Why it represents the country
The lion has been the emblem of Bohemia since the 13th century, and it remains at the center of Czechia's state symbols. The Act on the State Symbols of the Czech Republic, dated 17 December 1992 and in force since 1 January 1993, describes both the large and the small state coat of arms. The small coat of arms is simply a red shield with a silver, double-tailed lion rampant, crowned and armed in gold. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs lists the double-tailed lion as the country's national symbol, although no law calls it a national animal.
The Bohemian lion's story reaches back to the country's medieval rulers. According to the 1996 handbook Czech State and Military Symbols, as quoted by Flags of the World, a lion first appears on a riding seal of 1213 belonging to Vladislav Jindřich, Margrave of Moravia, though its number of tails cannot be made out. The first documented two-tailed lion appears on the seal of Prince Přemysl, later King Přemysl Otakar II, and another account dates the introduction of the silver double-tailed lion to 1249. Why the lion has two tails is not known for sure: the Dalimil Chronicle says Emperor Otto IV granted the second tail in thanks for Czech help against rebellious Saxons in 1204, but no other historical source confirms this.
The lion also leads the full state coat of arms, adopted in 1992 and designed by the heraldist Jiří Louda. There, the lion of Bohemia fills two of the four quarters, beside the eagles of Moravia and Silesia. According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the lion signifies power and sovereignty. The lion even gives its name to the Czech Lion, the statuettes that symbolize the annual awards of the Czech Film and Television Academy.
About the animal
The lion is a large, muscular cat, and adult males are easy to recognize by their shaggy manes, which range in color from blond to reddish-brown to black. Females measure about 1.4 to 1.7 meters long and males about 1.7 to 2.5 meters, with a tail of 70 to 105 centimeters on top. Lions stand about 1 to 1.2 meters at the shoulder. Females weigh 122 to 180 kilograms, and males 150 to 260 kilograms.
Lions are the only cats that live in large social groups, called prides. A pride is built around related females and may include several to as many as 40 lions, along with one or more resident males. The females raise the cubs and do most of the hunting, going after large animals such as zebras and wildebeest, while males sometimes join in.
Much of a lion's day is spent resting: lying around can add up to 21 hours in a 24-hour period. In the wild, a lioness may live up to 16 years, but males rarely live past 12.
Lions live in a wide range of habitats, from open plains to thick brush and dry thorn forest. Today they are found across much of sub-Saharan Africa, while the Asiatic lion survives only in the Gir Forest of northwest India.
Conservation
The lion is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, and its 2023 assessment kept it in that category. That assessment used estimates of about 23,000 adult and subadult lions in Africa and about 670 in India. Lions are already extinct in North Africa and Southwest Asia, and in March 2025 IUCN's first Green Status assessment, which measures how far a species has recovered, ranked the lion "Largely Depleted".
The main threats to lions come from a shrinking living space. Human settlements, farming and road building are eating into their habitat and reducing their natural prey, which pushes lions toward livestock, and farmers often kill lions in return. Lions are also killed for trophies and for their body parts, and they are regionally extinct in 15 African countries.
Prague Zoo has worked to help the rare Asiatic lion. In 2015 it received three Asiatic lions from India, and when natural breeding did not succeed, the zoo's vets and a team from the Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research in Berlin carried out an artificial insemination in January 2019.
Fun facts
- The lion on Czechia's coat of arms has two tails, and nobody knows for certain why; a medieval chronicle's story of a gift from Emperor Otto IV in 1204 is not confirmed by any other historical source.
- A lion's roar can be heard up to 4.8 kilometers away.
- Czechia's best-known film awards are presented as statuettes of the Czech Lion.
Frequently asked questions
What is the national animal of Czechia?
The national animal of Czechia is the lion (a widely recognized national symbol, not set by law). The lion is a large wild cat of Africa and India, and a silver lion with two tails appears on Czechia's state coat of arms.
Which country has the lion as its national animal?
The lion is the national animal of Czechia. The same species is also the national animal of Belgium, Ethiopia, Kenya, Morocco and the United Kingdom.
Why is the lion the national animal of Czechia?
The lion is linked to Czechia because a silver double-tailed lion has been the emblem of Bohemia since the 13th century and stands on both state coats of arms described in the Act on State Symbols of 17 December 1992. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs lists the double-tailed lion as the national symbol.
Is the lion endangered?
The lion is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List as a species, a category kept in its 2023 assessment. That assessment used estimates of about 23,000 adult and subadult lions in Africa and about 670 in India.
Where does the lion live?
Open plains, thick brush and dry thorn forest in sub-Saharan Africa, plus India's Gir Forest.
Sources
- Zákony pro lidi (Czech legislation database). Act No. 3/1993 Coll. on the State Symbols of the Czech Republic.
- Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic (czechia.eu). About the Czech Republic.
- Flags of the World (FOTW). Bohemia (Czech Republic).
- Czech Film and Television Academy (ČFTA). Press release, 1 December 2025: voting on the Czech Lion nominations has started.
- Phys.org (AFP). Prague zoo hopes rare lion insemination sows seed for survival (January 2019).
- San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance. Lion.
- Smithsonian's National Zoo & Conservation Biology Institute. Lion.
- Animal Diversity Web (University of Michigan). Panthera leo.
- African Wildlife Foundation. Lion.
- Down To Earth. 'Largely depleted': IUCN's new Green Status assessment for the lion in Africa and India.
- Conservation status: IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
