page_title: National emblem of Belarus
section_title: Legislation
hierarchical_section_title: National emblem of Belarus / Description / Legislation
caption_attribution_description: Беларуская: Пашпарт. Рэспубліка Беларусь. 2009 год. Першая старонка. Русский: Паспорт. Республика Беларусь. 2009 год. Первая страница. English: First pages of a Belarusian passport scanned by me.
context_page_description: The national emblem of Belarus features a ribbon in the colors of the national flag, a map of Belarus, wheat ears and a red star. It is sometimes referred to as the coat of arms of Belarus, although in heraldic terms this is inaccurate as the emblem does not respect the rules of conventional heraldry. The emblem is an allusion to one that was used by the Byelorussian SSR, designed by Ivan Dubasov in 1950, with the biggest change being a replacement of the Communist hammer and sickle with an outline map of Belarus. The Belarusian name is Dziaržaŭny herb Respubliki Biełaruś, and the name in Russian is Gosudarstvennyĭ gerb Respubliki Belarusʹ.
  Between 1991 and 1995, Belarus used a coat of arms, known as the Pahonia as its national emblem. The Pahonia was originally a symbol of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, of which Belarus had historically been a part.
context_section_description: The current law regulating the design and use of the Belarusian emblem was passed on July 5, 2004. Article 9 of Chapter 3 of Law No. 301-3 begins by describing the official drawing of the Belarusian arms and regulates on its proper design. Officially, the arms can be drawn in full colour, monochrome or using two colors. Article 10 states that the national emblem must be displayed at specified locations on a continual basis, such as the residences of the Belarusian leader, the chamber of the National Assembly and at governmental offices of national and regional levels. The emblem can also be used on documents issued by the government, including money, passports and official letterheads.
  The law also restricts the use of the emblem in other contexts—e.g. cities, towns or oblasts may not adopt a coat of arms or emblem using the national emblem either completely or in part. Furthermore, organizations not listed in the Law on State Symbols may only use the emblem by permission. The emblem can be used by both foreigners and citizens of Belarus, as long as the symbol is displayed with respect, although citizens may not use the state emblem on letterheads or business cards if they are not agents of the government.
  In addition to standard usages listed in the law, the emblem has been used in various other circumstances. The emblem is displayed, along with the national flag, at the beginning and the end of a video clip with the Belarusian anthem My Belarusy, regularly played on Belarusian television. Another use of the emblem is on ballot boxes and campaign mailings used during national and local elections. The emblem also appears on Belarus's border posts.
caption: Belarusian passport bearing the state emblem on the left. 2009
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