The flag of Bolivia is the

national flag A national flag is a flag that represents and symbolizes a given nation. It is flown by the government of that nation, but usually can also be flown by its citizens. A national flag is typically designed with specific meanings for its colours a ...

of the

Plurinational State of Bolivia , image_flag = Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg , flag_alt = Horizontal tricolor (red, yellow, and green from top to bottom) with the coat of arms of Bolivia in the center , flag_alt2 = 7 × 7 square p ...

. It was originally adopted in 1851. The state and war flag is a horizontal tricolor of red, yellow and green with the Bolivian coat of arms in the center. According to one source, the red stands for Bolivia's brave soldiers, while the green symbolizes

fertility Fertility is the capability to produce offspring through reproduction following the onset of sexual maturity. The fertility rate is the average number of children born by a female during her lifetime and is quantified demographically. Ferti ...

and yellow the nation's mineral deposits. Bolivian flag

Since 2009 the Wiphala also holds the status of ''dual flag'' in the country. According to the revised

Constitution of Bolivia The current Constitution of Bolivia ( es, Constitución Política del Estado; literally, the ''Political Constitution of the State'') came into effect on 7 February 2009 when it was promulgated by President Evo Morales, after being approved in ...

of 2009, the Wiphala is considered a national symbol of Bolivia (along with the flag, national anthem,

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldic visual design on an escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central element of the full heraldic achievement, which in its ...

, the cockade; kantuta flower and patujú flower). Despite its landlocked status, Bolivia has a naval ensign used by navy vessels on rivers and lakes. It consists of a blue field with the state flag in the

canton Canton may refer to: Administrative division terminology * Canton (administrative division), territorial/administrative division in some countries, notably Switzerland * Township (Canada), known as ''canton'' in Canadian French Arts and ente ...

bordered by nine small yellow five-pointed stars, with a larger yellow five-pointed star in the fly. The nine small stars represent the nine

departments of Bolivia Bolivia is a unitary state consisting of nine departments ( es, departamentos). Departments are the primary subdivisions of Bolivia, and possess certain rights under the Constitution of Bolivia. Each department is represented in the Plurinational ...

, and the larger star the nation's right to access the sea (access that it lost in 1884 in the War of the Pacific).

Description

Design and dimensions

The national flag of Bolivia is described as a tricolor rectangle, with the colors red, yellow and green, in a ratio of 1:1:1, meaning three horizontal bands, with the red on the superior part occupying a third of the flag's width, yellow in the middle band using the same width, and green in the inferior part, using the last third. The dimensions of the flag had not been defined since its adoption in 1851. Supreme Decree No. 27630 of 2004 finally established that the size of the national flag be of 7.5 squares width by 11 squares long, a square can be any size, but always using the ratio 15:22.

Color and symbolism

The first description of Bolivia's national flag, together with the significance of these, were first established by the Supreme Decree of 1888 during the government of President

Gregorio Pacheco Gregorio Pacheco Leyes (4 July 1823 – 20 August 1899) was a Bolivian businessman and entrepreneur who served as the 21st president of Bolivia from 1884 to 1888. Pacheco won a disputed election that was a virtual three-way tie between him, C ...

, which specifies that: * * * The exact colors of the Bolivian flag have been established by the Supreme Decree of 2004: The colours of the tricolor can also be found in the Bolivian Wiphala. The Wiphala has been included into the

national colours National colours are frequently part of a country's set of national symbols. Many states and nations have formally adopted a set of colours as their official "national colours" while others have '' de facto'' national colours that have become we ...

of the Bolivian Air Force such as on the executive

Dassault Falcon 900 The Dassault Falcon 900, commonly abbreviated as the F900, is a French-built corporate trijet aircraft made by Dassault Aviation. Development The Falcon 900 is a development of the Falcon 50, itself a development of the earlier Falcon 20. The ...

EX. The Wiphala is also officially flown on governmental buildings such as the Palacio Quemado and parliament alongside the tricolor since the introduction of the revised 2009 constitution.

Historical flags

The current Bolivian flag has been officially adopted 31 October 1851 during the presidency of

Manuel Isidoro Belzu Manuel Isidoro Belzu Humérez (4 April 1808 – 27 March 1865) was a Bolivian military officer and statesman who served as the 11th president of Bolivia from 1848 to 1855. Under his presidency, the current national anthem of Bolivia and flag ...

.
According to Supreme Decree No. 27630 of 19 July 2004, during the presidency of Carlos Mesa, it was established that the civil flag used in civic, public and patriotic celebrations will be used without the National Shield, instead the flag used by the state in official acts it will include in its central part the shield
During the presidency of

Evo Morales Juan Evo Morales Ayma (; born 26 October 1959) is a Bolivian politician, trade union organizer, and former cocalero activist who served as the 65th president of Bolivia from 2006 to 2019. Widely regarded as the country's first president to c ...

, through Supreme Decree No. 241 of 5 August 2009, some symbolic modifications were made to the flag. It was also established that for both the civil flag and the flag used by the State in official acts they should be raised on the right side and the wiphala on the left side. File:Flag of Cross of Burgundy.svg , ''Colonial flag'', Spanish Empire flag (1506–1825/1821 in Peru, and Bolivia), (1506–1785/1701 in other colonies), (1506–1821 in Philippines) File:Flag of Bolivia (1825-1826).svg , ''Bandera Menor'', Civil flag (1825–1826) File:Flag of Bolivia (state, 1825-1826).svg , ''Bandera Mayor'', State flag (1825–1826) File:Flag of Bolivia (1826-1851).svg , ''Bandera Menor'', Civil flag (1831–1851) File:Flag of Bolivia (state, 1826-1851).svg , ''Bandera Mayor'', State flag (1831–1851) File:Flag of the Peru-Bolivian Confederation.svg , Peru-Bolivian Confederation (1836–1839) File:Banner of the Qulla Suyu.svg, alt=A square flag made of thirteen diagonal arrangements of colored squares, following a rainbow pattern towards the center, the squares in the center being white., Wiphala banner (used since 2009, allegedly Incan) File:Naval Ensign of Bolivia (1966-2013).svg, Former naval ensign of Bolivia (1966–2013) File:Bandera de Bolivia (Guerra).svg, Flag of the

Armed Forces of Bolivia The Bolivian Armed Forces ( Spanish: ''Fuerzas Armadas de Bolivia'') are the military of Bolivia. The Armed Forces of Bolivia are responsible for the defence, both of external and internal, of Bolivia and they are constituted by Bolivian Army, ...

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Flag Of Bolivia National symbols of Bolivia

Bolivia , image_flag = Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg , flag_alt = Horizontal tricolor (red, yellow, and green from top to bottom) with the coat of arms of Bolivia in the center , flag_alt2 = 7 × 7 square p ...

1851 establishments in Bolivia