The flag of South Africa
Field and colours only. Not shown: a horizontal green Y-shape edged in white and gold, with a black hoist triangle.
South Africa is the country that most firmly refuses to say what its flag means: the official government position is that no universal symbolism attaches to the colours, and that the convergence of the Y is the only intended message — separate paths joining and continuing forward together. Popular readings assign the red, white and blue to the European settler flags and the black, green and gold to the ANC, which is historically accurate about where the colours came from and still not the official reading. It has six colours, more than any other flag except Belize's and South Sudan's. Designed by the state herald Frederick Brownell in a week, it was intended as an interim flag for five years and was made permanent in the 1996 constitution.
What the colours mean
- Green
#007A4DNo official meaning is assigned - Gold
#FFB612No official meaning is assigned - Red
#DE3831No official meaning is assigned - Blue
#002395No official meaning is assigned - Black
#000000No official meaning is assigned - White
#FFFFFFNo official meaning is assigned
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.
- Ratio
- 2:3
- Current design adopted
- 1994
- Colours
- green, gold, red, blue, black, white
Common questions
- What does the flag of South Africa look like?
- A green horizontal Y laid on its side, outlined in white and gold, separating a red band above and a blue band below, with a black triangle at the hoist inside the Y.
- What do the colours of the South Africa flag mean?
- Green: no official meaning is assigned. Gold: no official meaning is assigned. Red: no official meaning is assigned. Blue: no official meaning is assigned. Black: no official meaning is assigned. White: no official meaning is assigned.
- When was the South Africa flag adopted?
- The current design dates from 1994, and its official ratio is 2:3.
Related pages
- South Africa Capital, area, population and currency
- Every flag with green in it
- The flag of India Ratio 2:3
- The flag of Brazil Ratio 7:10
- The flag of Italy Ratio 2:3
- The flag of Mexico Ratio 4:7
- The flag of Ireland Ratio 1:2
- The flag of Jamaica Ratio 1:2
- The flag of Pakistan Ratio 2:3
- The flag of Palestine Ratio 1:2
Sources
- Official vendor product documentation — At One Place