Ethiopia

Ethiopia
Flag of Ethiopia
Designer	Abebe Alambo
Adopted	31 October 1996 (current, modified 16 May 2009)
Wikipedia article
Flags of the World article

The flag of Ethiopia (Amharic: የኢትዮጵያ ሰንደቅ ዐላማ, romanized: Ye-Ītyōṗṗyā sändäq ʿälama) is the national flag of Ethiopia.

Design

The flag consists of a green, yellow, and red tricolour with the national emblem, a golden pentagram on a blue disc, superimposed at the center. While the colors green, yellow, and red in combination held symbolic importance since at least the early 17th century, the modern tricolour was first adopted on 11 October 1897 by Menelik II, and the present flag on 31 October 1996.

Symbolism

Green	represents labor, development, and fertility.
Yellow	represents hope.
Red	represents the blood in defense of Ethiopia.
Blue	the circular blue background of the Emblem signifies peace.

Ethiopian Tricolor (without emblem)

The civil flag of Ethiopia, until it was outlawed in 2009, continues to be used in Ethiopia by some opposition groups to the government, by the Ethiopian diaspora and during Ethiopian Orthodox Christian holidays.

Historical Flags

Pennants of the Ethiopian Empire prior to the 1870s. The traditional colours were displayed on war flags and by the church prior to the first official state flag.

Flag of Ethiopia (1897–1913). Menelik II, on 6 October 1897, ordered for a rectangular tricolour consisting of, from top to bottom, red, yellow, and green, with ም,the first Ethiopic letter of his name in the middle, which lasted until his death.

Flag of the Ethiopian Empire with the Lion of Judah (a symbol of the Solomonic dynasty dating back to medieval times), otherwise known as the imperial flag (1870?–1897, 1913–1936, 1941–1974). It remains popular with the Rastafari movement, monarchists, and Ethiopian nationalists.

Blank tricolor of the Ethiopian Empire which was flown alongside the imperial flag after the reign of Menelik. In tradition, the reversed colors are said to have first been used, exclusively, during times of war, but the reason behind the design change is unknown.

War Ensign of the Imperial Ethiopian Navy (1955–1974), was based upon the Blue Ensign.

Flag of Ethiopia (1974–1975), modified after Haile Selassie's overthrow by removing the crown from the lion's head and by changing the cross tip to a spear point

War Ensign of the Imperial Ethiopian Navy (1974–1975).

State flag under the Derg (1975–1987).

Civil flag of Ethiopia (1975–1987).

The flag of the People's Democratic Republic of Ethiopia (1987–1991) introduced the current ratio of 1:2.

The civil flag of the Transitional Government of Ethiopia (1991–1996).

The state flag of the Transitional Government of Ethiopia, adopted on 28 May 1992.

The flag of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia from 1996 to 2009.

The current flag, used since 2009.

Flag Redesigns

Ethiopian SSR Flag by Simple_Bar2538.