Flags, Symbols, and Currencies of Georgia
The flag of Georgia, commonly referred to as “Five Cross Flag,” is one of Georgia’s national symbols. This flag has a long history which dates back to the 20th and 21st centuries, known as the period of Georgian national revival. However, the flag was adopted as a national symbol in 2004, alongside the national anthem and coat of arms.
The national flag of Georgia is a white rectangle comprising a large red cross at the centers and touches all the flag’s four sides. On each quarter are the red Bolnur-Katskhuri or Georgian crosses. . The national flag of Georgia has a height to length proportion of 2:3. A cross a popular symbol which represent Christianity. White represents peace, which Georgians desired after years of political tension.
History of the Flag
The flag of Georgia was originally used as a banner during the period of the Kingdom of Georgia. It regained popularity in the 21st century during the Georgian national revival and was mainly used by the United National Movement. The flag was a popular symbol during the Rose Revolution, which led to the ouster of the government of President Shevardnadze. After the overthrow of the regime, parliament adopted the flag on January 14, 2004 as Georgia’s official national flag. Thus, January 14 is Georgia’s Flag Day and marked annually.
Historical and Other Flags of Georgia
Flag of the Democratic Republic of Georgia
Flag of the Georgian SSR
Flag of the Georgian SSR
Flag of the Georgian SSR
Flag of Georgia used from 1990 to 2004
Symbols of Georgia
National Coat of Arms of Georgia
The coat of arms is one of Georgia's national symbols. It is base on Georgian royal house coat of arms used in the medieval times and features St. George, the patron of Georgia. Georgia's coat of arms is a hereldic shield featuring two lions rampant, both of which support the shield. The shield containing the image of Saint George on a silver horse bearing a silver spear and striking a silver dragon. Mounted on top of the shield is the royal crown of Georgia, and below is a white ribbon displaying the country motto, "Strength is in Unity," in Mkhedruli script. There are purpure hereldic crosses on either ends of the ribbon.
National Anthem
- Anthem Title: Tavisupleba
- Music composer: Zacharia Paliashvili
- Lyricist: David Magradze
- Date of Adoption: 2004
Tavisupleba is the national anthem of Georgia. It was adopted in 2004 alongside other national symbols, such as national flag and national coat of arms following the succesful overthrow of the former govenment. The music is borrowed from "Abesalom de Eteri," Georgian opera, composed by Zacharia Paliashvili. The anthem's lyricist is David Magradze.
Tavisupleba (Georgian Latin script)
Čemi xaṭia samšoblo,
Saxaṭe mteli kveqana,
Ganatebuli mta-bari
Ċilnaqaria Ġmerttana.
Tavisupleba dġes čveni
Momavals umġers didebas,
Cisḳris varsḳvlavi amodis
Amodis da or zġvas šua brċqindeba,
Da dideba tavisuplebas,
Tavisuplebas dideba!
Freedom
Our icon is the homeland
Trust in God is our creed,
Enlightened land of plains and mounts,
Blessed by God and holy heaven.
The freedom we have learnt to follow
Makes our future spirits stronger,
Morning star will rise above us
And lightens up the land between the two seas.
Glory to long-cherished freedom,
Glory to liberty!
The Currency of Georgia is the Georgian lari
Georgia is a small country in the region where Europe borders Asia. The county’s currency is the Georgian Lari which is made up of 100 subunits called Tetri. The Lari replaced the Kuponi on October 2, 1995 under the leadership of Eduard Shevardnadze. The replacement ratio of the Lari to the Georgian Coupon was one to one million. This rate has been fairly stable to date.
The National Bank of Georgia commissioned a competition for the proposal of the current Lari sign in December 2013. On July 8, 2014, the bank’s governor announced the winning proposal to the public. The commission picked up the winner after considering the conception, design, its relative position in the Georgian alphabet, existing elements of the currency markers, how easy it would be to construct it, and the general observance of the commission’s recommendations and request
The base of the Lari sign is the letter Lasi of the Georgian script. The letter is arched and crossed with two parallel lines. The letter has a horizontal line to represent a leg. This line reinforces the monumental stability of the upper arched letter. The form of the letters is transformed to simplify it for easier use as the currency sign. This sign was included in the Unicode V8.0 released by the Unicode Consortium in June 2015.
Coins
The coins are composed of stainless steel and are issued in the denominations of 1, 2, 5, 10, and 20 tetri. Their edges are smooth and they were all first minted in 1993. There are two types of 50 tetri coins. The older version was minted in 1993 while the new version was first minted in 2006. The older 50 tetri coin is made of steel plated brass while the new 50 tetri coin is composed of copper-nickel.There are also 1 and 2 Lari coins. The 1 Lari coin is silver-colored and is made up of an alloy of copper and nickel. The 2 Lari coin has a gold colored inner ring made up of an alloy of copper, aluminum, and nickel. The outer ring is silver and is composed of a copper-nickel alloy. Both coins were first minted in 2006.
Banknotes
Polish Security Printing Works print lari notes. They are in denominations of 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 50, 100, 200 and 500. The notes are of varying thickness, color, and printing year. The common observation in these notes is that they do not have watermarks.
Georgian lari Banknote
Georgian lari Coin
Historical Currencies of Georgia
Before the Lari came into use, Georgians used the Maneti, Abazi, and Kuponi. The Georgian Coupon, or Kuponi, was unveiled as a replacement for the Russian Ruble in April 1993. The currency was made up of bank notes with no subdivisions. The Kuponi notes were in denominations between 1 and 1 million, with some peculiar notes of 3, 3,000, 30,000, and 150,000. The currency was abolished due to hyperinflation.
