The flag of Belize has a blue field with a coat of arms in the middle and two red stripes - one at the top and the other at the bottom. The coat of arms has two human figures inside the white field. Belize's flag was adopted on September 21, 1981. However, the coat of arm in the middle of the flag was obtained much earlier on January 28, 1907. The coat of arm forms the basis of the badge on British ensigns. The coat of arms is divided into three parts. The base represents the ship in the sea. The two upper parts feature tools of the Belize timber industry. There is also a mahogany tree above the coat of arms.
The red, white, and blue colors of the flag are a symbol of unity for the country. The flag of Belize is notable for being one of the few flags to feature a human being. The red stripes were added after the country gained independence from the British to denote the original color of the opposition party. Below the human figures on the coat of arm is a motto which says ‘’sub umbra florero’’ which means ‘’under the shade I flourish”.
The flag of Belize was first developed on September 21, 1981, when the country became independent. A competition was held with the objective of finding what was to become the official flag of Belize. The colors of the flag represent the colors of the two national parties, the United Democratic Party and the People United Party. The unofficial flag of the country is the flag of the ruling party, so the addition of the red stripes symbolized unity.
Before 1950, Belize was using the British flag because it was a colony of Britain. However, in 1950, the unofficial flag of Belize was introduced. The unofficial flag had a blue field with the coat of arm in the middle and a white patch. At times a flag with a blank white disc was used simply because drawing the coat of arms was difficult. The unofficial flag of Belize was used up to 1981 when Belize gained independence. But the official flag of the British governor was the British flag with the coat of arms in the middle.
This page was last modified on May 1st, 2018
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