Flag of Somalia

The Flag of Somalia (Somali: Calanka Soomaaliyaa, Arabic: علم الصومال‎), also known as the Somali flag, is the official flag of the Federal Republic of Somalia. Adopted on October 12, 1954, it was designed by Mohammed Awale Liban. The flag was used for the nascent Somali Republic. It was originally conceived and serves as the ethnic flag for the Somali people.[1]

Somalia
UseNational flag and ensign
Proportion2:3
AdoptedOctober 12, 1954
DesignA single white five-pointed star centered on a light blue field.
Designed byMohammed Awale Liban

History

The flag of Somalia was created in 1954 during the transitional trusteeship period of the nation's history. It was personally designed by the Somali scholar Mohammed Awale Liban, after he had been selected by the Somali labour trade union to come up with a design in preparation for independence.[2][3] The flag was first used in the Trust Territory of Somaliland and the short-lived State of Somaliland, which united on July 1, 1960, to form the Somali Republic.

Characteristics
Somali woman wearing a Somali flag dress.
Somali women at a Khatumo State launch ceremony wearing the Somali flag.

As an ethnic flag, the five-pointed white Star of Unity in its center represents the areas where the Somali ethnic group has traditionally resided, namely Djibouti, Somaliland (former British occupied land), the Ogaden region in Ethiopia, the North Eastern Province in Kenya, and southern Somalia (former Italian colony). [4][5] However, it now officially denotes the sky as well as the Gulf of Aden, Guardafui Channel and the Somali Sea, which flank the country.[6]

The flag's blazon, or heraldic description, is: Azure, a mullet Argent.

The flag bears a strong resemblance to that of the short-lived Republic of West Florida and to the Confederate Bonnie Blue Flag.

Construction

The flag of Somalia can be reproduced using the following construction plan:

Construction sheet

Colours scheme
Blue White
RGB 65/137/221255/255/255
Hexadecimal #4189DD#FFFFFF
CMYK 71/38/0/130/0/0/0

Historical flags

The following are the flags historically used in the territory of present-day Somalia:

  • Flag of the Ajuran Empire (13th century–17th century)
  • Flag of the Adal Sultanate (1415–1577)
  • Flag of Italian Somaliland (1861–1946)
  • Flag of British Somaliland (1903–1950)
  • Flag of Italian Somaliland under British occupation (1941–1949)
  • Flag of Trust Territory of Somaliland (1950–1960)
  • Flag of British Somaliland (1950–1952)
  • Flag of British Somaliland (1952–1960)
  • Flag used by the Islamic Courts Union government (2006)
  • Flag as Described by the Transitional Federal Government from 2004-2012

See also
  • Flag of Somaliland
  • Soomaaliyeey toosoo
  • Qolobaa Calankeed
  • History of Somalia
  • Flag of Vietnam
  • Bonnie Blue Flag
  • Flag of the Republic of West Florida

Notes
  1. "Somalia Flag". World Atlas. Retrieved 6 April 2014.
  2. History of the flag
  3. Maria Costantino, The Illustrated Flag Handbook, (Gramercy Books: 2001), p.185.
  4. Znamierowski, Alfred. The World Encyclopedia of Flags. p. 222. ISBN 0-7548-0167-5.
  5. Talocci, Mauro (1982). Smith, Whitney (ed.). Guide to the Flags of the World. p. 131. ISBN 0-688-01141-1.
  6. "The World Factbook - Somalia". Central Intelligence Agency. Archived from the original on 15 September 2012. Retrieved 22 July 2012.

References
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