The flag of Equatorial Guinea ( es, Bandera de Guinea Ecuatorial; french: Drapeau de la Guinée équatoriale; pt, Bandeira da Guiné Equatorial) was adopted on August 21, 1979. The six stars on the map represent the country's mainland and five islands. Under the rule of dictator Francisco Nguema the flag was modified and a different national emblem was used in it. After he was deposed the original flag was restored.

Features and symbolism

The flag is a horizontal tricolor, with

green Green is the color between cyan and yellow on the visible spectrum. It is evoked by light which has a dominant wavelength of roughly 495570 nm. In subtractive color systems, used in painting and color printing, it is created by a combi ...

white White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White o ...

and

red Red is the color at the long wavelength end of the visible spectrum of light, next to orange and opposite violet. It has a dominant wavelength of approximately 625–740 nanometres. It is a primary color in the RGB color model and a secondar ...

stripes and a

blue Blue is one of the three primary colours in the RYB colour model (traditional colour theory), as well as in the RGB (additive) colour model. It lies between violet and cyan on the spectrum of visible light. The eye perceives blue when ...

triangle at the hoist. Green symbolizes the natural resources, agriculture and jungles of the country. Blue symbolizes the sea, which connects the mainland with the islands. White symbolizes peace. Red symbolizes the bloodshed by the fighters for

independence Independence is a condition of a person, nation, country, or state in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the statu ...

History

The flag was first flown the day of independence, October 12, 1968, and it showed the national emblem in the center. However, in 1973, during the regime of Francisco Nguema, a different national emblem was used on the flag. Under Nguema's rule, the coat of arms consisted of several tools, a sword and a cockerel. The modified national motto Trabajo (work), and Unidad, Paz, Justicia (Unity, Peace, Justice) was written in two stripes. The original

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 ...

was restored after Nguema was deposed on 21 August 1979. The arms consists of a silver shield with a silk-cotton tree, or

Ceiba ''Ceiba'' is a genus of trees in the family Malvaceae, native to tropical and subtropical areas of the Americas (from Mexico and the Caribbean to N Argentina) and tropical West Africa. Some species can grow to tall or more, with a straight, la ...

in the local language, which was derived from the arms of Rio Muni. Above the shield is an arc of 6 six-pointed yellow stars, that represent Rio Muni and the offshore islands. Beneath the shield is a silver scroll with the national motto, ''Unidad, Paz, Justicia'' ("Unity, Peace, Justice"). It is considered that under a silk-cotton tree a treaty was signed between Spain and a local ruler that marked the beginning of the colonial rule. File:Flag of Equatorial Guinea (without coat of arms).svg, First flag (1968–73). File:Flag of Equatorial Guinea 1973-1979.svg, Second flag during the rule of Francisco Nguema (1973–79). File:Flag of Spain (1945 - 1977).svg, Flag after 1945 as

Spanish Guinea Spanish Guinea (Spanish language, Spanish: ''Guinea Española'') was a set of Insular Region (Equatorial Guinea), insular and Río Muni, continental territories controlled by Spain from 1778 in the Gulf of Guinea and on the Bight of Bonny, in ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Equatorial Guinea, Flag of Flags introduced in 1979 Flags of Africa Flag Equatorial Guinea