The Colombian flag is made up of three horizontal bands on the yellow, blue and red colors. The upper band is yellow and occupies half of the flag, the other two bands divide the lower half, being blue in the middle and red in the base.
Its ratio is 2:3, that is, if it is 2 meters wide, it must be 3 meters long.
Current flag of Colombia.
The colors of the current Colombian flag go back to the early 19th century, when the wars of independence against the Spanish Empire began in the region.
Before becoming independent, Colombia, Venezuela and Ecuador were part of the Great Colombia and used the tricolor flag. For this reason, the current flags of these three countries are very similar.
History of the Colombian Flag
The history of the current flag of Colombia goes back to the year of 1801, when the Venezuelan general Sebastián Francisco de Miranda Rodríguez (1750-1816) wrote in his diary that the flag of Latin American nations seeking independence would be in yellow, blue and red.
Francisco de Miranda drew up a plan for the independence of countries in the region. Despite not having been successful, the suggestion of colors for the flag was adopted in 1819, when the region gained independence under the leadership of Simon Bolivar (1783-1830).
In 1819, Simon Bolivar declares independence from the region and creates the Republic of Colombia. In 1821, the territory was renamed Great Colombia and it was composed by the current Ecuador, Colombia and Venezuela.
During the period in which Gran Colombia existed, between 1819 and 1830, four flags were adopted, all in yellow, blue and red, but with different symbols and hues.
Learn more about Venezuela flag.
First flag of Gran Colombia, used until the beginning of 1820.
In 1830, after the death of Simon Bolivar, Ecuador and Venezuela became independent and each country adopted its own flag, which to this day are very similar to each other. While Colombia's flag has no symbols, Ecuador's has a coat of arms in the middle and Venezuela's has 8 stars that form an arc.
Throughout the 19th century, the Colombian flag underwent alterations and the permanent adoption of the pavilion as it is known today took place on November 26, 1861.
Learn more about country flags.
Colombia flag symbolism
O yellow represents the gold and the others natural wealth from the country. These riches have a great weight in the symbolic representation, since they occupy half of the pavilion.
O blue symbolizes the sea waters that bathe the Colombian nation. Colombia has a maritime coastline for both the Pacific and the Atlantic Oceans, which gives it strategic importance in the region.
Finally, the Red symbolizes the blood of Colombians who fought to save their country from Spanish rule and make it independent.
presidential flag
Presidential flag of Colombia.
Colombia's presidential flag is the same as the official flag, but with the coat of arms of the country located in its midst. At the top of the coat of arms is written “Republic of Colombia” and below “Freedom and Order”.
On top of the coat of arms is a condor, a bird typical of the country, which represents freedom. The condor is holding a laurel wreath in its beak.
At the top of the coat of arms is an open golden pomegranate, tropical fruits on the right side and gold coins on the left side - representing the richness of the country's soil.
At the bottom there is an image of the isthmus of Panama, which was Colombian territory until 1903, with two ships - representing the seas that bathe the country and trade with other nations.
See also the meaning of japan flag, Russian flag and Canada flag.
