Coat of arms of Somalia
Encyclopedia
The coat of arms
of Somalia
was adopted on October 10, 1956. The leopard
s which support the shield and the white star were also found on the arms used during the Italian administration
. Formerly, the arms of Somalia from June 8, 1919, featured a shield
divided horizontally by a wavy white line (Smith, 1980). The top half of the shield was blue with a leopard
in natural color surmonted by a white five-pointed star.
Coat of arms
A coat of arms is a unique heraldic design on a shield or escutcheon or on a surcoat or tabard used to cover and protect armour and to identify the wearer. Thus the term is often stated as "coat-armour", because it was anciently displayed on the front of a coat of cloth...
of Somalia
Somalia
Somalia , officially the Somali Republic and formerly known as the Somali Democratic Republic under Socialist rule, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. Since the outbreak of the Somali Civil War in 1991 there has been no central government control over most of the country's territory...
was adopted on October 10, 1956. The leopard
Leopard (heraldry)
The leopard or lion passant guardant is a frequently used charge in heraldry. It mostly appears in groups of three, which are positioned over each another.-Heraldic and zoological leopards:...
s which support the shield and the white star were also found on the arms used during the Italian administration
Italian Somaliland
Italian Somaliland , also known as Italian Somalia, was a colony of the Kingdom of Italy from the 1880s until 1936 in the region of modern-day Somalia. Ruled in the 19th century by the Somali Sultanate of Hobyo and the Majeerteen Sultanate, the territory was later acquired by Italy through various...
. Formerly, the arms of Somalia from June 8, 1919, featured a shield
Shield
A shield is a type of personal armor, meant to intercept attacks, either by stopping projectiles such as arrows or redirecting a hit from a sword, mace or battle axe to the side of the shield-bearer....
divided horizontally by a wavy white line (Smith, 1980). The top half of the shield was blue with a leopard
Leopard
The leopard , Panthera pardus, is a member of the Felidae family and the smallest of the four "big cats" in the genus Panthera, the other three being the tiger, lion, and jaguar. The leopard was once distributed across eastern and southern Asia and Africa, from Siberia to South Africa, but its...
in natural color surmonted by a white five-pointed star.