traditional Macedonian folk motifs. In the center of the ovoid frame are depicted a mountain, a lake and a sunrise. The features of the national coat of arms contain a rising sun which symbolizes freedom, the Šar Mountains with its peak named Ljuboten or Mount Korab and the river Vardar, with Lake Ohrid. The emblem also contains opium poppy fruits; this poppy was brought to the area during Ottoman times in the first half of the 19th century. Until 16 November 2009, the emblem also depicted a socialistic five-pointed star in the top. This emblem had been in use since 1946, shortly after the republic became part of Yugoslavia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Emblem of Yugoslavia</span>

The emblem of Yugoslavia featured six torches, surrounded by wheat with a red star at its top, and burning together in one flame; this represented the brotherhood and unity of the six federal republics forming Yugoslavia: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia and Slovenia. The date imprinted was 29 November 1943, the day the Anti-Fascist Council for the National Liberation of Yugoslavia (AVNOJ) met in Jajce on its second meeting and formed the basis for post-war organisation of the country, establishing a federal republic. This day was celebrated as Republic Day after the establishment of the republic. The emblem of Yugoslavia, along with those of its constituent republics, are an example of socialist heraldry.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coat of arms of the Croatian Republic of Herzeg-Bosnia</span>

The Coat of arms of the Croatian Republic of Herzeg-Bosnia is the variation of the historical Croatian coat of arms in the form of a stylized Polish heraldic shield with triple wattle on top. It is bordered by golden lines.

Communist symbolism represents a variety of themes, including revolution, the proletariat, the peasantry, agriculture, or international solidarity. The red flag, the hammer and sickle and the red star or variations thereof are some of the symbols adopted by communist movements, governments, and parties worldwide.

References

  1. Sulejmanagic, Amer. "Signa bosniensia rediviva" (in Bosnian, English, and German). Retrieved 25 March 2021.
  2. Đorđević, Jovan. Ustavno pravo FNRJ, Izd. Arhiva za pravne i društvene nauke, Beograd, 1953., str. 427.
  3. Zakon o grbu Bosne i Hercegovine, Član 4