Honduras is a small country located in Central America. In the early sixteenth century Christopher Columbus sailed to the northern coast of Honduras, and 22 years later the Spaniards began full-scale colonization of the country. The country was only able to free itself from the invaders in 1821. That is when their first state symbols appeared.
This is what the flag of Honduras looks like:
History of the flag
The first flag of Honduras appeared on September 15, 1821, the moment the state declared its independence from Spain. The appearance of the first flag was very different from all the following ones. It was a cloth divided diagonally by three stripes: red, green and white. In the middle of the green (central) stripe was the coat of arms of Honduras. On the other strips there was one star each. This cloth was current until 1823, and then it was replaced by another, more similar to the modern one.
Perhaps the change of the state symbol was also due to the fact that after 1821, when Honduras declared its independence, the Spanish state did not recognize this fact for another three years, until 1823.
In 1823, the new symbol of Honduras was a cloth divided into three stripes: the upper and lower ones were blue and the center one was white. The coat of arms of the country was depicted in the center. This version was the official symbol of the country for only 1 year.
In 1824 the flag was replaced by the official symbol of the Federation of Central America, which differed from the flag of Honduras in that in the center of the cloth there was a seal of the Federation.
But already in 1839 the Federation ceased to exist, and Honduras had to change its symbols again. This time it abandoned the blue color in favor of bright blue. In addition, the coat of arms disappeared from the center of the cloth.
In 1866 Honduras changed its main symbol again. The top and bottom of the flag became sky-blue again, and five azure-colored stars appeared in the center of the cloth.
In 1898, the color of the stars was replaced by gold, but in 1949 they returned to a sky-blue hue and slightly changed the position of the stars. Since then, the official symbolism of the country has not changed.
The five stars added to the flag of Honduras in 1866 signified the five allied countries that were part of the Federation of Central America. This was done in the hope that the countries of the union might one day unite again.
Description
The flag of Honduras is a rectangular cloth whose sides have a ratio of 2 to 1. The cloth is divided horizontally into three equal parts with two shades. In the center of the flag are five stars that form the letter H: two stars on the left and two on the right, the fifth in the center of the cloth.
Flag colours
The three stripes on the flag of Honduras have two colors: bright blue and white. The lower and upper parts of the cloth are painted bright blue. The central part is white. The stars depicted in the center of the cloth as well as the edges of the flag have a bright blue hue.
Meaning of colors and flag symbol
The bright blue color of the stripes symbolizes the waters of the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea that surround Honduras. The white color symbolizes peace and prosperity. The five stars represent the five states of the former Federation of Central America, which, apart from Honduras, included El Salvador, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, and Guatemala.
The five stars signify not only the states themselves, which were once part of the Federation of Central America, but also their history, which has been closely intertwined over the many years of neighborhood.
Having escaped the power of Spain in the nineteenth century, Honduras changed many flags, and only finally adopted its national symbolism in 1949. But to this day, this small state strives for peace and prosperity, which its flag symbolizes.
General information about Honduras
Official language | Spanish |
Capital | Tegucigalpa |
Territory | 112,090 km2 |
Population | 8,448,465 people |
Currency | Lempira |
Phone Code | +504 |