WHY IS THE EAGLE THE MOST POPULAR BIRD ?

It seems that from the dawn of time, the eagle has been considered THE KING OF THE SKY by nations around the world- from India to Europe.
This blog will try to answer the question why was the eagle chosen as the KING OF THE SKY by all nations and also show how the eagle has become iconic in all cultures, nations and religions.
In Asia, both Buddhists and Hindus worship Garuda, King of birds who's image is usually part man and part eagle. According to the Mahabharata, Garuda had six sons from whom were descended the race of birds.



In the picture above: Lord Krishna riding Garuda King of birds(Eagle).

It is amazing how many nations around the world have chosen the Eagle as their symbol of strength and pride. Not just in the various scriptures but also in image choosing it as the national symbol on the flag, on the coat of arms and the emblem.
It is quite stunning to look at the number game to get a true sense of the vast popularity and influence of the eagle in world cultures.
There are 6.7 Billion people in the world.
268.4 million people have a flag that has an eagle in it. Another 1260.4 Million people have it as either their emblem or their coat of arms.
For another 2.3 Billion people it is Holy connected to Asian traditions.
For another 2.1 Billion Christians it's associated with John the Apostle.

It is quite obvious that the eagle is both considered the king of the sky and the holiest of birds to most of humanity.
Below are more statistics:

FLAG/EMBLEM/COAT OF ARM WITH AN EAGLE:


NATIONAL FLAG WITH EAGLE:
Mexico 109.9 Million
Egypt 81.7 Million
Poland 38.5 Million
Austria 8.2 Million
Albania 3.6 Million
Montenegro .7 Million
Moldova 4.3 Million
Zambia 11.6 Million
Serbia 10 Million

TOTAL 268.4 Million people have a flag with an Eagle

If you add to it nations that have Eagles in their coat of arms:

EMBLEM/COAT OF ARM WITH EAGLE:

US 303.8 Million
Indonesia 237.5 Million
Nigeria 148 Million
Russia 141.37 Million
Philipinnes 96 Million
Germany 82.4 Million
South Africa 47 Million
Armenia 3 Million
Romania 22 Million
Ghana 18.4 Million
United Arab Emirates 4.6 Million
Jordan 6.2 Million
Iraq 28.2 Million
Syria 19.7 Million
Yemen 23 Million
Namibia 1.83 Million
Thailand 65.5 Million
Malawi 13.9 Million


TOTAL 1260.4 Million people have emblem/COA with eagle.


TOTAL PEOPLE WHO HAVE FLAGS/EMBLEM/COAT OF ARMS:
268.4 M + 1260.4 M = 1.528.8 Billion People

Which is over a fifth of the world population!

The Greek Orthodox flag has an Eagle on it. It is hard to find exact numbers of Greek Orthodox members in the world only of the Eastern Orthodox of which the Greek Orthodox is part of. There's an estimated:

225- 300 Million Eastern Orthodox Worldwide.

In Asian Culture the Eagle is holy and is part of the dragon with the Eagle claws.
Among the nations that give it great strength and meaning:

China 1300 Million
Korea 47 Million
Japan 127.3 Million

Total: 1474.3 Million


In India, in Hindu Mythology: Garuda is the king of the sky.
The gold-colored "Garuda" had a human body but the wings and face/beak of an eagle
It's a Sacred Bird for Hindus. Garuda is revered by Hindus as the vehicle of Lord Vishnu. Heroes who die heroic death are sometimes immortalized as Garuda.

Number of Hindus worldwide 900 Million people

Garuda is also holy to Buddhists and is the coat of arms of Thailand ( See below)

Number of Buddhist worldwide 376 Million people.