Adygeya (Russia)

Adygea^

Last modified: 2003-01-25 by antonio martins
Keywords: adygeya | urquhart (david) | star: 5 points (yellow) | stars: 12 | stars: 7 | arrows: 3 | tribe | peace | islam | life | freedom | sausryko | aquamarine | nart | circassian | stars: arch |
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• Presentation of Adygeya
• Discription of the flag
• History of the flag
• Flag laws
• Medium green variant
• Different star arrangement variation
• Coat of Arms

• Russia
• Russian subdivisions (list and clickable map)
• pre-Soviet Adygeyan flag 1917-1920
• Kuban Cossacks

• Flag and Arms of Adygeya: only shows pictures of the flag and arms.
  reported by Jorge Candeias

Presentation of Adygeya

(Note: You need an Unicode-aware software and font to correctely view the cyrillic text on this page. See here transliteration details).

• Name (english): Adygeya • (russian, short form): Адыгея | Adygeâ • (russian, long form): Республика Адыгея | Respublika Adygeâ
• Local official language: Cherkess (a.k.a. Circassian)
  
• Capital (russian): Майкоп | Maĭkop • (english): Maykop
• Area: 7 600 km² (≅2 900 sq.mi.) • Population: 446 500 inhabitants in 2000
• Status: Republic (Республика | Respublika) within the Russian Federation
• Federal District: Northern Caucasus • Economic region: Northern Caucasus
• License plate code: 01 • Ham radio code: AD • ISO 3166-2 code: AD
• Flag adopted on 1992.03.23 • Coat of arms adopted on 24.03.1992

Adyge is the name this people call itself. They are usually called Cirkassian. In fact Adygea is only a part of the Cirkassians live [the others being [Karachay-]Cherkessia and Kabard-Balkaria — ed]. From 1922 to 1991 Adygea was only a autonomus district, now it is a Republic.
Giuseppe Bottasini

Adygeya is a curious case of geography, even in the diversifed patchwork of the Russian Federation: It is a coastless enclave inside Krasnodar territory, with a multipedunculated shape — it is however made of only one contiguous area, whitout any enclave in or exclave of Krasnodar — although including some bits isolated by the river Kuban (at least according to the 1:200000 atlas Krasnodarskii~ krai~ / Respublika Adygea^ — Topografic^eskaa^ Karta, 1994, jointly published by both local governments).
António Martins, 16 Sep 1999

The flag is not new, because it was firstly drawn by David Urquhart, a Scottish scholar sent by British Government to substain Cirkassyan people against Russia. He created a flag, that is very similar to the current flag adopted on 23 March 1992. The 12 golden stars stand for the nine “aristocratic” tribes and the three “democratic” tribes, while the three arrows represents peace. The background is green and represents both Islam and life (or freedom).
Giuseppe Bottasini

12 gold stars correspond to 12 main tribes of the Adyghe nation. Three crossed arrows symbolize union of 12 Adyghe tribes.
Nikolay Khimenkov, 20 Mar 1999

The colour of the flag is in fact Aquamarine Green, a dark blueish green, so says the flag law. The colour given in art. 2 of the law is green. But not only the illustration to the law, but also the description of the details of the flag give deep aquamarine. The supplement to the law prescribes the size of each flag element and the colourshade. (Published in Sovetskaja Adigeja 63 of March 31st, 1992)
Ralf Stelter, 04 Mar 1999 and 27 Jun 1999

A friend of mine, just returning from a foot trip across Adygeya (from Krasnodar thru Maykop up to the southern border), reported to me that all adygeyan flags in sight were normal green, not (dark) aquamarine.
António Martins, 16 Sep 1999

In the 1830s, a Briton called Urquhart designed green flag with 7 stars above three crossed arrows on a green background. This flag was used by the Circassians in the fight against Russian occupation.
Stuart Notholt, 17 Sep 1995

Both the flags of Cherkess and Adygei are clearly evolved from this flag, a version of which (with 12 stars) being also used by the pro-German North Caucasian League set up during World War II.
Stuart Notholt, 17 Sep 1995

Constitution of the Republic of Adygei

Clause 59. The National flag of the Republic of Adygei is a rectangular green panel, with the pictures of twelve gold stars and three gold crossedarrows with the tips directed upwards. The ratio of the flag length and its width is 2:1.

Law of the republic of Adygei
On the National flag of the Republic of Adygei
March 24, 1992

Clause 2. The National flag of the Republic of Adygei is a rectangular green panel, with the pictures of twelve gold stars and three gold crossed arrows with the tips directed upwards. The length of the flag is 180 cm, the width is 90 cm.

The problem is to choose: either we respect word for word the text (only it matters), and the flag is green, or we respect the picture in the law and the flag is dark aquamarine (source: [cdd], 17th June 1992).
Pascal Vagnat, 31 Mar 1999

The colour given in art. 2 of the law is green. But not only the illustration to the law, but also the description of the details of the flag (published in Sovetskaja Adigeja No. 63, of March 31st, 1992) give deep aquamarine. For Adygeja the supplement to the law prescribes the size of each flag element and the colourshade!
Ralf Stelter, 27 Jun 1999

A friend of mine, just returning from a foot trip across Adygeya (from Krasnodar thru Maykop up to the southern border), reported to me that all adygeyan flags in sight were medium green, not (dark) aquamarine.
António Martins, 10 Sep 1999

In fact some flags are manufactured in a normal shade of green, and I know an institution in Germany who received an original flag in green, with a letter added: «note that the gren shade is wrong, it should be darker».
Ralf Stelter, 04 Mar 1999

This flag is listed under number 103 at the chart Flags of Aspirant Peoples [eba94] as: «Adyge Republic (Adygei) - North Caucasus, Russia, based on written description».
Ivan Sache, 15 Sep 1999

I know a variant with 3 stars are located on an arch.
Nikolay Khimenkov, 20 Mar 1999

The arrangement of the flag’s elements is prescribed in the same supplementary to the law as the colourshade. There is only one correct arrangement possible!
Ralf Stelter, 27 Jun 1999

In the coat of arms of the Russian republic of Adygei (adopted 24 March 1992) is shown Sausryko with a tourch in his right hand and riding a firehorse. His story is told in the national epic Nart of Adygei.
Jos Poels, 29 Nov 1995