THE HISTORY OF STATES SYMBOLS OF LATVIA
The research studies the historical development of the state symbols of the Republic of Latvia. Heraldic symbols were brought to the territory of modern Latvia by conquerors and crusaders in the early thirteenth century. Initially Latvian territorial symbols were connected with personal coats of arms of the most outstanding governors. The land having joined the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, its territorial symbols did not change. In the 1920s they generalized territorial coats of arms of Latvian lands. As it often happened to the CIS countries’ coats of arms, this “remake” has become the main symbol of the modern Republic of Latvia. The history of the state flag is more random and rich. The search for a single national flag has started in the second half of the nineteenth century and continues up to the present. The flag of the Republic proved to be more controversial than the coat of arms of the state. The research applied cultural and historical, ethnographic methods. It allowed us to determine common ethnocultural derivations of the peoples of Latvia and symbols which are inherent to them. The historical and comparative method, along with the historical and genetic method, allowed us to determine the state symbols development and mistakes in these symbols. The author concludes that the coat of arms of Republic of Latvia complies with its historical background and is made according to the rules of heraldry, although it has some minor flaws. Latvia is one of the few CIS countries that have small, medium and large versions of the coat of arms, which indicates the high development of heraldic culture in the state. The situation with the flag of the Republic is more complicated. The flag was based on unreliable sources, which led to controversial symbolism. The flag of Latvia is a symbol of the invading Crusader hordes rather than a symbol of the indigenous peoples of Latvia.