РОССИЯ, ЕЕ НАЦИОНАЛЬНЫЕ СИМВОЛЫ. ГОСУДАРСТВЕННОЕ И ПОЛИТИЧЕСКОЕ УСТРОЙСТВО
Symbols of Russia — official and non-official
The national symbols of Russia are a part of the cultural heritage of the country which has given the country its national identity.
The official and non-official symbols play an important role in formation of a country and a nation’s image; they build up its recognition.
Symbols of Russia and Russians are quite diverse. There are only three official, i.e. authorized by law, symbols of the state — the flag, emblem and anthem. But there are a lot of informal symbols, which are often much more famous and popular.
At first official symbols:
The national flag of Russia is a tri color flag-white color which lies on the top, blue in the middle and red on the bottom. White stands for nobility and frankness; blue symbolizes loyalty, honesty, chastity and scarlet represents self-sacrifice, generosity and love. While some Russians believe that red means the land, blue stands for sky, and white symbolizes heaven.
The current Russian flag was adopted on August 21, 1991 just before the country became an independent state. Most historians trace the origin of Russia’s flag to Peter the Great. In 1699, out of hundreds of different flags, Peter selected the flag similar to the flag of the Netherlands — white, blue and red flag. His design was used as a Russian maritime flag for merchant ships and then it was adopted as the civil flag of Russia in 1883.
The two heads of the eagle stands for the two parts of vast Russian empire — European and Asian, which are believed to be an important part of the country of Russia.
There are three historical crowns of Peter the Great above the two-headed eagle (they are symbols of the sovereignty both in Russia as a whole and in its parts). The eagle holds in claws sceptre and orb as embodiment of State power and united state.
On its chest there is a horseman – Russian St. George – who is killing an evil snake with his spear. That is one of the oldest symbols of victory of Russia against all its enemies, symbol of the struggle of good against evil, light against gloom.
National Anthem of Russia
For a long time Russia had no anthem. The various church hymns and military marches were used to honour the Russia up to 1816, when the “Молитва русских“ («Prayer of the Russians») by Russian poet V. Zhukovskii was chosen as the national anthem.The second official anthem “Боже, царя храни“ was presented in 1833, on December 25th , when the nation celebrated the expulsion of the French from Russia. That anthem existed until the October revolution of 1917 and was replaced to the new anthem of the victorious proletarian revolution — «International» — in 1918.
In 1944, the national anthem of Russia was accepted. The music was composed by Alexander Alexandrov and the lyrics were written by Russian Federalist Sergey Mikhalkov.
After the collapse of the Soviet Union, in 1993, a government commission and President Yeltsin offered a new national anthem “Патриотическая песня“ («Patriotic Song») by M. Glinka. However this anthem was unpopular and didn’t inspire Russians. People preferred the old Soviet anthem instead of it.
1st stanza:
Russia, our holy country!
Russia, our beloved country!
A mighty will, a great glory,
Are your inheritance for all time!
Refrain:
Be glorious, our free Fatherland!
Eternal union of fraternal peoples,
Common wisdom given by our forebears,
Be glorious, our country! We are proud of you!
2nd stanza:
From the southern seas to the polar region
Spread our forests and fields.
You are unique in the world, inimitable,
Native land protected by God!
3rd stanza:
Wide spaces for dreams and for living
Are opened for us by the coming years
Faithfulness to our country gives us strength
Thus it was, so it is and always will be!
Non-official symbols of Russia
Non-official symbols are Matreshka, Valenki, Balalaika, Samovar, fur hats, Russian bear, Grandfather Frost and the Snow Maiden, Troika, Frost, roads and vodka.
Political System of the Russian Federation
The Russian Federation is a Presidential (or a constitutional) republic. The President is the head of the state and is elected directly by the people. In fact he has much power, he controls all the three branches of power. The President can even dissolve the Duma if he doesn't agree with his suggestions three times running. The President has his administration, but it's not part of the Federal Government. The President is involved in the work of the legislative and executive branches.
The Federal Assembly represents the Legislative branch of power. It's made up of the two houses: the Federation Counsil and the State Duma, which make laws. The Federal Assembly is also calld the Parlamrnt, but it's not its oficial name. Both chambers are headed by chairmen sometimes called speakers. The Duma consists of 450 deputies (one half is elected personally py the population, and the other half consists of the deputies who are appointed by their parties after voting). The members of the Federation Counsil are elected on a different basis. There are two representatives of each subject of the RF (89 subjects). Every law to be adapted must be approved by the State Duma, the Counsil of Federation and signed by the President. The President can veto laws passed by the Federal Assembly, but it can pass laws over the President's veto a two-thirds majority.
The Federal Government represents the executive branch of power. The President appoints its head, the Chainman of the Government, but the Dums must approve his appointment.
The juridical branch of power consists of the Constitutional Court, the Supreme Court and lower Courts. The responsibility of the Constitutional Court is to analyse the new laws to make sure they correspond to the laws of the state. The Constitutional Court has tte right to declare actions of the President, the Federal Assembly and the Federal Government unconstitutional. The Supreme Court is the higest instance for civil and criminal cases.
