Symbole państwowe jako obiekt zainteresowania etnobotaniki – występowanie motywów drzew w symbolach państwowych krajów słowiańskich i ich znaczenie

Abstrakt

National symbols are important elements in in the awareness of whole populations nations and are therefore an interesting object for ethnobiological study. In this article we analyzed the issue of the occurrence of tree motifs in the state symbols of Slavic countries. We defined as national symbols: the coat of arms, flag, anthem, coins and banknotes of the country. Trees used to be important for Slavs, not only per se, but as the site of gods or their incarnations. There have been many beliefs, customs and traditions associated with these plants. The two most important trees in Slavic culture are oak and linden. It is interesting that these trees are also the most common of the studied symbols of Slavic countries. Trees do not appear on Slavic flags, rarely in anthems and on coats of arms, and most often on coins and banknotes.