Ukraine: Proposed Greater Coat of Arms

Due to certain events taking place in that part of the world, this project was done out of sequence, and dedicated to all people of Ukraine, fighting to make their dreams come true. This is my take on one of the proposed versions of Ukrainian Greater Coat of Arms. This version of the Greater Coat of Arms of Ukraine features a shield supported by a crowned lion from the Galician Coat of Arms on the left and a cossack in traditional dress, wielding a musket, the symbol of the Cossack Hetmanate on the right. It is crowned with the crown of Volodymyr the Great, symbolizing Ukrainian sovereignty, and has red fruits and wheat at the bottom.

Ukraine (Ukrainian: Україна) is a country in Eastern Europe. Ukraine borders Russia to the east and northeast, Belarus to the northwest, Poland, Slovakia and Hungary to the west, Romania and Moldova to the southwest, and the Black Sea and Sea of Azov to the south and southeast, respectively. It has an area of 603,628 km2 (233,062 sq mi), making it the largest country entirely within Europe. The territory of Ukraine was first inhabited at least 44,000 years ago, with the country being a candidate site for both the domestication of the horse and for the origins of the Indo-European language family. Ukraine has long been a global breadbasket due to its extensive, fertile farmlands. Additionally, the country has a well-developed manufacturing sector, particularly in the area of aerospace and industrial equipment. Ukraine is a unitary state composed of 24 oblasts (provinces), one autonomous republic (Crimea) and two cities with special status: Kiev, its capital and largest city and Sevastopol, which houses the Russian Black Sea Fleet under a leasing agreement. Ukraine is a republic under a semi-presidential system with separate legislative, executive, and judicial branches. Since the dissolution of the Soviet Union, Ukraine continues to maintain the second-largest military in Europe, after that of Russia, when reserves and paramilitary personnel are taken into account. The country is home to 44.6 million people, 77.8% of whom are ethnic Ukrainians, with sizable minorities of ethnic Russians (17%), Belarusians, Tatars and Romanians. Ukrainian is the official language of Ukraine; its alphabet is Cyrillic. Russian is also widely spoken. The dominant religion in the country is Eastern Orthodox Christianity, which has strongly influenced Ukrainian architecture, literature and music.

The state coat of arms of Ukraine (Ukrainian: Державний Герб України) or commonly the Tryzub (Ukrainian: Тризуб, "trident") is the national coat of arms of Ukraine, featuring the same colors found on the Ukrainian flag; a blue shield with gold trident, called the tryzub, which means "three teeth." It means the triune God on earth and in heaven. It appears on the Presidential standard of Ukraine. Blue colored tridents are considered to be irregular representation by the Ukrainian Heraldry Society.

The small coat of arms was officially adopted on 19 February 1992, while constitutional provisions exist for establishing the great coat of arms, which is not yet officially adopted. The small coat of arms was designed by Andriy Grechylo, Olexiy Kokhan and Ivan Turetskyi. It is a representation of the seal-trident of Vladimir the Great.

The trident was not thought of as a national symbol until 1917, when one of the most prominent Ukrainian historians, Mykhailo Hrushevsky, proposed to adopt it as a national symbol (alongside other variants, including an arbalet, a bow or a cossack carrying a musket, i.e. images that carried considerable historical and cultural and heraldic significance for Ukraine). On 22 March 1918, the Central Rada (parliament) adopted it as the coat of arms of the short-lived Ukrainian People's Republic.

During the Soviet period of 1919-1991 the state symbols were consistent with the Russian SFSR and the Soviet Union - Sickle and Mallet over the rising sun.