Coat of arms of Nakong
| Coat of arms of Nakong | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Armiger | Republic of Nakong |
| Adopted | 7 January 1951, last revised 2 May 1973 |
| Crest | breaking through a cloud Argent and Azure, upon a Sun proper the Shangean characters NA-KONG |
| Blazon | Argent on water barry wavy in base proper a helm Gules, on a Chief Gules three garbs in fesse Or |
| Supporters | on the dexter a Shangean Dragon rampant Or unguled Gules, on the sinister a Gryffon segreant Argent unguled Gules and with wings erect Or |
| Motto | the country name is written upon a scroll in the position of the slogan |
| Orders | collar of the Order of the Resplendent Orchid |
| Earlier versions | File:Coat of arms of Nakong (1951-1958).png |
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The coat of arms of Nakong (Shangean: 内江国徽) is a principal national symbol of the Republic of Nakong. It depicts a shield with wheat garbs honouring Nakong's agricultural bounty and a red wheel on
Design
History
A coat of arms, comprising solely the shield of the 1951 coat of arms, was first granted to the Colony of Nakong by Estmerish royal warrant in 1923. It had previously been in unofficial use since the 1880s, when Governor Sir Andrew Farnley first proposed the symbol in a report to metropolitan authorities. This shield was then incorporated into the colonial flag, replacing a previous version that used a simple wave symbol.
Following the establishment of the self-governed Nakong Free State in 1951, the coat of arms was augmented by the addition of the griffin and dragon supporters, the sun breaking through the clouds, the collar of the Order of the South Seas and two mottos: one simply reading "Nakong" and the other reading "Let waters bring forth life"—a quote from Genesis 1:20 of the Sotirian Scriptures.
In the lead-up to independence in 1958, a debate erupted within the Self-Determination Congress about whether to replace the colonial-era symbol with a new symbol altogether or to make minor adjustments to remove overt Estmerish symbolism. While an anti-colonial faction led by William Wong Wai-nam, they were opposed by an Embrophilic group led by future Prime Minister Paul Chak Tin-ngai. Ultimately, SDC leader Harold Lam sided with Chak, reasoning that the arms are a better reflection of the diverse heritage of Nakong than a more Coian symbol would be.
Changes to the coat of arms included the removal of the gorged crown from the griffin to symbolize the end of Estmerish sovereignty, the replacement of the colonial Order of the South Seas with the republican Order of the Resplendent Orchid, and the replacement of the Estmerish flag in the chief by three wheat garbs representing Nakongese agriculture. The Sotirian motto was also removed due to its colonial and religious undertones, though the Parliament of Nakong was not able to agree on a replacement motto so the scroll was omitted entirely.
On Independence Day 1973, the coat of arms were slightly modified to place the Shangean characters for Nakong in the sun, in response to criticism by Paisha nationalists that only Estmerish was present on a principal national symbol.
Use
The coat of arms of Nakong is protected by state copyright under the National Symbols Act 1958 and unauthorized use of the arms is a criminal offence punishable by five years' imprisonment. Permission to use the coat of arms must be obtained from the Department of State for Language, Culture and Heritage.
However, there are no restrictions on the use of individual symbols in the coat of arms. The red wheel in particular has taken on a role as a symbol of Nakong in its own right, being associated with Paisha nationalism on account of not being a Shangean cultural symbol (unlike the dragon or the orchid). As a result, the red wheel is the official symbol of the Self-Determination Congress and included in the logo of the South Seas Herald-Advocate, Nakong's newspaper of record.
Other coats of arms
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Coat of arms of the Corporation of the Council of the City and Boroughs of Ning Chow