Flag of Somalia

The national flag of Somalia was adopted on October 12, 1954, and was designed by Mohammed Awale Liban. The flag was initially used within the Trust Territory of Somaliland before being adopted by the short-lived State of Somaliland and the Somali Republic. It is an ethnic flag for the Somali people. The white five-pointed star represents the five regions in which the Somalis reside.

History

Beginning in the mid-19th century, areas in the Horn of Africa populated by Somalis were divided between Ethiopia, France, Great Britain, and Italy. Soon after the creation of the UN Trust Territory of Somaliland during 1950, the Somali Youth League persistently advocated for the creation of a national flag. This was rejected by Italian administrators of the Trusteeship until 1954, when a debate was opened in the territorial council. The SYL, being the most popular political organization in the country, initially sought to use their party's flag, but was rejected outright by rival parties. A deadlock ensued until it was broken by the Somali scholar Mohammed Awale Liban who suggested a different symbol from the ones proposed. Liban personally conceived of and designed the flag which was approved by the territorial council on 12 October 1954.History of the flagMaria Costantino, The Illustrated Flag Handbook, (Gramercy Books: 2001), p.185. A flag of the same design was also used by the short-lived independent State of Somaliland between 26 June 1960 and 1 July 1960.

In the Republic of Somaliland Public display of the flag of Somalia is strictly prohibited in the self-declared Republic of Somaliland since 1991. SSC-Khatumo, which occupies the eastern territory it claims, still uses the Somali flag.

Characteristics As an ethnic flag, the five-pointed white Star of Unity in its center represents the main five areas where the Somali ethnic group form the indigenous majority: Djibouti (former French colony), Somaliland (former British protectorate), the Somali region in formerly Italian Ethiopia, the North Eastern Province in formerly British Kenya, and Somalia (former Italian colony). It now officially denotes the sky as well as the Gulf of Aden, Guardafui Channel and the Somali Sea, which flank the country. The blue color of the flag was selected in tribute to the United Nations who helped to form the country of Somalia during its status as a trust territory from 1950–1960.

Colors

Sky blue White RGB 65/143/222 255/255/255 Hexadecimal #418FDE #FFFFFF CMYK 71/36/0/13 0/0/0/0

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

Pre-colonial states

Italian Somalia

British Somaliland

Subnational flags Federal Member States

Flag of Somalia

Bron en licentie