Liepāja
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Heraldry of the World Civic heraldry of Latvia - Latvias ģerboņi/Latvijas heraldika |
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LIEPĀJA
Region : Kurzeme
Official blazon
Sudraba laukā sarkans lauva ar šķeltu asti, uzslējies pret zaļu liepu; abi uz tādas pašas pamatnes.
Origin/meaning
The arms were granted in 1925.
Liepaja was a village of the Livonian people at small river Liva (from Livonian "liiv" - "sand") and it was called Liva in the ancient time. It started to grow rapidly when the transit stage of Grobina port and the market were established here. Latvian inhabitants transformed the town name to Liepaja ("place of linden trees"). German inhabitants called it Libau.
In 1625 the duke of Kurzeme granted to Liepaja city rights and arms. The arms shows a linden tree as a symbol of city name and a lion as a sign that city belongs to Kurzeme Region.
 The seal of 1625 |
In the Russian Empire the city was called Libava. The design of arms changed slightly in the time. In 1925 the present design was confirmed.
In January 2015 Latvia was hit by a severe storm. This led artist Gvido Pētersons to the following cartoon:
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Literature : Latvias ģerboņi, 2008