Kazakhstan Observes State Symbols Day
Kazakhstan celebrated the Day of State Symbols on June 4th to honor its flag, emblem, and national anthem. Although the symbols were first approved in 1992, the constitutional law on the state symbols of Kazakhstan was adopted on this day in 2007, and the date has been celebrated annually ever since. To mark the occasion, the Kazakh capital organized over 600 events, including academic conferences, artistic and musical contests, flag distribution events, seminars, concerts, and parades. President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev congratulated his fellow citizens on his official Twitter account, emphasizing that it is the duty of every citizen and patriot to honor the state symbols. The national flag was created by Shaken Niyazbekov, and it features a blue canvas with a golden sun in the center above a soaring eagle with a vertical traditional ornament nearest to the flagpole. The national emblem was designed by famous Kazakh architects Zhandarbek Malibekov and Shot-Aman Ualikhanov, and it features a round crown at the top of the Kazakh yurt, a shanyrak. The national anthem was adopted twice in the history of independent Kazakhstan, first in 1992, then in 2006. The latter version is based on a popular patriotic song “Menin Kazakhstanym” (My Kazakhstan) written in 1956 by composer Shamshi Kaldayakov to the lyrics by Zhumeken Nazhimedenov. First President of Kazakhstan, Nursultan Nazarbayev, contributed to altering the original lyrics of the song.
