At the end of the first decade of the 18th century, during the reign of Peter I, the Vyatka province appeared on the map of the Siberian province. The role of its administrative center was assigned to the city of Hlynov. Eight years later he was reassigned to the Kazan province. In the 80th year, i.e. almost half a century later, when Khlynov received a new name - Vyatka, the eponymous governorate was formed. Thus began the current coat of arms of the Kirov region.
Vyatka governorship: coat of arms
The image of a bow with an arrow and a stretched bowstring became the main element of the Vyatka emblem. It first appeared on the State Seal of Tsar Ivan IV. The drawing served as the basis for the future coat of arms of the city. There were two options for it. The archer’s hand, half of which is hidden in the cloud, held the weapon taut or with a loose bowstring. In the manuscript reference book “Titular” presented to Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich, you can find the following illustration. The hand that emerges from the cloud holds a bow. In the space above is a small red cross. Partially, this looks like the modern coat of arms of the Kirov region. Description of state symbols is given below.
In late May 1781, the coat of arms of the city of Vyatka was officially approved. For a while, he also automatically served as the provincial emblem. An idea of what the symbol of the Vyatka province looked like then can be obtained after reading a special document. All elements - a hand with a bow and arrow, a cross above them - are located on the background of a golden shield. The publication entitled “Image of the provincial, viceroyal, college and all civilian uniforms”, dated 1794, at the mention of the coat of arms of Vyatka governorship, repeats the text of the 1781 document almost in one.
Differences that the ruler did not like
In the middle of the next century, Emperor Nicholas I for some reason did not want to approve the draft coat of arms submitted to him, which looked a little different. Against the background of a field sparkling with gilding, a small segment of a cloud of azure color appears on the left side in the center. A hand emerged from it, pulling the bow string, in which there is an arrow directed along the horizontal axis to the side opposite from the cloud. In the upper right corner is a cross. Above, as expected, the imperial crown is located, and from all sides and from below, oak branches with St. Andrew's ribbon are adjacent to the shield. The sleeve, bow with arrow and cross are dark red (scarlet) in color, and the crown and oak branches are golden. In early December 1856, a slightly modified version of the Vyatka title coat of arms was approved. The missing frame is the only difference from the original drawing.
So today's coat of arms of the Kirov region was modified. It was not much criticized by the rulers, so there were no special differences.
How the modern coat of arms of the Kirov region was created
Kirov region was formed on December 5, 1936, two years after the creation of the same name region. In post-Soviet times, for the first time, after a long break, the symbolism of the region was revived. This happened in 1995, after the regional Duma adopted a special law. In practice, he also did not differ from his "ancestor" from the previous century. The only nuance was the description of the military cross in the upper right heraldic corner (if in relation to the viewer - in the left). At each of its four ends, one ball was placed closely.
However, a curiosity happened - instead of writing "a cinque cross" (from the word "paws", or in the form of maple leaves), because of a typo, it turned out a "lacquered cross". Local lawmakers, as they say, "got out", coming up with a successful interpretation. Allegedly, the word is a derivative of a dialect from the distant past of the “lach” - a method or pattern.
Only 10 years later, in the new version of the Law on the Coat of Arms, they bothered to correct the mistake, the cross became already scarred. An arrow tucked into a bow is turned to the left in position relative to the viewer. This remained the coat of arms of the Kirov region, which can be observed at all important events of the region.
The semantic load carried by the components of the coat of arms of the Kirov region
Why does the hand appear from the cloud? The explanation is simple and quite logical - divine providence is connected with the cloud. The azure (blue) heavenly tint, the author seemed to want to endow this phenomenon with qualities such as virtue, truth and beauty. Gold color in all cases emphasized the desire for wealth and greatness. The dark red (scarlet) clothes testified that her master was a brave and courageous person. A token military scarlet cross served as a symbol of protection of the native land from enemies.
Kirov region has thirty-nine regions . Coats of arms of the regions are more likely to have yellow, green and red symbols. They depict a bow and arrow, a variety of animals and birds. Each symbol indicates the strength and development of the area, local residents honor these state signs.
Flag of the Kirov region
A separate clause of the Charter of the Kirov Region provides for its own flag. The right of each entity to have its own symbols is spelled out in the corresponding article of the Basic Law of the Russian Federation. Symbolism, first of all, strengthens citizens' loyalty to the traditions of the people, respect for their historical past, contributes to the peaceful coexistence of representatives of different nationalities living in this territory. Like the coat of arms of the Kirov region, this state symbolism has a bow with a stretched bowstring.
The width and length of the flag are correlated as two to three. It has the shape of a rectangle with three stripes. The upper white field seems to be the widest, because against its background in the center is a heraldic shield. This strip occupies three fourths of the entire area.
The rest of the space is evenly distributed between the green and blue stripes, one eighth of each. Modesty, pure thoughts symbolizes white color. A good mood, optimism contributes to the green color. He also indicates that the region is rich in forests.
Blue color is associated with honesty and fidelity, and the Vyatka River flows measuredly throughout the region . In this case, it not only connects two opposite shores, but symbolically unites all the inhabitants of the region.
The flag and coat of arms of the Kirov region is respected by local residents, they are used on important holidays and they are placed on important municipal buildings.