Flag of Dominica

The flag of Dominica was adopted on November 3, 1978, with some small changes being made in 1981, 1988, and 1990. The flag features a green background. A red circle at the centre features a Sisserou Parrot ("Amazona imperialis") surrounded by ten green stars, which represent the island's ten parishes. Four strips of three coloured bands (yellow, black and white) radiate horizontally and vertically from the circle.

Before 1981, the colours of the bands were ordered differently and the green stars had no borders. Before 1988, the parrot faced in the opposite direction. In 1990, the colour of the stars, originally lime green, was darkened to match the green of the background, the yellow border around the stars was changed to black, the coloration of the parrot was brought more into alignment with reality, and some proportions were changed. There seems to be, generally, a lack of standardisation on many minor points of the flag in Dominica.

The flag's elements have symbolic meanings. The parrot is Dominica's national bird, meant to inspire citizens to soar to achieve their highest goals. In addition to representing the island's parishes, the stars also symbolise hope and equality. The combined lines form a cross, reflecting Dominica's Christian faith, and the three lines individually represent the Trinity. The flag's colours were also chosen for their associations: green - the island's verdant landscape; red - social justice; yellow - sunshine, agriculture; black - earth, African ancestry; white - clear waters, purity. The flag, adopted in 1978, features the national bird emblem, the sisserou parrot, which also appears on the coat of arms granted July 21, 1961. This parrot is unique to Dominica. It is an endangered species; only a few pairs remain. The green field represents the lush vegetation of the island. The cross represents the Trinity and the Christian faith, and its 3 colors recall the native Indians, the fertile soil, and the pure water. The 10 stars stand for the 10 parishes (St. Andrew, St. David, St. George, St. John, St. Joseph, St. Luke, St. Mark, St. Patrick, St. Paul, St. Peter) and the red disk for social justice.

Historical Designs

References

*FOTW|id=dm|title=Dominica
*FOTW|id=dm_col|title=Dominica - Colonial Flags