---
title: "Flag of Brazil: colours and meaning"
description: "What every colour and symbol on the Brazil flag stands for, its official 7:10 ratio, and the year the current design was adopted."
url: https://atoneplace.net/flag/brazil/
site: "At One Place"
---

# The flag of Brazil

**The flag of Brazil: A green field with a large yellow rhombus, inside which a blue globe carries 27 white stars and a curved white band reading ORDEM E PROGRESSO.**

Ratio 7:10 · current design adopted 1889

*[Flag drawn on the page: Brazil]*

The star field is an astronomically accurate sky, not a decoration: it shows the constellations visible over Rio at 8:30 on the morning the republic was proclaimed, seen from outside the celestial sphere, which is why they appear mirrored. Because each state gets a star, the flag has been redrawn as states were created — most recently in 1992, when it went from 23 stars to 27. Spica, the single star above the motto band, stands for Pará, the only state then north of the equator. The motto is a truncation of Comte's "Love as a principle, order as the basis, progress as the goal", and Brazil is the only country flying a positivist slogan.

## What the colours mean

*Flag laws usually specify a Pantone chip, a CMYK mix or just a colour name. Converting any of those to sRGB is lossy, which is why published hex values disagree.*

- **Green** (#009C3B) — The forests; historically the House of Braganza
- **Yellow** (#FFDF00) — Mineral wealth; historically the House of Habsburg
- **Blue** (#002776) — The sky over Rio de Janeiro on the morning of 15 November 1889
- **White** (#FFFFFF) — Peace, and the band bearing the motto

## The symbols on it

| What | What it stands for |
| --- | --- |
| 27 stars | The 26 states and the Federal District, each a specific real star |
| ORDEM E PROGRESSO | "Order and Progress", from Auguste Comte's positivist motto |

- **Ratio:** 7:10
- **Current design adopted:** 1889
- **Colours:** green, yellow, blue, white

## Common questions

### What does the flag of Brazil look like?

A green field with a large yellow rhombus, inside which a blue globe carries 27 white stars and a curved white band reading ORDEM E PROGRESSO.

### What do the colours of the Brazil flag mean?

Green: the forests; historically the House of Braganza. Yellow: mineral wealth; historically the House of Habsburg. Blue: the sky over Rio de Janeiro on the morning of 15 November 1889. White: peace, and the band bearing the motto.

### When was the Brazil flag adopted?

The current design dates from 1889, and its official ratio is 7:10.

## Related pages

- [Brazil](https://atoneplace.net/country/brazil/)
- [Every flag with green in it](https://atoneplace.net/flag/colour/green/)
- [The flag of India](https://atoneplace.net/flag/india/)
- [The flag of Italy](https://atoneplace.net/flag/italy/)
- [The flag of Mexico](https://atoneplace.net/flag/mexico/)
- [The flag of Ireland](https://atoneplace.net/flag/ireland/)
- [The flag of South Africa](https://atoneplace.net/flag/south-africa/)
- [The flag of Jamaica](https://atoneplace.net/flag/jamaica/)
- [The flag of Pakistan](https://atoneplace.net/flag/pakistan/)
- [The flag of Palestine](https://atoneplace.net/flag/palestine/)

## Sources

- The World Factbook — Central Intelligence Agency (https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/) [Public domain (US Government)]