Colors and the Meaning of the Ethiopia Flag
The Ethiopian flag, inspired by Pan-African colors, was first used in the 19th century. The flag with the emblem was first used on 6 February 1996. The flag, which was frequently revised with the changes in the regime in the country, took its current form with the change made on 28 August 2009.
The flag is composed of green, yellow and red colors in three horizontal stripes from top to bottom. In the center of the flag is the coat of arms of the country consisting of five-pointed stars and light. The green color symbolizes the country’s fertile land, while the yellow color expresses love for its homeland, while the red color expresses power and the spilled blood in the battle against the oppression.
In the middle of the flag, the blue ground within the circle embraces peace and democracy, the five-pointed star symbolizes all ethnic groups, sexes, and beliefs in the country, while the five equal-length beam is an indicator of Ethiopia’s bright future.
History of the Ethiopia Flag
In 1914, green, yellow and red were used for the flag of the Ethiopian Empire. Ethiopia began to use the flag designed by Menelik II on October 6, 1897, a year after he had defended himself from the Italian colony at the Battle of Adwa. This flag was made up of three tri-colored pennants and Menelik’s initial letter found its place in the middle pennant. In 1914 the flag was converted into the current flag. The three-color scheme of the flag has existed since the beginning of the 19th century and red, yellow and green colors have been of particular importance since the beginning of the 17th century.
The royal flag usually carried the emblem of the Judas Lion, a crowned lion carrying a cross, centered in the yellow stripe of the flag. The flag had a connection between the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church, the peoples of Ethiopia and the united nation. The cross carried by the lion is the old flag and symbol of Ethiopia and has been used at least since the beginning of the 17th century. While the red color was now at the bottom of the horizontal stripes, this was the exact opposite of the mid-19th century. The emblem was added to the flag in 1996.
Pan-African Colours and Emblem of Ethiopia
What color symbolizes depends on perspective. However, the red usually represents the spilled blood in the defense of Ethiopia. Yellow represents peace and harmony between the various ethnic and religious groups of Ethiopia. Green is said to symbolize hope or fertility. A few newly established countries in Africa, after gaining independence from the colonial administration, used these three colors on their own flag, respecting Ethiopia’s resistance to foreign occupation. At the same time, colors are often referred to as Pan-African colors.
As before, even before 1996, the flat flag was widespread throughout the country and the world. In Ethiopia, especially during the Derg regime, a number of different emblems were tried. However, the basic color scheme remained constant. Even after declaring a communist regime, Derg did not dare to disrupt the order of colors. But after the overthrow of Haile Selassie, he took out and changed the imperial emblem. One of the alternative emblems was an emblem wrapped around wreath leaves. This emblem formed the infrastructure of the current emblem.
In 2009, Ethiopia banned the use of unlabeled flags with a law. The use of flags without emblems, the use of different sizes of the emblem, the use of colors and emblems as inappropriate use of the prohibited use. According to the law, those who do not comply with these provisions are punished with serious money and imprisonment.
Neighboring Countries of Ethiopia
The neighbors of Ethiopia, the only truly non-colonized country of the African continent, are Djibouti and Somalia in the east, Eritrea in the northeast, Sudan and South Sudan in the west, and Kenya in the south.
Main Characteristics of Ethiopia
The Ethiopian Federal Democratic Republic is an African country with many ethnic groups. The country, formerly known as Abyssinia, is known as the oldest civilization in history. Therefore, there are historical structures that may be of interest to you. Addis Ababa is the capital, but it is also the largest city in the country. It is the second most populated country in Africa. The official language is Amharic, which has an alphabet quite different from the Latin alphabet. They use Ethiopian Birr as currency.
Tropical monsoon climate is dominant. The temperature varies between 20-40 degrees during the year. There are long monsoon rains in the country. Beef, chicken meat and sheep are the most delicious dishes in Ethiopian cuisine. They take care of the use of spices in their meals. Vegetable stew called Shiro wat is also among the most popular flavors.
| Country | Ethiopia |
| Code | ET (ETH) |
| Calling Code | 251 |
| Capital City | Addis Ababa |
| Currency | ethiopian birr (ETB) |
| Emoji Symbol | 🇪🇹 |
| Highest Point | Ras Dejen (4,550 m) |
| Internet TLD | .et |
| Population(2017) | 104,957,438 |
| Total Area | 1,104,300 km2 |