A brief overview of the meaning, history, and key facts about the national flag of Somalia.
Flag of Somalia
The national flag of Somalia consists of a light blue field with a white five-pointed star at the center. The blue background represents life and the natural resources found along Somalia’s long coastline on the Indian Ocean and the Red Sea. The white star symbolizes the Somali people’s love for peace and unity. Its five points represent the historical divisions of Somali territories created during the colonial period.
Printable Somalia Flag (PNG Download)
Interesting facts about Somalia’s flag
1. Somalia celebrates Flag Day on October 12, commemorating the creation of the Somali flag on 12 October 1954.
2. The flag was designed by Mohamed Awale Liban, who presented the design to Somalia’s Legislative Council.
3. The flag was adopted after discussions between the Constitutional Council of Somalia, the United Nations, and Italy, before the country gained independence.
4. The blue color of the flag was chosen in tribute to the United Nations, who helped form the country of Somalia.
Explore more about Somalia:
History of Somalia’s flag
Creation of the national flag
In 1954, during the period when Somalia was administered as a United Nations trust territory under Italian administration, a legislative council was established to prepare laws for the future independent state.
Mohamed Awale Liban, representing the Somali labor trade union in the council, proposed that Somalia should adopt a national flag so that the people could become familiar with it before independence.
Liban designed the flag with a light blue background and a white five-pointed star, explaining that the blue color represented peace and the United Nations while the white star represented the five regions inhabited by Somali people.
The design was presented to the legislative council and received strong support from Somali members.
Independence and national adoption
The flag continued to be used when British Somaliland gained independence on 26 June 1960.
A few days later, Italian Somaliland gained independence on 1 July 1960, and the two territories united to form the Somali Republic.
The same flag became the national flag of the newly independent country.
Caitriona Maria is an education writer and owner of The Facts Institute. With seven years of teaching experience and a background in educational content, she specialises in creating clear reference resources about countries, geography and global topics.