Nation and Memory in Eastern Europe Lecture 19 National symbols Week 2, Summer Term

Outline 1. What is a symbol? 2. National symbols 3. Case study I: National Flag and Coat of Arms 4. Case study II: Money 5. Conclusion

Symbol - Definitions Symbols are objects, characters, or other concrete representations of ideas, concepts, or other abstractions. a communication element intended to simply represent or stand for a complex of person, object, group, or idea

Symbols Material object Image Pattern Colour Sign Sounds Words Gestures

Symbols and meaning Symbols are in themselves meaningless Human beings give them meaning They have often several layers of meaning Importance of context in which symbol is used: can have different meaning in different places and different context Interpretations of symbols are not static, but can change Those with power (especially in official positions) have better chances to define the meanings of symbols than those with less power

Symbols and Identity/Community Can represent, invoke or imagine a diverse community Symbols condense identities Because of layers of meaning, symbols can have different meaning for different peoples Can unite people who have not much in common To unite large diverse communities it is often best when symbols are ill-defined, otherwise danger to exclude those who have a different understanding of its meaning

Impact of symbols Can evoke great emotion The more a symbol becomes associated with the identity of a group (for inclusion and exclusion), the greater is the potential for an emotive response an attack on that symbol is seen as an attack upon the group Defining of symbols is done through rituals, important symbols are associated with official ceremonies – to give them a sense of sacredness Large displays of symbols can give the impression of power – frequent use of symbols can also be a sign of insecurity

Outline 1. What is a symbol? 2. National symbols 3. Case study I: National Flag and Coat of Arms 4. Case study II: Money 5. Conclusion

National symbols Provide a strong statement of national identity Bear a special relationship to the nations they represent Distinguish the nations from one another Reaffirm their identity boundaries Karen A. Cerulo, ‘Symbols and the World System: National Anthems and Flags’, Sociological Forum, Vol. 8, No. 2 (June 1993), pp

Information Like other symbols, national symbols tell at one glance what kind of „product“ one is confronted with Identity Flags, anthems, national holidays and many other symbols have the function to create a feeling of “belonging“ Integration National symbols help to unite a nation, overcome religious, ethnic, social diversity Functions of National Symbols

Types of Symbolic Conflict Valuation contests Proprietary contests Innovation contests Expansionary contests Simon Harrison: ‘Four Types of Symbolic Conflict’, The Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute, Vol. 1, No. 2 (June 1995), pp

Symbolic Capital Reputation or Prestige A disguised, mystified form of economic capital Also a reflection of the group’s economic capital – can be converted into material wealth Pierre Bourdieu, The logic of practice (Cambridge, 1990)

Outline 1. What is a symbol? 2. National symbols 3. Case study I: National Flag and Coat of Arms 4. Case study II: Money 5. Conclusion

1863/ Now People’s Republic of Poland

Poland

Rejected Ukraine

Russia

Outline 1. What is a symbol? 2. National symbols 3. Case study I: National Flag and Coat of Arms 4. Case study II: Money 5. Conclusion

Mieszko I. Boles l aw I the Brave Casimir III. The Great Wladys l aw II. Jagie ll o

King Sigismund I the Old Wawel Castle courtyard forming background for eagle, and guilloche ribbon above

Ukrainian money 2007 Vladimir the Great Ivan Franko Yaroslav the Wise Mykhailo Hrushevsky Bohdan Khmelnytsky Taras Shevchenko Ivan Mazepa Lesya Ukrainka

Hryhori Skovoroda (1722 – 1794)

The fortress wall of Volodymyr in Kiev The Saint Sophia Cathedral in Kiev A church in the village of Subotovy The Holy Dormition Cathedral of the Kievo-Pecherska Lavra The Lviv Opera Theater The Building of the Verkhovna Rada (parliament) in Kiev

Landscape near Cherkasy, a kobzar and a guide boy The Entrance Tower of Lutsk Castle The building of Kyiv Mohyla Academy

Soviet rubles

The Millenium of Russia monument, St.Sofia’s Cathedral – Fortress Wall of the Novgorod Kreml Bridge, Yenisei River in Krasnoyarsk, Chapel – Krasnoyarsk hydroelectric plant Sculture at the Rostral Column, Petropavlosk Fortress in St.Petersburg – Former stock exchange

Sculpture on the portico of the Bolshoi Theatre, Moscow – The Bolshoi Theatre Monument to Peter the Great, ship and sea terminal in Archangelsk – Solovetsky Monastery Monument to Yaroslav I the Wise and chapel of the Yaroslavl kremlin – Church of Precursor in Yaroslavl

Monument to Yaroslav the Wise Yaroslav the Wise

Monument to Nikolay Muravyov-Amursky in Khabarovsk – Bridge of Amur

Conclusion A symbol is a sign which has further layers of meaning. In other words, a symbol means more than it literally says Symbols can unite large communities If a symbol becomes strongly associated with the identity of a group, the potential for an emotive response increases Symbols can become objects of conflict Governments and political elites tend to define and control the symbols The choice of national symbols often reflects the dominant view of national history