Last modified: 2021-07-24 by rob raeside
Keywords: deface | scarlet | purpure | heraldry |
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Emblems
of all USSR republics
reported by Jarig Bakker, 06 August 1999
The same site, Emblems
of all USSR republics, at a new location
reported by Pascal Gross, 12 January 2000
In the USSR only SSRs and ASSRs had the right to the coats of arms
and flags. Krays, oblasts, autonomous oblasts and
autonomous okrugs (till 1977 called national okrugs) had no
flags and coats of arms. They used flags and coats of arms of the SSRs, in
structure of which they were. Cities and rayons also had not any flags.
Mikhail Revnivtsev, 19 October 2005
In 1936-1980ths the ASSR flags were “rare”. I think they were
flown only upon Parliaments and Governments of the ASSRs. In Moscow they
flew nowhere.
Victor Lomantsov, 25 October 2000
While I was in Russia, I questioned intensively several people about vex
apects of the Soviet society, and what I got about ASSR flags is very scarce
as they seem to be very seldom used. In Chuvashia,
where I lived, many people even didn’t knew that there was an ASSR flag, and
never saw it — though it was, as usual, almost identical to the
RSFSR flag. The latter, though, was also an infrequent
sighting, being the Soviet national flag the almost exclusively used flag in
most occasions (this may have been different in non-Russian republics).
António Martins, 24 October 2000
I was aware at the time that Mikhail Gorbachev had decided to let
Latvia, Lithuania
and Estonia fly their 1918 national flags, in
addition to their S.S.R. flags.
John Crosby, 23 May 2001
ASSR flags were identical to the respective SSR flags but
defaced with its name (complete or initials only) written across in
golden letters. Meanwhile, a oks, unlike SSRs and ASSRs,
didn’t have flags of their own.
António Martins, 11 March 2000 and 25 May 2001
Names of ASSRs on flags were usually written in “national” language
and in language of the republic of which the ASSR was part.
Victor Lomantsov, 21 December 2001
The flag of Russia was the only SSR flag
only with non-horizontal stripes, while the flag of
Byelorussia had the only one with both.
Steve Stringfellow and António Martins, 12 and 13 March 2000
The post-1949 Soviet flags scheme: Mainly red (scarlet), with distinguishing features for each republic’s flag; for republic’s autonomous subdivisions (only ASSRs), the republic flag with the appropriate inscription in golden letters. Soviet SSR flags had two shades of blue, as expected, considering they were Russian language based (the known "goluboĭ / sky blue vs. siniĭ / blue blue" issue):
Red (“scarlet”) main field: all.
Light blue:
Russia,
Ukraine,
Uzbekistan,
Kazakhstan,
Georgia and
Turkmenistan.
Dark blue:
Azerbaijan,
Latvia,
Kirghizia,
Armenia and
Estonia.
Green:
Byelorussia,
Lithuania,
Moldavia and
Tajikistan.
Plus white:
Byelorussia,
Uzbekistan,
Latvia,
Kirghizia,
Tajikistan and
Estonia.
Plus golden hammer and sickle:
all except Georgia
(which had red hammer and sickle).SSR flags (and most
Soviet flags containing red) were medium red
(aka scarlet, alyĭ, or simply krasnyĭ), not dark red
(aka purpure — purpurnyĭ or kropovyĭ). The word
"krasnyĭ" means simply red, regardless of the exact shade,
but in those rare Soviet/Russian flags using a darker hue this was/is
specifically stated. Likewise, a “dark” shade of yellow (golden)
was prescribed and used.
António Martins, 07 November 2000 and 10 May 2000
It should be noted that in some cultures, notably in Germany, golden
is sometimes rendered with a greenish hue, usually light greenish yellow,
but this is not so in Russia, where golden is usually rendered as dark
yellow or light orange.
António Martins, 28 January 2001
Names of ASSRs on Soviet flags usually were written in the local language
and in language of the “metropolis” — i.e., the
republic of which the autonomy was a part of.
Victor Lomantsov, 21 December 2001
On flags of autonomous republics (ASSR) in structure of the
RSFSR there could not be inscriptions on the
national languages located above of inscriptions in Russian language.
Absolutely authentically.
Mikhail Revnivtsev, 25 October 2006
Until the 1950s the abbreviation in the Russian language (and other
“Soviet” languages) were with dots between letters
(for example "C.C.C.P.", later "CCCP").
Victor Lomantsov, 21 October 2000
The exact face used on ASSR flags was one of Smith’s unanswered
doubts in the special number of The Flag
Bulletin dedicated to Soviet vexillology
[smi72]. For what is worth,
Sokolov shows some times serif and others sans
type faces on his articles, and there’s also the questions of case
(all upper case, capitalized plus lower case or capitalized plus small
caps), and abbreviation.
António Martins, 24 October 2000
I would not be surprised if it is determined that ASSR flags were produced
in very small amounts (at any given time only a couple of copies, used in
selected locations?), and thus the size, position, face, style and content of
the distinguishing inscription would be either unspecified legally or in
practice ignored, and would vary with the ad hoc opinion of the flag
maker…
António Martins, 24 October 2000
Many (all?) Soviet republics had these banners. Usually it was red
field with republican coat-of-arms and the name of republic. They had
gold fringe. I know about banner of Azerbaijan,
banner of Uzbekistan. I saw photos of
L. Brezhnev, leader of the Communist party, attaching a various awards
(Orders of Lenin etc) to these banners. I don’t know about any
official Regulation for these banners.
Victor Lomantsov, 09 January 2002
A similar flag was sent to me from Moldova
SSR. The flag is a 1:1 ratio, red background with green stripe, the only
exception is that the coat of arms is in color, located in the center.
Zachary Harden, 09 January 2002
I saw the mysterious red banner with
emblem of RSFSR too. For example, Yeltsin stood near this flag on inauguration
ceremony. May be it was some sort of banner (colour)
of RSFSR.
Victor Lomantsov, 09 January 2002
I am not at all surprised. They must have been popular, not the least
because they look much more “ceremonious” the the rather simple
(“boring”) Soviet flags.
Željko Heimer, 09 January 2002
The emblems of the ASSRs were similar to their appropriate SSR, but
with additional inscription in several languages identifying the ASSR.
Željko Heimer, 20 September 2001
Two republics in USSR had round Arms: Armenia
and Georgia.
Victor Lomantsov, 24 October 2000
Interesting ideas that pop up when comparing these 15 emblems, especially regarding the political atmosphere of the adoption time, the local heraldic traditions, and the more or less clumsy management of the delicate balance between nationalism and “internationalism” in the Soviet Union:
I think it shouldn’t be called coat of arms when it is not heraldic
arms, which these Soviet emblems are not. They may have the same purpose as
coats of arms, but they do not follow the rules of
heraldry — and that was made on purpose, because
the communists (wrongly) connected heraldry with the late
Emperor and the upper class.
Elias Granqvist, 01 November 2000
In fact they were emblems, because they did not follow the rules of
classical heraldry. But nominally (in Constitutions) they were «coats of arms»
(gerby). The first Soviet coat of arms (RSFSR,
1918) had a shield, motto etc. The “coat of arms” of
Ukrainian SSR had a shield too. But later Soviet
“coats of arms” became more and more “unheraldic”…
Victor Lomantsov, 01 November 2000
Exactly breaking of that rule made a strong political expression that
the Soviet wanted to express. The “new society” formed by the revolution
needed «new symbols», and adopted those parts of heraldry (conscious or
not) that suited the purpose while rejecting and changing what suited not.
What is important is that this “new heraldry” took it roots and still
today we can see the influences in symbols of states (and other corporate
bodies) all over the world. Only among the national coats of arms there are
easily found examples of shield-less coat of arms, mainly influenced by
Soviet “heraldry” (though, there are other reasons, too, why some countries
rejected the shield in their coats of arms).
Also, one can with more or less success, more or less artificially, suggest
that the shields «are there, only not so obvious». Like in the case of
Kazakhi SSR, the shield of Gules field might be
“seen” with edges being hidden behind the ears. Other
“coloured” shields might be seen in some other Soviet coats of
arms. The circular coats of arms might be considered
to be circular shields, in many cases traditional to those countries anyway.
But, indeed such theory must be very stretched for the examples of Baltic SSRs
(Estonia, Latvia
and Lithuania) or
Belarusian SSR coats of arms. It may be that
those last are more non-heraldic then others possibly also because these are
the countries with much stronger heraldic tradition then other countries of
the Soviet Union, and here maybe the “deheraldization” was to be most
practiced.
Željko Heimer, 02 November 2000
The SFSR status indicated that that republic
itself was a federation of several ASSRs (Autonomous
Socialist Soviet Republics), possibly also with
"non-ASSR" territory, so to speak, as in the case
of the Russian SFSR.
However, this was not linear, since at least in
recent times other republics of the Soviet Union
had ASSRs and where not SFSRs themselves. This is
the case of Azerbaijan
(with Nakhtchevan ASSR),
Georgia (with
Adjaria ASSR and
Abkhazia ASSR) and
Uzbekistan (with
Karakalpakia ASSR).
The Russian Soviet Federated
Socialist Republic remained the only SFSR since the
Transcaucasian SFSR split.
Jorge Candeias, 26 March 1999
In the 1920ths many autonomous republics in
RSFSR did not use the word "autonomous" in their
names. But they were really autonomous (not independent, not “full status
republics”). For example, Tatarstan,
Bashkiria etc. These republics until 1930ths used
the names SSR. Later, the “standard form” of the state name was introduced:
ASSR for autonomies, SSR for “full republics”.
Victor Lomantsov, 21 October 2000
a oks (previously, n oks — Soviet era names were
identical to the current, with "nacionalhnyĭ"
instead of "avtonomnyĭ" before 1977), unlike SSRs and
ASSRs, didn’t have flags of their own.
António Martins, 17 September 2001
Till 1936 in USSR kray means administrative-territorial unit, which
contains autonomous SSR. After 1937 in USSR Kray contains autonomous regions
or simple regions (for example, Primorsky Kray in the RSFSR or Tselinny Kray
in the Kazakh SSR). National districts (after 1977 — autonomous districts)
were included and into structure simply regions: into Region of Omsk, further
— into Region of Tyumen; into Region of Kalinin, into Region of Magadan,
into Region of Arkhangelsk.
Mikhail Revnivtsev, 07 October 2005
In the beginning of the 1920ies the autonomous republics
Dagestan and Kazakhstan
used the name "SSR" although they had an autonomous (ASSR) status.
Jens Pattke, 23 June 2001
