THE PHENOMENON OF THE UKRAINIAN CHEVRON: FROM AMATEUR ART OF MILITARY SERVANTS TO A SYMBOL OF NATIONAL IDENTITY

Abstract

The article examines the phenomenon of Ukrainian military chevrons (shoulder sleeve insignia) as a unique instrument for returning to Ukrainian identity and narratives in the context of the contemporary conflict—the Russo-Ukrainian war of 2014–2026. The study explores the transformation of the creative language of Ukrainian artist- soldiers, considering chevrons not merely as a functional element of uniform but as a complex tool of national identification, historical continuity, cultural resistance, and decolonization. The methodological framework is based on an interdisciplinary approach, visual analysis of emblems, and historical-cultural and semiotic methods. Both official brigade insignia and personal patches of servicemembers are analyzed. Particular attention is paid to the grassroots origin of chevron symbolism. A significant number of contemporary official emblems of the Armed Forces of Ukraine originated as improvised sketches created by amateur servicemembers under the influence of personal wartime experiences, territorial affiliation, volunteer traditions, and collective values. These amateur designs circulated on social media, resonated with military units, and were later officially approved by the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in accordance with the “Methodological Guidelines” of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine. In 2025 alone, 163 new shoulder sleeve insignia were approved, demonstrating the dynamic nature of this process. Such a mechanism of democratizing symbol creation differs substantially from traditional hierarchical (top-down) practices of military heraldry in other countries and illustrates how an ordinary servicemember becomes a co-author of the national narrative. The study emphasizes the role of chevrons in restoring historical continuity. The integration of archetypal imagery, historical figures, folkloric motifs, and sacred symbols reflects an effort to revive national memory disrupted by prolonged processes of Russification. It is established that the creation of chevrons constitutes a form of collective creativity in which individual wartime experience is transformed into a visual code of shared values and meanings. At the same time, this symbolism performs functions of trauma processing, mobilization, and the formation of cultural memory. In contrast to previous studies (V. Karpov, O. Kravchenko, L. Nazarova, O. Seremulia, among others), this article proposes a systematic interdisciplinary analysis of the grassroots origin of chevrons as a socio-cultural phenomenon rather than isolated cases. The article concludes that the contemporary Ukrainian chevron is not only an element of military insignia but also an important cultural artifact reflecting processes of self- identification, social consolidation, and the struggle to preserve national subjectivity. It emerges as a living artifact of national revival, where the war for territory is simultaneously a war for identity, and soldier-artists restore the millennia-long continuity of Ukrainian presence on their land.