Symbols of Serbia

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The national symbols of Serbia are the symbols that represent Serbia and the Serbian people.

Official symbols

Type	Image	Symbol
National flag		Flag of Serbia The national flag of Serbia is a horizontal tricolour of red, blue, and white with the lesser coat of arms placed left of center. The first recorded use of the Serbian tricolour was in 1835.
Coat of arms		Coat of arms of Serbia The national coat of arms of Serbia was adopted in 2004 and is based on the original used during the Kingdom of Serbia (1882-1918).
National anthem	Bože pravde (Instrumental) Serbian National Anthem Problems playing this file? See media help.	Bože pravde The national anthem of Serbia "Bože pravde" (God of Justice) was first used by the Kingdom of Serbia (1882-1918). It was readopted in 2006 as the official anthem of Serbia.

Unofficial symbols

Type	Image	Symbol
Motto	Само слога Србина спасава	The phrase "Only Unity Saves the Serbs" (Serbian: Само слога Србина спасава / Samo sloga Srbina spasava) is often said to be displayed on the Serbian cross on the Serbian national coat of arms, in the form of four C-shaped firesteels (sr. "ocila"), which form an acronym of the four Cyrillic letters for "S" (written like Latin "C").
Symbol		The Serbian cross is based on the tetragramme, a Byzantine symbol, and is believed to have been adopted at least by the 14th century. It consists of a Greek cross, and four firesteels pointing outwards. It is alleged that the firesteels are acronyms for Only Unity Saves the Serbs.
Salute		The Three-finger salute is commonly used when expressing Serbian Orthodoxy.
National animal		The Gray wolf is greatly linked to Balkan and Serbian mythology and cults.[1] It has an important part in Serbian mythology.[2] In the Slavic, old Serbian religion and mythology, the wolf was used as a totem.[3] In the Serbian epic poetry, the wolf is a symbol of fearlessness.[4] Vuk Karadžić, 19th-century Serbian philologist and ethnographer, explained the traditional, apotropaic use of the name Vuk (wolf): a woman who had lost several babies in succession, would name her newborn son Vuk, because it was believed that the witches, who "ate" the babies, were afraid to attack the wolves.[5]
Floral emblem		The Plum It is a fruit tree which is known for Rakija production in Serbia.
National drink		Šljivovica (Plum brandy). Protected Designation of Origin (PDO).
Heraldic symbol		The Serbian eagle double-headed white eagle is depicted on the coat of arms of the Nemanjić, Mrnjavčević, Lazarević, Crnojević, Obrenović and Karađorđević, as well as others, and is used on the coat of arms and the state flag of Serbia.
Patron saint		Saint Sava is the founder and first Archbishop of the Serbian Orthodox Church (1219–1233). He is the patron saint of Serbia, and education in the country. He is also a patron saint in Republika Srpska, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
National tree		Oak is considered a sacred tree in Serbia and was depicted on the Serbian coat of arms between 1835-1882 and 1947-2004. Oak is used in the Serbian Christmas tradition of Badnjak.[6]
National monument		The Cathedral of Saint Sava is the largest Orthodox church in the world. The church is dedicated to Saint Sava. It is built on the Vračar plateau, on the location where his remains were burned in 1595 by the Ottoman Empire's Sinan Pasha. From its location, it dominates Belgrade's cityscape, and is perhaps the most monumental building in the city.
National art		The Kosovo Maiden, painted by Uros Predic in 1919, is the central figure in a Serbian epic poem by the same name.
National instrument		The Gusle is commonly seen in Serbian epic poetry.
National hat		The Šajkača commonly seen as part of the national costume of the Šumadija region, Central Serbia. Has its origin in the 18th-century Serbian river flotilla.
National footwear		The Opanak is part of Serbian national costume.
National dish		Ćevapčići are a well-known Serbian national dish.
National poetry		Serbian epic poetry is the national poetry, traditionally transmitted orally by the national bards (guslari, "gusle players"). Vuk Stefanović Karadžić (1787-1864), the father of the study of Serbian folklore and a major reformer of the Serbian language, collected and wrote down epic poems of the Serbs in the early 19th century.[7]

See also

• List of World Heritage sites in Serbia

References

• Symbols of Statehood

v t e National symbols of Serbia Constitutional Coat of arms Flag and colors Anthem Cultural icons Heraldry State decoration Crown jewels Serb Eagle Serbian cross Fauna and flora Wolf Eagle Plum Oak Serbian Spruce Cuisine Ćevapčići Gibanica Pljeskavica Šljivovica Monuments UNESCO Studenica Stari Ras and Sopoćani Gamzigrad Medieval Monuments in Kosovo Other Šargan Eight Cathedral of Saint Sava Belgrade Fortress Smederevo Fortress Subotica Town Hall People Patron Saint Sveti Sava Depicted on Serbian dinar Vuk Karadžić (Linguist) Petar II Njegoš (Poet) Stevan Mokranjac (Composer) Nikola Tesla (Inventor) Nadežda Petrović (Painter) Jovan Cvijić (Geographer) Đorđe Vajfert (Industrialist) Milutin Milanković (Geophysicist) Slobodan Jovanović (Intellectual) Names and codes Names of Serbia .rs .срб Unofficial Serbian epic poetry Three-fingers salute Mottos (Only Unity Saves the Serbs) National costume (Šajkača Opanak) Gusle Category

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