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

The Senegalese flag consists of a green, a yellow and a red stripe, all distributed vertically, and with a green star in the central stripe. Besides being the national flag, it is also the official civil insignia of the entire territory.

The design is not very old, being created in 1960 and inspired by the flag of the Federation of Mali, a short-lived country to which Senegal belonged after becoming independent from France.

Senegal flag. Original upload by Nightstallion

All Senegalese territory was under the control of the French from their invasion in the 17th century until the middle of the 20th century. During the rule of the Gauls, Senegal was prohibited from using an official flag as a measure of repression and to prevent uprisings against the Crown of France and subsequent governments.

History

- Flag of France (1659 - 1958)

The French conquest of Senegal began in 1659, when troops landed in the country and founded the city of Saint Louis. France, however, did not take the conquest of this territory seriously until the 20th century, since its first objective was to deprive the Dutch of the Island of Gorée.

The island of Gorée was a very important slavery center throughout the 15th century until the abolition of slavery. Several European slave powers, notably Portugal, Spain, Holland and England, vied for control of the island until the French made it their own in 1677.

Other states of Senegal also fell under the control of the Europeans. At the beginning of the 19th century, however, it was when more powers of the Old Continent began to take an interest in the territory of Senegal.

For example, during the first decades of the 19th century, Great Britain conquered the towns of Saint Louis and the established colonial town on the island of Goreé. Great Britain gave both establishments back to the French, but making them sign a treaty in which they were obliged not to participate in any more slave activities.

West African French (1895 - 1958)

In 1895, France appointed the first Governor General of Senegal. In addition, the country unified all its African territories under the same name. It was at this time that Senegal officially adopted the flag of France as its main tricolor. All the countries came to be administered as a federation called "French West Africa."

Flag of the Senegal colony until 1958. This graphic was drawn by SKopp. Public Domain

- Flag of French Senegal (1958 - 1959)

In 1958, French President Charles de Gaulle proposed the creation of a federation called "The French Community", through which all the African countries that were colonies of the Gallic country would act independently, but under the control of the French government.

The community was created in order to give a little more freedom to its colonies and to suppress the rebellions of secession. However, this proposal was not openly accepted by all countries. In fact, even the countries that accepted the offer (including Senegal) were not entirely happy with the terms.

Senegal became French Senegal after the division of French West Africa and became part of the French Community of Charles de Gaulle. However, his stay as a member of the community was quite short and he became independent soon after.

Flag of French Senegal (1958 - 1959). By Patricia.fidi

- Flag of the Federation of Mali (1559 - 1960)

Shortly before separating from the French Community, French Senegal joined with French Sudan to form the Mali Federation, a kind of African commonwealth that served to give both countries a bit more autonomy, but still within the French Community..

The country, however, only had two months to live. The governments of both nations that made up the Mali Federation agreed, in diplomatic terms with France, to officially separate from the Community.

The flag that the country had was very similar to that of Mali today, but with a figure of a black man in the middle of the yellow stripe.

Flag of the Federation of Mali (1559 - 1960). By SKopp

Current flag of Senegal (since 1960)

The independence achieved in 1960 meant the adoption of a new national flag. This is very similar to that of other African nations, being based on the structure of the French tricolor and with a green star in the center.

Beyond the changes of government in the country and the differences between conservatives and liberals, Senegal has maintained the same flag since its separation from the Federation of Mali.

Current flag of Senegal (1960 - Present). Original upload by Nightstallion

Meaning

The tricolor of the Senegal flag is inspired by the same design as the flag of France, with the difference of the established colors. Each one has a special meaning that symbolizes some aspect of the culture of the Senegalese inhabitants.

The color green is the color of Islam, being the religion practiced by more than 90% of the country's population. Yellow symbolizes Senegal's progress and wealth after its independence from France. Red represents the life and determination of its inhabitants to fight for the progress of the nation.

In addition, the three colors are a representation of the three political parties that emerged in the government of Senegal after the independence of the country. They are the same colors that many African countries have and represent the union between nations as a consequence of their similar historical roots.

References

1. Flag of Senegal, Flagpedia Website, (nd). Taken from flagpedia.net
2. Flag of Senegal, Encyclopedia Britannica, 2018. Taken from britannica.com
3. History of Senegal, Wikipedia, 2019. Taken from wikipedia.org
4. History of the Flag of Senegal, Flagmakers UK Website, (nd). Taken from flagmakers.co.uk
5. Flag of Senegal, Wikipedia, 2019. Taken from wikipedia.org