Emblems of the Soviet Republics

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The emblems of the constituent republics of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics all featured predominantly the hammer and sickle and the red star that symbolised communism, as well as a rising sun (although in the case of the Latvian SSR, since the Baltic Sea is west of Latvia, it could be interpreted as a setting sun), surrounded by a wreath of wheat (except the Karelo-Finnish SSR with a wreath of rye). The USSR State motto, Workers of the world, unite!, in both the republic's language and Russian was also placed on each one of them. In addition to those repetitive motifs, emblems of many Soviet republics also included features that were characteristic of their local landscapes, economies or cultures.

The emblems are often called coats of arms, but since they (deliberately) did not follow the rules of heraldry, they cannot be considered coats of arms. However, they all did follow the same basic pattern, a pattern which sometimes has led to the use of the term "socialist heraldry".

The table below presents final versions of the renderings of the Soviet republics' emblems prior to the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, as well as the arms of two republics that ceased to exist before that time. For comparison, national arms of present-day successor states of the Soviet republics are also shown. As can be seen, most Asian post-Soviet republics use arms based on or reminiscent of the Soviet-era emblems. Most European republics, on the other hand, reverted to their traditional pre-Soviet heraldic arms. Belarus used the traditional Pahonia as its coat of arms from 1991 to 1995 when it was replaced by a new emblem closely resembling the Soviet-era design. Additionally, the secessionist Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic (Transnistria), internationally recognised as part of Moldova, uses an emblem based on the emblem of the Moldavian SSR (see Coat of arms of Transnistria).

Republic Emblem Main article Republic-specific features Present-day national
coat of arms
Armenian SSR Emblem of the Armenian SSR.svg Emblem of the Armenian SSR Plants wheat, grapes Coat of arms of Armenia.svg
Coat of arms of Armenia
Landscapes,
geographic features
Mount Ararat[1]
Industry
Ornaments
Azerbaijan SSR Emblem of the Azerbaijan SSR.svg Emblem of the Azerbaijan SSR[2] Plants wheat, cotton Coat of arms of Azerbaijan.svg
Emblem of Azerbaijan
Landscapes,
geographic features
Industry oil drilling rig
Ornaments
Byelorussian SSR Emblem of the Byelorussian SSR (1981-1991).svg Emblem of the Byelorussian SSR Plants wheat, clover, flax Coat of arms of Belarus.svg
Emblem of Belarus
Landscapes,
geographic features
Industry
Ornaments
Estonian SSR Emblem of the Estonian SSR.svg Emblem of the Estonian SSR[3] Plants wheat, pine, spruce Coat of arms of Estonia.svg
Coat of arms of Estonia
Landscapes,
geographic features
Industry
Ornaments
Georgian SSR Emblem of the Georgian SSR.svg Emblem of the Georgian SSR Plants wheat, grapes Greater coat of arms of Georgia.svg
Coat of arms of Georgia
Landscapes,
geographic features
Caucasus Mountains
Industry
Ornaments Georgian ornament with a seven-pointed star from the pre-1921 Georgian coat of arms
Kazakh SSR Emblem of Kazakh SSR.svg Emblem of the Kazakh SSR[4] Plant wheat Coat of arms of Kazakhstan.svg
Emblem of Kazakhstan
Landscapes,
geographic features
Industry
Ornaments
Kirghiz SSR Emblem of the Kirghiz SSR.svg Emblem of the Kirghiz SSR Plants wheat, cotton National emblem of Kyrgyzstan.svg
Emblem of Kyrgyzstan
Landscapes,
geographic features
Tian Shan Mountains
Industry
Ornaments Kyrgyz embroidery
Latvian SSR Latvia SSR coa.svg Emblem of the Latvian SSR Plants wheat Coat of Arms of Latvia.svg
Coat of arms of Latvia
Landscapes,
geographic features
Baltic Sea
Industry
Ornaments
Lithuanian SSR Emblem of Lithuanian SSR.svg Emblem of the Lithuanian SSR[5] Plants wheat, oak Coat of Arms of Lithuania.svg
Coat of arms of Lithuania
Landscapes,
geographic features
Industry
Ornaments
Moldavian SSR Emblem of the Moldavian SSR.svg Emblem of the Moldavian SSR[5] Plants wheat, maize, pears, grapes Coat of arms of Moldova.svg
Coat of arms of Moldova
Landscapes,
geographic features
Industry
Ornaments
Russian SFSR Emblem of the Russian SFSR.svg Emblem of the Russian SFSR Plants wheat Coat of Arms of the Russian Federation.svg
Coat of arms of Russia
Landscapes,
geographic features
Industry
Ornaments Baroque cartouche
Tajik SSR Emblem of the Tajik SSR.svg Emblem of the Tajik SSR[5] Plants wheat, cotton Emblem of Tajikistan.svg
Emblem of Tajikistan
Landscapes,
geographic features
Industry
Ornaments
Turkmen SSR Emblem of the Turkmen SSR.svg Emblem of the Turkmen SSR Plants wheat, cotton, grapes Emblem of Turkmenistan.svg
Emblem of Turkmenistan
Landscapes,
geographic features
Industry oil drilling rig
Ornaments gillam detail from a Turkmen rug
Ukrainian SSR Emblem of the Ukrainian SSR.svg Emblem of the Ukrainian SSR[5] Plants wheat Lesser Coat of Arms of Ukraine.svg
Coat of arms of Ukraine
Landscapes,
geographic features
Industry
Ornaments Baroque cartouche
Uzbek SSR Emblem of the Uzbek SSR.svg Emblem of the Uzbek SSR[5] Plants wheat, cotton Coat of Arms of Uzbekistan.svg
Emblem of Uzbekistan
Landscapes,
geographic features
Industry
Ornaments
Republics that dissolved before 1991
Karelo-Finnish SSR
(1940-1956)
Emblem of the Karelo-Finnish SSR.svg Coat of arms of the Karelo-Finnish SSR Plants rye, pine Coat of Arms of Republic of Karelia.svg
Coat of arms of Karelia
(autonomous part of Russia)
Landscapes,
geographic features
Karelian landscape
Industry
Ornaments Karelian embroidery
Transcaucasian SFSR
(1922-1936)
Emblem of the Transcaucasian SFSR (1930-1936).svg Emblem of the Transcaucasian SFSR Plants Wheat, cotton, maize, rice, grapes
Landscapes,
geographic features
Caucasus mountains
Industry Factory, oil drilling rigs
Ornaments

References

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See also