Flag of Gabon

History

The French gained control of modern-day Gabon in 1839, when a local chief surrendered the sovereignty of his land to them. The Berlin Conference of 1885 solidified France's claim to the territory through diplomatic recognition, and it later became part of French Equatorial Africa in 1910. Under French colonial rule over Gabon, the authorities forbade the colony from utilizing its own distinctive colonial flag. This was because they were worried that this could increase nationalistic sentiment and lead to calls for independence. However, with the rise of the decolonization movement in Africa, the French were obliged to grant limited autonomy to Gabon as a self-governing republic within the French Community. This was granted in 1958 after a referendum was held supporting the proposal.

Gabon – considered "one of the more progressive" of French colonies – swiftly formulated a design for a new flag, which was officially adopted a year later in 1959. It featured a horizontal tricolour identical to the current flag,

On 9 August 1960 – just over a week before Gabon became an independent country on 17 August – the flag was slightly modified. The change entailed removing the Tricolour at the canton and enlarging the yellow stripe at the centre, thus giving it equal width with the two other bands.

Design

Symbolism

The colours and symbols of the flag carry cultural, political, and regional meanings. The yellow alludes to the Equator – which cuts across the country The green epitomizes the natural resources of Gabon, as well as its "extensive forested area" that the Gabonese people are economically dependent on in the form of lumber. The blue represents the sea, specifically the South Atlantic Ocean along which the country has an "extensive coast". While Whitney Smith in the Encyclopædia Britannica and Dorling Kindersley's Complete Flags of the World describe the centre band as solely yellow, The World Factbook characterizes it as both yellow and gold.

Distinctiveness

The proportions of Gabon's flag are 3:4. and San Marino. Furthermore, the country's flag does not utilize the green, yellow and red colours of the Pan-Africanist movement, in contrast to its neighbouring countries. Unlike other former French colonies in Africa, the flag consists of a horizontal tricolour, rather than a vertical one modelled after the flag of France.

Colours

The colours on the Gabonese flag are:

Presidential flags

Naval flags

Ethnic group flags

Provincial flags

Municipal flags

Historical flags

References

References

1. "History of Gabon". Lonely Planet.
2. (15 January 2014). "Gabon profile". BBC.
3. Smith, Whitney. (19 July 2013). "Flag of Gabon". Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc..
4. Kindersley Ltd., Dorling. (6 January 2009). "Complete Flags of the World". Penguin.
5. Brooke, James. (23 February 1988). "Gabon Keeps Strong Links With France". The New York Times.
6. Weinstein, Brian. (1 May 2014). "Gabon – French control". Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc..
7. "PNG Flag and National Anthem". Government of Papua New Guinea.
8. Smith, Whitney. (July 28, 2013). "Flag of San Marino". Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc..
9. (2004). "Europa World Year". Taylor & Francis Group.
10. "Gabon".
11. "Gabon – Naval Flags".