FLAG OF ERITREA: HISTORY AND MEANING - CULTURE VOCABULARY

The flag of Eritrea is the national flag that visually identifies and represents this East African republic. It consists of a red triangle that extends from the two ends of the flag, based on the pole line.

The remaining upper triangle is green, while the lower triangle is blue. Inside the red part there is a golden olive crown, inside which there is a small branch, also olive.

Flag of Eritrea. (By] (From the Open Clip Art website.), Via Wikimedia Commons).

This flag has been in force in Eritrean territory since 1995. Between 1993 and 1995, one with the same current design was used, but the proportions were different. This has been the only flag Eritrea has used since it gained independence, after thirty years of war with neighboring Ethiopia.

The national symbol was inspired by the one that raised and identified the Popular Front for the Liberation of Eritrea, an armed movement that fought for the country's independence.

Precisely, the red of the flag represents the blood spilled in this war. The green signifies the agricultural economy while the blue, the marine wealth. Yellow is related to the minerals that and the crown and the olive branch, to peace.

History of the flag

The history of Eritrea is marked by permanent conflict, the need for recognition of a sovereign state and colonization and occupation by different powers, African or European.

All these convulsive changes have been forcefully reflected in the flags that have flown over Eritrean skies.

However, the history of Eritrea as an independent country is very recent. Its independence was only achieved in 1993, so its national flag, as well as the meaning it has acquired, is extremely modern.

Italian colonization

The Eritrean nation began to be configured with its current borders from the moment of the beginning of the Italian colonization in 1882. Previously, various historical kingdoms such as Aksum had occupied the territory, although many civilizations were present.

In the second half of the 19th century, the Ottoman Empire through the Khedivate of Egypt had made a presence in Eritrea.

In 1882, the Italian monarchy, eager to form a new empire, acquired the town of Assab. Slowly the territory was growing the territory through new purchases, such as the port town of Massaua. In 1890, the Italian colony of Eritrea was officially established.

Italian expansionist goals ran into the Ethiopian Empire. Although they could not expand into this territory, the Italian colony was recognized by the Ethiopians.

The situation changed during the fascism that ruled Italy. In 1935, Italy invaded Ethiopia to expand its colonial empire. In this way, it unified its territories in the area in Italian East Africa.

Flag of the Kingdom of Italy

During the entire process of Italian colonization of Eritrea and its neighboring countries, only the flag of the Kingdom of Italy was used. This consisted of the Italian tricolor, made up of three vertical stripes of green, white and red. In the center of the white strip was the country's coat of arms, presided over by a crown.

Flag of the Kingdom of Italy. (1861-1946). (Say F lanker, attraverso Wikimedia Commons).

The only symbol that the Italian colony of Eritrea properly used was a shield approved in 1936. This occurred when the colony became part of Italian East Africa.

In the first block, fasces, a symbol of fascism, and an olive crown were drawn. In the center a red lion with a white star was imposed, while in the lower blue wavy lines represented the sea.

Coat of arms of Italian Eritrea. (1936-1941). (Say L'orso famelico, from Wikimedia Commons).

British occupation

The end of World War II brought with it the clear and overwhelming defeat of Italian fascism. Before the end, in 1941, the Italian possessions in East Africa were occupied by British troops. In this way, the Italian colonization that had extended for half a century was put to an end.

After the Battle of Keren, the Allied troops dominated Ethiopia and also Eritrea. However, the fate of the former Italian colony was unclear.

While the Soviet Union supported his return to Italy, Great Britain tried to separate the colony by religion, but was unsuccessful. Eritrea eventually joined Ethiopia into a federation in 1952.

The only flag used during that period was that of the United Kingdom. Because it was not a colonization but an occupation, no new symbols were developed.

Flag of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. (By Original flag by Acts of Union 1800SVG recreation by User: Zscout370, from Wikimedia Commons).

Federation with Ethiopia

Seven years after the absolute end of World War II, the Federation of Etopia and Eritrea was formed. This event, which occurred in 1952, had the approval of the United Nations.

The new state would be controlled by the Ethiopians and led by their emperor Haile Selassie, who regained the throne from which he had been deposed by the Italians.

Eritrea, in the new federation, retained its autonomy and maintained significant self-government. In Eritrea, during this period, two flags were flown. The first was that of Ethiopia, the sovereign state to which they belonged.

This consisted of a tricolor of symmetrical horizontal stripes of green, yellow and red. In the central part was the Lion of Judea, symbol of the Ethiopian monarchy.

Flag of the Ethiopian Empire. (1897-1936) (1941-1974). (By Oren neu dag, from Wikimedia Commons).

As Eritrea enjoyed autonomy, it also had its own flag as part of the empire. This consisted of a sky blue cloth that in its central part, included a green olive crown with a small branch of the same tree inside. This symbol remains on the current flag, but is yellow.

Flag of the Autonomous Province of Eritrea. (1952-1962). (By Orange Tuesday (talk) Orange Tuesday at en.wikipedia, from Wikimedia Commons).

Ethiopian province

The eagerness for independence in Eritrea began to organize through armed groups. Faced with this situation, Emperor Haile Selassie responded with force and annexed the Eritrean territory in 1962 as an integral part of Ethiopia.

This ended previously existing federation and autonomy. Then the Eritrean War of Independence began, which lasted for more than thirty years and confronted the Ethiopian government with independence troops.

During this bloody period, the Ethiopian flag was hoisted throughout the territory occupied by its troops. However, Ethiopia underwent different political changes in the course of the war of independence.

The most relevant of these was the end of the monarchy. The emperor was deposed in 1974, assuming a military government. This was reflected in the flag, in which one of the first was the removal of the crown and the tip of the lion's spear.

Flag of Ethiopia (1974-1975). (By Thommy, from Wikimedia Commons).

Derg

The following year, in 1975, the Derg was installed. Those were the acronym in Amharic for the Provisional Military Administrative Council. This ruled Ethiopia from the end of the monarchy and until the proper installation of a socialist state in the country.

The military regime assumed absolute control of the country, imposing a martial social order. Even the former emperor was imprisoned and later assassinated. During this time, the Derg used the Ethiopian tricolor flag without any additional symbols.

Flag of Ethiopia (1975-1987). (By Johannes Rössel, from Wikimedia Commons).

However, a flag with the new coat of arms of Ethiopia in the central part was also adopted. This consisted of working tools positioned in front of a sun.

Ethiopian flag with coat of arms (1975-1987). (By TRAJAN 117 This W3C-unspecified vector image was created with Inkscape., From Wikimedia Commons).

Democratic People's Republic of Ethiopia

The military that governed Ethiopia quickly related to the Soviet bloc, positioning the United States as an enemy.

Despite nationalizing policies, Ethiopia did not acquire the status of a socialist state until 1987, when it adopted a new constitution. It also did the same with a new flag.

The Ethiopian tricolor remained, and again, the change was visible on the shield. This had the traditional Soviet inspiration, circular in shape, with lines emulating the sun's rays and a red star presiding.

Flag of the Democratic People's Republic of Ethiopia. (1987-1991). (By TRAJAN 117 This W3C-unspecified vector image was created with Inkscape., From Wikimedia Commons).

Independence movement

During all the political changes that occurred in Ethiopia, the war for Eritrea's independence continued. However, after the fall of the Berlin Wall and the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the Ethiopian communist regime was left without support and eventually disappeared in 1991.

A transitional government was formed in the country, but in Eritrea the Popular Front for the Liberation of Eritrea (FPLE) quickly assumed control of the entire territory.

The FPLE flag consisted of a red triangle that was extended on the left side of the flag as its base. The upper triangle was colored green, and the lower triangle blue.

On the left side of the red triangle there was a leaning yellow five-pointed star. This is the only difference it has from the current flag design.

Flag of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Eritrea (FPLE). (By Permjak, via Wikimedia Commons).

Independent Eritrea

The transitional government of Ethiopia was in charge of managing the victory of the FPLE in the war in Eritrea. In this way, the Eritrean right to self-determination was recognized.

Finally, and with the observation of a UN mission, the independence of Eritrea was approved in a referendum, between April 23 and 25, 1993. The majority in favor of independence was overwhelming, reaching 99.83% of the votes.

On May 24, 1993, Eritrea formally declared its independence. From that moment, it adopted a new flag, which was no longer that of the FPLE, although it kept its design. The former symbol of the olive tree used in the old flag of the Eritrea province replaced the five-pointed star.

Eritrea State Flag. (1993-1995). (By Orange Tuesday (self-made, based on en: Image: Flag of Eritrea.svg), via Wikimedia Commons).

Since its approval, the flag has only undergone one change. This occurred in 1995, when the ratios changed from 2: 3 to 1: 2.

Meaning of the flag

The flag of Eritrea is practically the same design as that of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Eritrea, which fought for the independence of the country for more than thirty years.

This is precisely related to its meaning. The color red is identified with the blood shed in the war of more than thirty years that forever marked the Eritrean territory.

The color green, on the other hand, is identified with the country's agriculture, its well-being and the economy related to the field. Blue is the one that represents the shores of the Red Sea, which bathes the Eritrean coastline.

The symbol of the olive crown and the branch of the same tree represents peace. Its origin was in the flag of the Ethiopian province of Eritrea, and in its beginnings, it was on a light blue background, in honor of the color of the UN.

However, in this pavilion, the symbol is identified with the peace achieved in the country. The yellow color, of which it is colored, represents the mineral wealth of Eritrea.

References

Arias, E. (2006). Flags of the world. Editorial Gente Nueva: Havana, Cuba.
Entralgo, A. (1979). Africa: Society. Editorial of Social Sciences: La Habana, Cuba.
Negash, T. (1987). Italian colonialism in Eritrea, 1882-1941: policies, praxis and impact (p. 97). Stockholm: Uppsala University. Recovered from dannyreviews.com.
Negash, T. (1997). Eritrea and Ethiopia: the federal experience. Nordic Africa Institute. Recovered from books.google.com.
Smith, W. (2014). Flag of Eritrea. Encyclopædia Britannica, inc. Recovered from britannica.com.

FLAG OF ERITREA: HISTORY AND MEANING - CULTURE VOCABULARY - 2025