State Symbols

The national flag of the Republic of Kazakhstan is a rectangular piece of cloth of sky-blue colour bearing in its centre an image of the sun with 32 rays under which there is a soaring steppe eagle. A vertical strip with the national ornament pattern runs parallel to the flagpole. The images of the sun, sunrays, eagle and ornament pattern have the colour of gold. The width to length ratio of the flag is 1:2. The sky-blue flag bearing the aureate national ornament on the left side, an aureate sun and a silhouette of the soaring eagle in the centre decorates today administrative buildings in the Republic, waves over embassies of sovereign Kazakhstan in foreign nations, and it is planted near the UN building. It is now universally recognized as a symbol of freedom, independence, and sovereignty of our Republic. The core element of the flag is its colour. The light sky-blue colour is among these colours that the human race has been using from earliest times for it is one of the bright, expressive and pleasant ones. This is not by chance, for this colour prevails in nature. It is one of the seven sacred colours of the rainbow. This is the colour of the sky and water. Internationally, the policy of the nation which has raised a light sky-blue flag as a symbol of its nationhood should enjoy the benefit of greatest confidence and understanding. Thus, the pure sky-blue colour of our flag evidences the cultural and ethnic unity of the nation while conveying the message of the integrity of the nation. The sun is a source of life and energy that is why the silhouette of the sun is a symbol of life. The human is not everlasting. A human’s advent in the world and their exit from life is measured by time. For a nomad, time is determined by the sun’s motion. Sunrise and Sunset make one measure which is a day. As the rules of heraldry regulate, the silhouette of the sun is the symbol of wealth and affluence. Therefore it is not fortuitous that, under closer inspection, one can see that the sun’s rays on our flag have the shape of a grain as well, being the origin of affluence and well-being. The nomads’ world view attaches a special place to a steppe eagle, another name for a golden eagle. To image it on national emblems and flags of nations and ethnic groups that have inhabited Kazakhstan has a long tradition. In terms of symbolism, the silhouette of an eagle signifies state power, breadth and sagacity. For inhabitants of steppe, this is a symbol of freedom, independence, aspiration to a goal, to the sublime, and flight to the future. The eagle having great strength is capable of countering anybody who would obstruct the progress towards the future. The silhouette of an eagle arose from the aspiration of the young sovereign Kazakhstan to the heights of world civilization. Another element which attaches novelty and uniqueness to our flag is a strip running parallel to its flagpole and representing the national ornament pattern. Here we can see the Kazakh ornament pattern “koshkar-muiz” meaning “a sheep’s horns”. The respect of the flag means respect for the country, nation, and their history.
The national emblem of the Republic of Kazakhstan is an image of a shanyrak (the upper vaulted part of a yurta) on a blue background. It is from the shanyrak that sunrays-shaped uyks (arched supporting poles) radiate in all directions while the wings of mythical horses surround the uyks. At the bottom of the emblem there is an inscription “Kazakhstan”. The national emblem of the Republic of Kazakhstan consists of two colours: golden and sky-blue. The today’s emblem of sovereign Kazakhstan is a product of the effort and artistic explorations on the part of two well-known architects: Zhandarbek Malibekov and Shota Ualikhanov. The emblem has the form of a circle. It is the shape of a sphere that is regarded worldwide as the most perfect shape. Whereas a circle as the element being closest to this perfection is especially valued by nomads. A circle as an element of heraldry finds its application everywhere while it stands particularly high in oriental nomads’ esteem. This a symbol of life and eternity. The core element incorporating the main idea of our Emblem is the shanyrak, a circular roofing of the yurta cupola. The shanyrak is a symbol of family well-being, peace, and tranquility. It is a masterly, spectacular and beautiful fashion in which tindik has been depicted: tindik is a zenithal opening of a yurta and resembles the bright sun against the blue and peaceful sky. Arched poles (they are called uyk) radiating evenly from the centre across the blue space of the sky resemble the sun’s rays as a source of life and warmth. The authors have succeeded in solving the problem of depicting the kerege, i.e., sliding lattice framework of a yurta. The cross-shaped triple kildeushi of shanyrak symbolizes the unity of the three zhuzs (tribal unions) and which ensures its solidity. In doing so, in using the terms of heraldry, the authors convey a peace-loving nature of Kazakhs They call every nation of our Republic to come together under the common shanyrak and strive to develop into strong bearing constructions of our shared home – Kazakhstan. The following component of the emblem’s composition is represented by tulpars being depicted as golden-winged fantastic race horses with crescent-shaped horns. Tulpars have a long association with state symbols. There is a great depth of meaning and message in the silhouette of race horses, namely, the lion’s fearlessness, the falcon’s far-sightedness, the bull’s vigour, the doe’s agility, rapidity and plastique, and the fox’ craft and inventiveness when fighting against foes. The golden wings resemble sheaves of grain stalks, i.e., a sign of labour, affluence and material welfare. In the centre of the emblem there is a five-pointed star symbolizing that hearts and arms are open to representatives of all five continents. The colour gamut in the emblem consists of golden and sky-blue colours. The former corresponds to the ever-better and secure future of our nations. The blue sky is one for all nations in the world. Its colour in our emblem personifies our aspirations to peace, accord, friendship and unity with all the nations on our planet.