Flag of Armenia: colors, symbols, meaning. What does the flag of Armenia look like?

Armenia is a very ancient country, with a difficult, one might say, heroic history. This nation is friendly and hospitable, but merciless to its enemies and persistent in its ability to achieve its goal. The flag of Armenia fully reflects both the basic qualities of its inhabitants and the history of the entire state.

Ancient national flags

Armenia as a state existed already in the 12th century BC. E. The country in those days was called Armé-Šumbria, and in this name the roots of the modern name are already visible. It is difficult to say whether there already existed in those times the flag of Armenia, and exactly how it looked then. The first banner, considered to be the very first one, whose images are on the church frescoes and in the ancient work "The History of Armenia", written by Favstos Buzenda in the fifth century of our era, is well known. Accurate information is the time of its creation - the fourth century, and the main background of the cloth - red. In addition, there is no doubt that the most ancient flag of Armenia was also the image of a two-headed eagle. Details of the appearance of this heraldic bird can not be established; Some scholars have come to the conclusion that he holds the bow with his paw, but others believe that the eagle squeezes some beast. Third researchers in general think that this image is just an ornament, although they recognize that the flag in those days had only what kind of Armenia - an open question.

One thing is certain: no other country on the Earth has such an ancient flag.

Cilicia flag

The subsequent mention of how the flag of Armenia looked, concern already 10-14 centuries of our era. In these centuries the kingdom of Cilicia flourished under the control of the Rubenid dynasty. The contraction to this historical date has changed. First of all, it became visually divided into three horizontal parts. The colors of the Armenian flag (red, blue, yellow: from top to bottom) in those days meant King Levon in alliance with two siblings. We can say that the Cilician banner served as a prototype for the present.

However, it is worth mentioning that at this stage of history the Cilician cloth was not the only one. In parallel, there were other types of it. The "alternative" Armenian flag remained red, as it was centuries ago, but the eagle's design was replaced by the image of the cross. Most likely, it was a sign of the faithfulness of the nation of the Christian religion and a symbol of its spread.

Further transformations of the Armenian flag

The fourteenth century brought a new shape to the banner. What flag did Armenia have at that time? To the former three colors the fourth one was added - an equal strip of pure white color. According to different opinions, it reflected either the stamina of the people, or spiritual purity, or devotion to Christianity. Most likely, the combination of all these semantic values will be closer to the truth.

Two centuries later the Armenian flag changed again. The white band went into oblivion, but at the very top of the panel appeared a pattern of crossed swords framed in a semicircle of white stars with eight rays. Just at this time Armenia fought with the Persians and Turks for their freedom - this struggle and symbolized the blades. The stars depicted the Armenian princes, who created an alliance to oppose the invaders.

Almost modern history

For a long time, a significant part of the Armenian people was forced to live far from their homeland. In a foreign land, the exiles organized strong diasporas and sacredly preserved the customs, history and traditions of their homeland. It is one of such diasporas - the French one - that the flag of Armenia owes its one more intermediate form. In this version, the banner still had three bands, but they became vertical. The colors also changed: now it was red - green - white. The steepness of the bands symbolized the rainbow, which was revealed to Noah, who descended from the ark (recall that most historians and religious scholars are inclined to think that the ark landed in the mountains of Armenia).

The colors of the new banner are also closely related to Christianity. White - as the color basis of all rainbow colors, and at the same time the purity and spirituality of the teachings of Christ. Red means Easter, green - Sunday, which follows it (it is these colors in the Armenian church calendar called Easter Sunday and what follows it).

The first republican banner

For the first time the Republic of Armenia became in 18 year of the twentieth century. It is interesting how the Armenian flag of that time looks: in fact, its appearance returned to the Cilician era. That is, the bands are again arranged horizontally, and the colors almost correspond to Rubenid. The only thing - yellow color gave way to orange. The main explanation for the replacement is a more harmonious color combination.

Soviet times

A separate republic this time, Armenia was short-lived. Two years later it became part of the Soviet Union - and its flag was again changed. The cloth became red again, but instead of all the images on the top left an abbreviation appeared. Until 1937 it looked like the SSRA, then it was replaced by the ASSR, and the ever-memorable sickle and hammer were added. It is worthwhile to clarify that the letters in the abbreviation were Armenian for the first and second time.

1952 brought new innovations to the shape of the flag of Armenia. First, from the bottom a blue strip was added as a designation for Lake Sevan. Secondly, a five-ray star was added to the hammer and sickle. In this form, the Armenian flag existed before the collapse of the Union.

The modern flag of Armenia

The current banner is a return to the first republican one. It exists in the usual form since August of the last century. The flag of Armenia, the photo of which is located next to it, is a three-line rectangle. True, now the symbolism of the banner has changed. The red part combines in itself several interpretations. First of all, it is Armenian blood shed in long liberation wars. The second meaning of color is Christianity, which for centuries has been defended by Armenians. And the third is the free Armenian mountains.

The blue strip represents the peaceful Armenian sky and clean rivers. Orange color reflects the main qualities of the people: creative creation, hard work of the nation, openness for everything new and progressive.

Disputes and doubts of Armenians

Not all citizens of the country approve the choice of tricolor cloth. Many believe that it would be more historically true to give preference to the flag of Alma, who accompanied Armenians for many centuries. Some are inclined to believe that the appearance of the modern banner is an artificial idea that does not reflect the history and inclinations of the Armenian people. At the same time, some radical citizens assert that, taking as a basis the Cilician red background, we must remove the Christian cross from it. They explain this in two ways: first, the church and the state are separated now. Some part of the population professes other religions, so that it is incorrect to depict the religious sign of only one church on the state symbol. And secondly, the age-old, eternal Armenian symbol is the sign of eternity. It is him, in the opinion of such Armenians, and must be portrayed on the flag.

It is difficult to say how fair such claims are. Only the scientist-historian, who is engaged in Armenia, can assess the correctness of such statements. So far, the flag of this country remains intact, and the whole world is known precisely in the tricolor version.

Another state symbol

Any country has not only a banner as its symbol. Necessarily, a coat of arms is needed, in which all the aspirations of the people, their history and basic principles will be expressed. Armenia is not an exception. The coat of arms and its flag have developed historically.

Like the Armenian banner, the emblem received as its basis the image that was the state symbol in the first republic.

This symbol consists of a shield with the image of Ararat and Noah's Ark on it. The four fields on which the shield is divided are marked by the greatest dynasties of Armenian rulers. Eagle with a lion, holding a shield, are symbols of pride, wisdom and nobility, and besides are kings of birds and beasts.

The torn chain under the shield indicates the newfound freedom, the sword - the willingness to defend it, the wheat - to diligence and the desire for peace. Well, the tricolor ribbon unites the coat of arms and the flag of the country.

The leading color of the symbol is golden; The fields to which the shield is divided are historically justified - they were used in the banners of those sovereigns whose kingdoms are conventionally designated by sections. Incidentally, the use of these flowers by the ancient rulers was another reason to choose them when developing the flag of this country.

It can be safely said that the Armenian emblem very clearly outlines the whole history of the state - both confrontation of the Turks, and battles for religious freedom, and the propensity of the inhabitants to peaceful coexistence.