The European flag symbolises both the European Union and, more broadly, the identity and unity of Europe. It features a circle of 12 gold stars on a blue background. They stand for the ideals of unity, solidarity and harmony among the peoples of Europe. The number of stars has nothing to do with the number of member countries,
though the circle is a symbol of unity. The history of the flag goes back to 1955. The Council of Europe - which defends human rights and promotes European culture – chose the present design for its own use. In the years that followed, it encouraged the emerging European institutions to adopt the same flag. In 1983, the
European Parliament decided that the Communities’ flag should be that used by the Council of Europe. In 1985, it was adopted by all EU leaders as the official emblem of the European Communities, later to become the European Union. In addition, all European institutions now have their own
emblems. To mark the 30th anniversary of the decision by EU leaders to adopt the flag as an EU emblem, the 19 euro area countries are issuing a special commemorative coin. Following an online competition held in 2015 by the European Commission, citizens and residents of the euro area selected the design created by Georgios
Stamatopoulos, an engraver at the Bank of Greece. It comprises 12 stars that morph into human figures embracing the birth of a new Europe. Take a look at the winning design.History of the European flag
Commemorative euro coin: 30 years of the EU flag
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The "Bonnie Blue Flag" features a white star centered on a blue background. The flag was flown at the time of Georgia's secession from the United States in 1861, on the eve of the Civil War.
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Federal Republic of Somalia
National flag and ensign
|
2:3 |
October 12, 1954 (readopted in 2012) |
A single white five-pointed star centered on a cyan field. |
Mohammed Awale Liban |
The flag of Somalia (Somali: Calanka Soomaaliya, Arabic: علم الصومال), also known as the Somali flag, was adopted on October 12, 1954, and was designed by Mohammed Awale Liban. The flag was initially used within the Trust Territory of Somaliland[1] before being adopted by the short-lived State of Somaliland and the Somali Republic. It is an ethnic flag for the Somali people; the flag's five-pointed star represents the five regions in which Somalis reside.[2]
History[edit]
Beginning in the mid-19th century, areas in the Horn of Africa populated by Somalis were divided among Ethiopia, France, Britain, and Italy. The flag of Somalia was created in 1954 for the transitional trusteeship period of the nation's history. It was personally designed by the Somali scholar Mohammed Awale Liban, who was from the northern eastern side of Somalia after being selected to come up with a design in preparation for independence.[3][4] The flag was also used in the short-lived independent State of Somaliland between 26 June 1960 and 1 July 1960.
In Somaliland[edit]
The Somali flag is strictly prohibited in Somaliland.[5][6]
Characteristics[edit]
As an ethnic flag, the five-pointed white Star of Unity in its center represents the areas where the Somali ethnic group form the majority: Djibouti, Somaliland (former British protectorate), the Somali region in Ethiopia, the North Eastern Province in Kenya, and Somalia (Italian Somaliland).[7][8] However, the flag does not represent all the Somali regions anymore, going from an ethnic flag to the national flag of Somalia only. It now officially denotes the sky as well as the Gulf of Aden, Guardafui Channel and the Somali Sea, which flank the country.[9]
Somali woman wearing a Somali flag dress.
Construction[edit]
The flag of Somalia can be reproduced using the following construction plan:
Colours scheme[edit]
RGB | 65/137/221 | 255/255/255 |
Hexadecimal | #4189DD | #FFFFFF |
CMYK | 71/38/0/13 | 0/0/0/0 |
Historical flags[edit]
The following are the flags historically used in the territory of present-day Somalia:[10]
Pre-colonial states[edit]
Religious banner of the Isaaq Sultanate derived from an Adal Sultanate flag (1700s–1884)
Flag of the Ottoman Empire (1793–1844)
Flag of the Ottoman Empire (1844–1884)
Flag of the Khedivate of Egypt (1881–1884)
Italian Somalia[edit]
British Somaliland[edit]
Subnational flags[edit]
Federal member states[edit]
Somaliland
See also[edit]
- List of Somali flags
- Flag of Bosnia & Herzegovina
- Flag of Djibouti
- Flag of Somaliland
- Flag of Israel
- Flag of Kosovo
- Soomaaliyeey toosoo
- Qolobaa Calankeed
- History of Somalia
- History of Somaliland
- Flag of Morocco, a nearly similar flag
- Flag of Vietnam, a similar flag
- Bonnie Blue Flag, a similar flag
- Flag of the Republic of West Florida
Notes[edit]
- ^ "Somalia". www.fotw.info.
- ^ "Somali Embassy in Belgium – Somali Flag". 2014-06-11. Retrieved 2021-11-28.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
- ^ History of the flag
- ^ Maria Costantino, The Illustrated Flag Handbook, (Gramercy Books: 2001), p.185.
- ^ "Somaliland's Horn Stars band arrested over Somali flag". BBC News. 28 September 2015.
- ^ "Africa Live: Banned Nigerian athletes hold protest in Tokyo".
- ^ Znamierowski, Alfred (1999). The World Encyclopedia of Flags. p. 222. ISBN 0-7548-0167-5.
- ^ Talocci, Mauro (1982). Smith, Whitney (ed.). Guide to the Flags of the World. p. 131. ISBN 0-688-01141-1.
- ^ "The World Factbook – Somalia". Central Intelligence Agency. Archived from the original on 15 September 2012. Retrieved 22 July 2012.
- ^ "Somalia". www.worldstatesmen.org.
References[edit]
- Somalia at Flags of the World