Flag of Brazil
The Auriverde, or the national flag of Brazil has green background with a yellow colored diamond (rhombus) shape at the center. A blue colored circle is situated at the core of the rhombus with twenty seven white stars and an arched banner running across it. The arched banner has a motto (written in Portuguese) imprinted on it, which says “Ordem e Progresso”, which means “Order and Progress”. The green field stands for the country’s grasslands and forests. The yellow indicates the gold found in Brazil. The stars symbolize the states and capital of Brazil.
The current flag was officially adopted on November 19, 1889. The current national flag and ensign preserves the same drawing with some small changes. This 27-star edition was implemented on May 12, 1992.
Symbolism :
The design for Brazil’s current flag was taken from the flag of the former Brazilian Empire. The imperial flag also consists of the colors green and yellow. The green symbolizes the Imperial House of Braganza where Pedro I, the first emperor of Brazil, hailed his lineage. Yellow is the symbolic color of the House of Habsburg or Empress Leopoldina’s family. Found at the center of the imperial flag is the Imperial Coat of Arms.
Colors and the shapes on the current Brazilian flag stands for the following:
- Green field: Represents the country’s verdant rain forests.
- Yellow rhombus: Symbolizes the country’s mineral wealth.
- Blue circle: Represents the sky over Rio de Janeiro on the morning of the declaration of Brazil’s Independence.
- White stars: Represents the night sky on the day Brazil gained its independence. Each star also represents a Brazilian state and the Federal District. Representing the latter is the 'Sigma Octantis', where its location near the south celestial pole makes it visible to most of Brazil all-year round.
Colors
Scheme |
Green |
Yellow |
Blue |
White |
RGB |
0/146/62 |
248/193/0 |
40/22/111 |
255/255/255 |
Pantone |
PMS 355 |
PMS Yellow |
PMS 280 |
None |
Stars
The Brazilian flag currently contains 27 stars. A new star is added for each newly created state. The original flag had 21 stars as there were 21 states during the founding of the Brazilian Republic.
The following are the stars and constellations found on the flag and their respective representations:
- Southern Cross: located at the meridian and represents the states of São Paulo, Minas Gerais, Rio de Janeiro, Espírito Santo, and the northeastern state of Bahia;
- Polaris Australis (Sigma Octantis): located south of the Southern Cross and represents the Federal District;
- Scorpius: represents the northeastern states of Sergipe, Alagoas, Pernambuco, Paraiba, Rio Grande do Norte, Ceara, Maranhao, and Piaui;
- Triangulum Australe: represents the southern states of Rio Grande do Sul, Parana, and Santa Catarina;
- Hydra: represents Mato Grosso do Sul and Acre;
- Canis Major: represents the northern states of the Amazon basin, as well as the states of Rondônia, Tocantins, Roraima, and Amapá;
- Procyon: represents Amazonas;
- Spica: represents Pará;
- Canopus: represents Goiás; and
- Star above the band: represents the northern state of Para.
History
The current Brazilian flag was officially adopted on November 19, 1889 after the establishment of the Brazilian Republic. Prior to this, a different flag was used from November 15 to 19, 1889. This was designed by Ruy Barbosa and had features that were strongly inspired by the flag of the United States.
The then acting president Deodoro de Fonseca rejected Ruy Barbosas’s design on November 19, 1889. He suggested that the republican flag should bear a resemblance to the old imperial flag. Deodoro da Fonseca wanted to reassert the continuity of national unity during Brazil’s transition from a constitutional monarchy to a republic. The officially adopted flag was designed by Raimundo Teixeira Mendes.
