The Nicaraguan coat of arms was first adopted in 1823 as the coat of arms of Central America. It underwent several changes before the latest version was introduced in 1971, when the flag on which it features was officially adopted by Nicaragua (having been in unofficial use since 1908).
The coat of arms is triangular in shape, signifying equality. It features a rainbow to signify peace, a Phrygian cap (see below) to symbolise liberty, and five volcanoes to express the union and brotherhood of the five Central American countries (even though there are now seven of them). The triangle is encircled by the Spanish words Republica De Nicaragua – America Central in gold.
Wikipedia tells us that the Phrygian cap (a soft conical cap with the top pulled forward) was associated in antiquity with several peoples in Eastern Europe and Anatolia. In early modern Europe it came to signify freedom and the pursuit of liberty, through a confusion with the pileus – the felt cap of emancipated slaves in ancient Rome. Consequently the Phrygian cap is sometimes called a liberty cap; in artistic representations it signifies freedom and the pursuit of liberty.
Phrygia was the dominant kingdom in Anatolia – which is the Asian part of Turkey, also known as Asia Minor – from about 1200 to 700 BC.
Note that like the national emblem of Guatemala, Nicaragua's 'coat of arms' is not, in strict heraldic terms, a coat of arms, as it doesn't include a shield.
© Haydn Thompson 2017