FEBRUARY 7, 2025 — The city of Kropyvnytskyi in Ukraine will remove elements of imperial symbolism from its coat of arms and flag following the results of a public survey, reports Suspilne Ukraine.
Serhii Yakunin, head of the city council’s press service, said that the survey was conducted from December 20, 2024, to January 20, 2025.
“A total of 586 people viewed the online consultation, and 178 residents participated in the survey. Of them, 102 voted in favor of changing the symbols, while 76 voted against,” Yakunin stated.
The city’s toponymic commission will now review an expert opinion from the Ukrainian Institute of National Memory and decide on initiating the process of developing new symbols.
According to the institute’s official statement, the depiction of a fortress on Kropyvnytskyi’s coat of arms and flag goes against Ukraine’s Law on Condemning and Prohibiting the Promotion of Imperial Policy and Decolonization of Toponymy, as it symbolizes Russian imperial presence in the region.
“Given these findings, the Kropyvnytskyi City Council is recommended to amend the city’s symbols (particularly the coat of arms and flag) by removing elements associated with Russian imperial policy,” the institute’s statement reads.
Additionally, the institute advised the city council to seek guidance from the Ukrainian Heraldic Society.
Historical Background on Kropyvnytskyi’s Symbols
The city’s flag, coat of arms, and small emblem were approved by the city council on February 28, 1996. They were designed by Vitalii Kryvenko, a distinguished architect of Ukraine who passed away four years ago, according to Oleksandr Chornyi, head of the regional branch of the Ukrainian Heraldic Society.
Chornyi explained that the red, black, and yellow colors on the coat of arms were inherited from previous city symbols.
“These are the key colors, along with the central figure—the outline of the fortress that marked the city’s origins. The golden field contains a forked cross, symbolizing the three rivers converging within the city—Inhul, Suhokliia, and Bianka. Over this, the outline of a fortress is superimposed, with a monogram of Saint Elizabeth at its center,” he said.
However, heraldists and historians have debated whether the monogram represents Saint Elizabeth or Empress Elizabeth of Russia, after whom the city was named in 1775.
