Buryatia - a republic located in Transbaikalia, near the borders with Mongolia, on lands with an ancient and rich history, exists as an autonomous state entity for less than a hundred years.
The uniformity of state symbols of the Soviet period deprived many autonomies of the experience of creating their own heraldry, which has a national identity. The coat of arms of Buryatia, approved in 1995, was the first such attempt, which was not simple.
On the shores of Baikal
The peoples of Transbaikalia for a long time lived in the territories that were part of the Mongol Empire and were part of numerous nomadic tribes. After the annexation of the Baikal territories to Russia (the 17th century) and the Russo-Chinese border (1729), separate Buryat-Mongol tribes — the Khoris, Sartuls, Songols, Khongodors, Ehirit-Bulagates, and others — were separated. Based on them, the future Buryat began to form. people with their own language, customs and traditions.
After 1917, a turbulent process of national self-determination began among the Siberian and Transbaikal peoples, led by either white, red, or individual national or military dictators. After the final establishment of Soviet power in 1923, the Buryat-Mongol Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic was formed. After several administrative transformations in 1958, the Buryat Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic was formed as part of the RSFSR, which, according to the then practice, received a slightly modified coat of arms of the RSFSR as national symbols . The emblem of Buryatia differed from it by writing the name of autonomy under the name of the union republic and duplicating the slogan in the Buryat language.
New story
In 1990, the Declaration of Sovereignty was adopted in the capital of Buryatia, Ulan-Ude, and two years later a new name for this state entity, the Republic of Buryatia, was approved. After some time, work began on the creation of official symbols. An formed commission began to look for symbols that most fully reflect the national identity of the Buryats, their customs and the surrounding nature.
The coat of arms of the Republic of Buryatia, adopted by the parliament of the republic, the People's Khural, was recognized by deputies as fully in line with their purpose both in appearance and in symbolic meaning. The main elements of it were the ancient Soymbo sign, a symbolic symbol of the nature of Transbaikalia - mountains and waves, as well as the traditional ritual ribbon - hadak with the name of the republic written on it. All this was enclosed in a circle in the colors of the state Buryat tricolor - blue-white-yellow.
State Herald of the Master
According to the canons of heraldry, no inscriptions are allowed on the emblem, except for mottos. Moreover, for a state symbol it is incorrect to place an inscription with the name - the coat of arms should be a clear and memorable association with a particular people or an entire country and not need written explanations. Such comments were made by the Heraldic Council under the President of the Russian Federation, when the coat of arms of Buryatia was submitted for approval and entered in the State Heraldic Register. Another wish was the recommendation to give the state symbol of Buryatia a more familiar general form.
In 1999, the legislative branch of the republic introduced the recommended changes to the coat of arms of Buryatia. His description was supplemented by a silver heraldic shield on which the main symbols were placed, and the inscription with the name of the republic from the hadadka was removed. In this form, from January 1, 2000, the coat of arms of the Transbaikal autonomy was put into effect.
Soyombo and Hadak
The symbol crowning the coat of arms of Buryatia is a part of a complex ancient complex sign, which has Indo-Buddhist roots. Its name - soyombo - is derived from the Sanskrit word meaning "self-born". The full spelling of this symbol includes signs that mean the most fundamental concepts of the ancient Mongolian sages about the origin of man, about the rules, meaning and purpose of his existence.
The upper symbol of soyombo is a sign of fire, meaning dawn and rebirth, three tongues into which the flame is divided - these are three times of the existence of the people - past, present and future. Below are the ancient Mongolian totems - the moon and the sun, about which ancient legends narrate as ancestors: the month is their father, and the golden sun is the mother of all Mongols.
The lower part of the tricolor circle - the supporting element of the Buryat coat of arms - is encircled by a ribbon that has several names - zala, jalama, hadag or hadak. Silk (or from another fabric) ribbons are tied to the branches of sacred trees, they are presented as a gift at weddings and at any holidays, they are met and escorted by guests. The blue color of the Hadak is a symbol of harmony, tranquility and harmony, it is an embodiment of the cult of the Blue Eternal Sky.
Circle, Baikal and mountain peaks
The author of the main Buryat symbol was the artist A. A. Khorenov. Together with his scientific advisers, he explained the circle like the sun, the globe. This is the personification of the horseshoe - known in many nations as a talisman, as an amulet that brings happiness. The yellow color used in the coat of arms symbolizes a special branch of Buddhism - Lamaism - one of the main religions in Buryatia. White is peace, it is the unity of the whole people that the Republic of Buryatia treasures, it is peace and prosperity.
Symbols embodying the beautiful and majestic nature of Buryatia give special figurativeness and graphic expressiveness to the emblem of the Transbaikal Republic. These are wavy lines symbolizing the pearl of Russia, a lake that largely determines the life of the peoples living on its shores - Lake Baikal. Mountains - a familiar element of the Buryat landscape - are depicted on the coat of arms quite realistically, which is not accepted in heraldry.
Despite some deviations from the norms of herbality, the main symbol of Buryatia is listed in the State Heraldry Register under number 989.