Эстония Республикасының мемлекеттік гербі

National coat of arms of the Republic of Estonia

The coat of arms of Estonia is a golden shield which includes a picture of three left facing blue lions with red tongues in the middle, with golden oak branches placed on both sides of the shield. The insignia derive(s) from the coat of arms of Denmark, which ruled northern Estonia in the 13th 14th centuries and parts of western Estonia in the 16th 17th century.

The coat of arms of Estonia depicts a golden shield, which includes three slim blue lions passant gardant with red tongues in the middle and golden oak branches along both sides of the shield. The lesser coat of arms lacks these oak branches. The Estonian national emblem of three lions originate from the arms of Danish king Valdemar II who conquered northern Estonia in 1219. The lions became part of the greater coat of arms of Tallinn (Reval), the centre of Danish government in Estonia, and the fiefdoms (German: Ritterschaften) of Harria and Viru. In 1346, Denmark sold its Estonian dominion to the State of the Teutonic Order. The three lions, however, remained the central element of the greater coat of arms of Tallinn. In later centuries, the motif of the three lions transferred to the coats of arms of the Duchy of Estonia, the Estonian Knighthood, the Governorate of Estonia, and incorporated into the greater coat of arms of the Russian Empire. The Riigikogu (parliament) of the newly independent country officially adopted the national coat of arms of Estonia on 19 June 1925.