''Aq Bars'' (or ''Ak Bars'') ( tt-Cyrl, Ак Барс) is the emblem of

Tatarstan The Republic of Tatarstan (russian: Республика Татарстан, Respublika Tatarstan, p=rʲɪsˈpublʲɪkə tətɐrˈstan; tt-Cyrl, Татарстан Республикасы), or simply Tatarstan (russian: Татарстан, tt ...

. It is an ancient

Bulgar Bulgar may refer to: *Bulgars, extinct people of Central Asia *Bulgar language, the extinct language of the Bulgars * Oghur languages Bulgar may also refer to: *Bolghar, the capital city of Volga Bulgaria *Bulgur, a wheat product * Bulgar, an Ash ...

symbol translated as "White Leopard" or "

Snow Leopard The snow leopard (''Panthera uncia''), also known as the ounce, is a felid in the genus '' Panthera'' native to the mountain ranges of Central and South Asia. It is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List because the global population is es ...

", and has been in use since 1991 as the official symbol of Tatarstan. Historically, this symbol was used in

Volga Bulgaria Volga Bulgaria or Volga–Kama Bulgaria, was a historic Bulgar state that existed between the 7th and 13th centuries around the confluence of the Volga and Kama River, in what is now European Russia. Volga Bulgaria was a multi-ethnic state wi ...

and the

Khanate of Kazan The Khanate of Kazan ( tt, Казан ханлыгы, Kazan xanlıgı; russian: Казанское ханство, Kazanskoye khanstvo) was a medieval Tatar Turkic state that occupied the territory of former Volga Bulgaria between 1438 and 1552 ...

( Qazan) – predecessors of Tatarstan – as a state symbol. The snow leopard symbol comes from the totems of one of the

tribes – the

Barsil Barsils ~ Barsilts (Greek: Βαρσὴλτ ''Barsilt''; Old Turkic 𐰋𐰼𐰾𐰠 *''Bersel'' or ''Bärsil''/''Barsïl''; Old Tibetan: ''Par-sil''), were a semi-nomadic Eurasian tribe of Turkic linguistic affiliation. Barsils might be identified ...

. According to legend, the Barsils founded

Bilär Bilär (Tatar: Биләр) - 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. Th ...

. The creator of the current emblem is the artist Rif Zagri uly Fakhretdinev.

Historical coats of arms

The Russian coat of arms of

: a green shield with a silver walking

lamb Lamb or The Lamb may refer to: * A young sheep * Lamb and mutton, the meat of sheep Arts and media Film, television, and theatre * ''The Lamb'' (1915 film), a silent film starring Douglas Fairbanks Sr. in his screen debut * ''The Lamb'' (1918 ...

, holding a red

gonfalon The gonfalon, gonfanon, gonfalone (from the early Italian ''confalone'') is a type of heraldic flag or banner, often pointed, swallow-tailed, or with several streamers, and suspended from a crossbar in an identical manner to the ancient Roman ...

e, 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 The Kazan Governorate (russian: Каза́нская губе́рния; tt-Cyrl, Казан губернасы; cv, Хусан кӗперниӗ; mhr, Озаҥ губерний), or the Government of Kazan, was a governorate (a '' guberniya'') ...

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 (russian: Татарская Автономная Советская Социалистическая Республика; tt-Cyrl, Татарстан Автономияле Совет Соци� ...

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

References

Tatarstan

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

Historical coats of arms

See also

References