FLAG OF BENIN: HISTORY AND MEANING - CULTURE VOCABULARY - 2024

The flag of Benin is the official flag that nationally and internationally identifies the Republic of Benin. It is made up of a green stripe with a 6: 9 ratio. The yellow and red stripes maintain a 5: 5 ratio.

There are two theories about the meaning of the flag colors. One of them refers to the fact that the colors symbolize the African continent. In this way, green represents palm trees, red represents the ground and yellow represents the savannas of the continent.

Another theory argues that the color green represents the hope and rebirth of the nation. Meanwhile, the yellow symbolizes their riches and the red the blood shed by the forerunners of the nation.

This was not the first Beninese flag in history. During the Kingdom of Benin, it featured a red flag with a white figure in its center. In the Kingdom of Dahomey, the flag was white with a red frame and a crowned elephant.

Also, Benin had a communist background. In the People's Republic of Benin the flag was green with a red star in the upper left corner. However, the common elements are undeniable.

History

The Kingdom of Benin was established in 1180. It had a red flag that had white individuals fighting in its center. With the arrival of the British in 1897, the kingdom ended with its flag.

On December 11, 1958, the Republic of Dahomey was established as a self-government of a colony of the French Community. On November 16, 1959, a new flag was adopted that was raised for the first time on August 1, 1960.

Independent Benin

The Republic of Dahomey, a French colonial dependency, became an independent country since 1960. A little earlier, on November 16, 1959, the new flag of the country was established, after a public contest. It is the same flag as the current one.

This pavilion remained until 1975, when the country became the People's Republic of Benin. The flag was green with a red star in the upper left corner. The latter was a symbol of the socialist and communist states.

Following the fall of the communist regime, on August 1, 1990, the former flag of the Republic of Dahomey was re-established. From that moment he represented the Republic of Benin. This decision was made during the National Conference of Active Forces of the Nation, from February 19 to 28, 1990.

Historical flags

The ancient Kingdom of Benin was famous for its distinctive bronze statuary art. Its central city was Benin and it was located southwest of present-day Nigeria. The vast majority of his wealth consisted of ivory, pepper, palm oil, and the number of slaves he owned.

This Kingdom had a red flag in the center of which two individuals were fighting. One of them pierced the neck of the other with a sword. The flag was in force since 1180. However, the British captured it in 1897 when they invaded the African territory.

Later, during the Kingdom of Dahomey in 1889, the territory featured a white flag with a thin red frame around the entire edge of the banner. In the center of the flag was an elephant with a small crown on its head.

Flag of the Kingdom of Dahomey (1889)

Flag of the Republic of Benin (split from Nigeria)

The Republic of Benin was a short-lived state that was located on the coast of Nigeria. It was established during the Biafra War and the soldier Albert Nwazu Okonkwo took over the power of the State. It should not be confused with the Republic of Benin, established since 1975.

It was established on August 9, 1967, and Nigeria occupied it militarily on September 20, 1967. Although it had a very short duration, it had its own flag.

The banner was made up of a rectangle with a thin green stripe on its underside. At its top it had a wider black stripe and half a sun, a short distance from the green stripe.

Flag of the People's Republic of Benin

The People's Republic of Benin was located on the African continent. It was a consolidated socialist state on November 30, 1975. It existed until March 1, 1990. Its constitution established it as a Marxist-Leninist state.

The People's Republic of Benin (1975-1990)

The flag of this State was in force since the Republic of Benin was established until the end of it. This banner consisted of a green rectangle with a small red star in the upper left corner.

The red five-pointed star is a historical symbol representing communism or socialism and the revolution. Each point represented the youth, the military, the workers, the peasants, and the intellectuals.

Meaning of the flag

The flag of Benin is made up of a rectangle that contains a vertical strip in green. It also includes an upper horizontal strip in yellow and a lower one in red. The length of the green stripe with respect to the rest of the flag is 6: 9.

The ratio of the yellow to the red stripe is 5: 5. However, there has been confusion regarding these measurements and flags have been manufactured that feature a green stripe with the same width as the other two stripes.

The green color in the flag symbolizes hope and rebirth of the African nation. For its part, the red color represents the value of the ancestors of their homeland and the yellow color is a reminder to persevere the wealth of the country.

Another explanation of the representative meaning of the colors of the flag refers to symbolisms within the African continent. In this way, red is associated with the soil and the blood shed by the ancestors of Africa, yellow with the savannas and green with the palm trees of the region.

References

1. Amos, B. and Girshick, P. (1995). The Art of Benin Revised Edition. British Museum Press. Recovered from trove.nla.gov.au
2. Barnes, S. (1997). Africa's Ogun: Old World and New. Indiana University Press. Recovered from books.google.co.ve
3. Bertaux, P. (nd). Africa. From prehistory to the current States, Madrid. Recovered from books.google.co.ve
4. DK Publishing (2008). Complete Flags of the World. New York, United States: DK Publishing. Recovered from books.google.co.ve
5. Lavroff, D and Peiser, G. (1961). Les constitutions africaines, A. Pedone. Recovered from sudoc.abes.fr