Of all the regions of Russia, Sakhalin is the only one that is located exclusively on the islands. It is located in the Far East and is a serious supplier of minerals, fish and seafood. What do the flag and coat of arms of the Sakhalin Region represent? Let's find out what its symbolism is about.
Region in the Pacific
Sakhalin Oblast is one of the easternmost Russian regions. It covers the island of Sakhalin, Seals, Moneron and the Kuril Islands. Its territory is washed by the Sea of Okhotsk and the Sea of Japan, which belong to the Pacific Ocean basin.
The border position of the region contributed to the fact that Japan and Russia more than once shared it among themselves. Some islands are still disputed by the Land of the Rising Sun. This is understandable, because the Sakhalin Oblast is among the leaders in oil, natural gas and coal production.
The richness of the animal world also does not go unnoticed. In local seas live: sea otters, seals, killer whales, sea lions, fur seals, crabs, sea cucumbers, crustaceans, squids, mollusks. Hundreds of species of commercial fish inhabit coastal waters, island rivers and lakes. Reindeer and various fur-bearing animals live on land, for example, sables, squirrels, and ermines.
Coat of arms of the region
The modern coat of arms of the Sakhalin Oblast was adopted in 1997. Although some of its elements, for example, volcanoes and background colors appeared in the Russian Empire. In the last version, the style has changed, new characters have been added.
The shield of the coat of arms of the Sakhalin Region is divided into three identical vertical stripes: the two extreme ones are painted white, the central one is blue. In the center of the composition is a golden vessel, turned to the right and sailing along the silver waves. This is a single mast ship Koc, which until the 19th century used Pomors.
Two hills are depicted on the sides on white stripes, from the vents of which there is red lava. They reflect the main feature of the region - its volcanoes. There are about 160 of them in the Kuril Islands alone, of which 40 are active and periodically erupted.
Flag
Unlike the coat of arms of the Sakhalin Region, its flag carries exclusively geographical information. It originated in 1995 and has no historical predecessors.
The flag canvas is painted in a blue tint, close to the color of the sea wave. In the center, the contours of the Kuril archipelago and Sakhalin Island are depicted almost as they look on the map. Only slightly changed their position. Objects are located at an angle of 45 degrees, and their upper edges are on the same line.
