Coat of arms of Andalusia

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The coat of arms of Andalusia (Spanish: Escudo de Andalucía) is the official national symbol of Andalusia, an autonomous community of Spain. It bears the Pillars of Hercules, the ancient name given to the promontories that flank the entrance to the Strait of Gibraltar.

[edit] Origin

The coat of arms sees its origin in an agreement made by the Assembly of Ronda in 1918. In article 3 of the Statute of Andalusian Autonomy, it states:

Andalusia will have its own coat of arms, approved de jure by its Parliament, in which the following legend shall appear: "ANDALUCÍA POR SÍ, PARA ESPAÑA Y LA HUMANIDAD" (Andalusia by herself, for Spain and for Humankind), taking into account the agreement adopted by the Assembly of Ronda of 1918."

The figure of the mythical Greek hero Heracles (Latin: Hercules), son of Zeus and the mortal Alcmena, appears between the columns. He is seen seizing and taming two lions, each representing the power of animal instinct, above the legend: "ANDALUCÍA POR SÍ, PARA ESPAÑA Y LA HUMANIDAD". An arc joins the two columns with the Latin inscription: "DOMINATOR HERCULES FUNDATOR". Many of these elements were adopted in the arms of the city of Cádiz.

According to Spanish writer and politician Blas Infante, the creation of the arms can in no way be seen as a meaningless invention, but as that of a series of modifications of traditional Andalusian elements. He is quoted as having said: "the Andalusian regionalists or nationalists do not come to invent. We had ourselves to limit simply to recognize, in this order, what we create for our city is in justification of our history ".

Other versions exist in addition to the official arms. The main difference is the motto, in that it is tied to a more nationalistic version, reading: "ANDALUCÍA POR SÍ, POR LOS PUEBLOS Y LA HUMANIDAD" (Andalusia by herself, for the towns and for Humankind), as it appeared in a rough draft of the Assembly of Ronda of 1918.

[edit] See also

Flag of Andalusia

[edit] References

Símbolos de Andalucía (Spanish). Web de la Junta de Andalucía. Retrieved on 2007-11-09.

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Autonomous communities	Andalusia • Aragon • Asturias • Balearic Islands • Basque Country • Canary Islands • Cantabria • Castile-La Mancha • Castile and León • Catalonia • Extremadura • Galicia • Community of Madrid • Region de Murcia • Navarre • La Rioja • Valencia
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