( ) or Ak Bars ( ) is an ancient Bulgar symbol, which has served as the official symbol of the

Republic of Tatarstan Tatarstan, officially the Republic of Tatarstan, sometimes also called Tataria, is a Republics of Russia, republic of Russia located in Eastern Europe. It is a part of the Volga Federal District; and its capital city, capital and largest city i ...

since the dissolution of the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

in 1991. Its name is translated literally as , and it typically refers to the

snow leopard The snow leopard (''Panthera uncia'') is a species of large cat in the genus ''Panthera'' of the family Felidae. The species is native to the mountain ranges of Central and South Asia. It is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List because ...

. Historically, this symbol was used in

Volga Bulgaria Volga Bulgaria or Volga–Kama Bulgaria (sometimes referred to as the Volga Bulgar Emirate) was a historical Bulgar state that existed between the 9th and 13th centuries around the confluence of the Volga and Kama River, in what is now Europea ...

and the

Khanate of Kazan The Khanate of Kazan was a Tatar state that occupied the territory of the former Volga Bulgaria between 1438 and 1552. The khanate covered contemporary Tatarstan, Mari El, Chuvashia, Mordovia, and parts of Udmurtia and Bashkortostan; ...

( Qazan) – predecessors of Tatarstan – as a state symbol. The snow leopard symbol comes from the totems of one of the Bulgar tribes – the Barsil. According to legend, the Barsils founded

Bilär Bilär or Bilyarsk (; ) was a medieval city in Volga Bulgaria and its second capital before the Mongol invasion of Volga Bulgaria. It was located on the left bank of the Small Cheremshan River in Alexeeyevsky District of the Tatarstan. Its ...

. The creator of the current emblem is the artist Rif Fäxretdinov (Риф Фәхретдинов).

Historical coats of arms

The Russian coat of arms of

: a green shield with a silver walking lamb, holding a red gonfalone, divided by a silver cross, with a golden staff. File:Russian coat of arms of Volga Bulgaria.gif, The Russian coat of Arms of

File:Snow_Leopard_seal.png, A Russian seal, featuring the coat of arms of the Bulgarian king File:Казанская эмблема, царский титулярник, 1672.jpg, Seal of the Kazan kingdom from the royal titular book of 1672. File:Coat of arms of Kazan Governorate 1856.svg,

Kazan Governorate Kazan Governorate was an administrative-territorial unit ('' guberniya'') of the Tsardom of Russia, the Russian Empire, and the Russian SFSR from 1708 to 1920, with its capital in Kazan. History Kazan Governorate, together with seven other ...

1856-1920 File:Emblem of the Tatar ASSR (1920-1926).jpg, The emblem of the

Tatar Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic The Tatar Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic, abbreviated as Tatar ASSR or TASSR, was an Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republics, autonomous republic of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic, Russian SFSR. The resolution for its crea ...

1920-1926 File:ТАССР 1937.jpg, The emblem of the

1937-1978 File:Coat of Arms of Tatarstan ASSR.png, The emblem of the

1978-1990 File:Татарская ССР герб 1991.png, Proposed coat of arms for the Tatar Soviet Socialist Republic 1991

References

Tatarstan

Tatarstan Tatarstan, officially the Republic of Tatarstan, sometimes also called Tataria, is a Republics of Russia, republic of Russia located in Eastern Europe. It is a part of the Volga Federal District; and its capital city, capital and largest city i ...

Heraldic beasts Coats of arms with leopards {{Heraldry-stub

Historical coats of arms

See also

References