Flag of Somalia

Federal Republic of Somalia
Use	National flag and ensign
Proportion	2:3
Adopted	12 October 1954; 70 years ago
Design	A single white five-pointed star centered on a cyan field
Designed by	Mohammed Awale Liban

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^[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

Beginning in the mid-19th century, areas in the Horn of Africa populated by Somalis were divided among Ethiopia, France, 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 the Leagues 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.^[3] Liban personally conceived of and designed the flag,^[4]^[5] and was also used in the short-lived independent State of Somaliland between 26 June 1960 and 1 July 1960.

In Somaliland

Public display of the Somali flag is strictly prohibited in Somaliland.^[6]^[7]

Characteristics

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).^[8]^[9] 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.^[10] 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.^[4]^[11]

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

Colors

	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:^[12]

Pre-colonial states

Flag of the Ajuran Empire (13th century–17th century)
Flag of the Adal Sultanate (1415–1577)
Religious banner of the Isaaq Sultanate derived from an Adal Sultanate flag (1700s–1884)

Italian Somalia

Flag of Italian Somaliland (1889–1941)
Flag of Italian Somaliland under british occupation (1884-1960)
Official flag of Trust Territory of Somaliland (1950–1960)
flag of the UN (1950–1960)
Co-official/secondary flag of Trust Territory of Somaliland (1954–1960)

British Somaliland

Flag of the United Kingdom used in British Somaliland (1884–1903)
Flag of the British Raj used in British Somaliland (1884–1898)
Flag of British Somaliland (1903–1950)
Flag of British Somaliland (1950–1952)
Flag of British Somaliland (1952–1960)
Flag of State of Somaliland (26 June 1960 – 1 July 1960)

Subnational flags

Federal Member States

Notes

^ "Somalia". www.fotw.info.
^ "Somali Embassy in Belgium – Somali Flag". 2014-06-11. Archived from the original on 2021-11-28. Retrieved 2021-11-28.
^ Hussein, Abdirizak Haji (2017). Cabdisalaam M. Ciisa-Salwe (ed.). Abdirazak Haji Hussein: my role in the foundation of the Somali nation-state, a political memoir. Trenton: The Red Sea Press. pp. 97–98. ISBN 978-1-56902-531-4.
^ ^a ^b 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". BBC News.
^ Znamierowski, Alfred (1999). The World Encyclopedia of Flags. Anness. p. 222. ISBN 0-7548-0167-5.
^ Talocci, Mauro (1982). Smith, Whitney (ed.). Guide to the Flags of the World. Morrow. 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.
^ "Question of the frontier between the Trust Territory of Somaliland under Italian administration and Ethiopia" (PDF). UN General Assembly. 14 December 1954.
^ "Somalia". www.worldstatesmen.org.

References

Somalia at Flags of the World

[1] "Somalia". www.fotw.info.

[2] "Somali Embassy in Belgium – Somali Flag". 2014-06-11. Archived from the original on 2021-11-28. Retrieved 2021-11-28.

[3] Hussein, Abdirizak Haji (2017). Cabdisalaam M. Ciisa-Salwe (ed.). Abdirazak Haji Hussein: my role in the foundation of the Somali nation-state, a political memoir. Trenton: The Red Sea Press. pp. 97–98. ISBN 978-1-56902-531-4.

[Crwf-4] History of the flag

[Tifh-5] Maria Costantino, The Illustrated Flag Handbook, (Gramercy Books: 2001), p.185.

[6] "Somaliland's Horn Stars band arrested over Somali flag". BBC News. 28 September 2015.

[7] "Africa Live: Banned Nigerian athletes hold protest in Tokyo". BBC News.

[8] Znamierowski, Alfred (1999). The World Encyclopedia of Flags. Anness. p. 222. ISBN 0-7548-0167-5.

[9] Talocci, Mauro (1982). Smith, Whitney (ed.). Guide to the Flags of the World. Morrow. p. 131. ISBN 0-688-01141-1.

[Cwfbsom-10] "The World Factbook – Somalia". Central Intelligence Agency. Archived from the original on 15 September 2012. Retrieved 22 July 2012.

[11] "Question of the frontier between the Trust Territory of Somaliland under Italian administration and Ethiopia" (PDF). UN General Assembly. 14 December 1954.

[12] "Somalia". www.worldstatesmen.org.

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v t e Flags of Africa
Sovereign states	Algeria Angola Benin Botswana Burkina Faso Burundi Cameroon Cape Verde Central African Republic Chad Comoros Democratic Republic of the Congo Republic of the Congo Djibouti Egypt Equatorial Guinea Eritrea Eswatini Ethiopia Gabon The Gambia Ghana Guinea Guinea-Bissau Ivory Coast Kenya Lesotho Liberia Libya Madagascar Malawi Mali Mauritania Mauritius Morocco Mozambique Namibia Niger Nigeria Rwanda São Tomé and Príncipe Senegal Seychelles Sierra Leone Somalia South Africa South Sudan Sudan Tanzania Togo Tunisia Uganda Zambia Zimbabwe
States with limited recognition	Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic Somaliland
Dependencies and other territories	Canary Islands / Ceuta / Melilla (Spain) Madeira (Portugal) Mayotte / Réunion (France) Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha (United Kingdom)