Flag of Madagascar

The flag of Madagascar (Malagasy: sainan'i Madagasikara; French: drapeau de Madagascar) was adopted on 14 October 1958,[1] two years before the independence of that nation, as Madagascar prepared for a referendum on its status in the French Community.

Madagascar

Use	National flag and ensign
Proportion	2:3
Adopted	14 October 1958
Design	Two horizontal bands of red and green with a white vertical band on the hoist side
Variant flag of Madagascar
Use	Presidential standard
Proportion	2:3
Design	The National flag with the Seal of Madagascar in the center of the tri-point with the initials "R. M." in the canton.

The colors of the flag represent Madagascar's history and traditional peasant classes.[1] Red and white were the colors of the Merina kingdom, which succumbed to France in 1896. They were used in the flag of the last Merina monarch, Queen Ranavalona III. They may indicate the ethnic origins of the Malagasy people in Southeast Asia, and are shared by the flag of Indonesia. Green was the color of the Hova, the largest class of peasant commoners, who played a significant role in anti-French agitation and the independence movement.

Current flags

Ethnic

• 
  2:3 Flag of the Merina people (since 1997)[2]

Military

• 
  2:3 Flag of the Chief of Army Staff in the rank of Brigade General
• 
  2:3 Flag of the Chief of Army Staff in the rank of Divisional General
• 
  1:2 Pennant of the Chief of the Naval Air Force Staff in the rank of Commodore or below
• 
  1:2 Pennant of the Chief of the Naval Air Force Staff in the rank of Rear Admiral
• 
  1:2 Pennant of the Chief of the Naval Air Force Staff in the rank of Vice Admiral
• 
  1:2 Pennant of the Commander of a Naval Group
• 
  1:2 Pennant of the Commander of a Naval Base
• 
  1:20 Masthead pennant

Historical flags

• 
  2:3 Flag of the Antankarana Kingdom
• 
  2:3 Flag of the Antongil Kingdom
• 
  2:3 Flag of the Boina Kingdom, similar to the Peruvian flag
• 
  2:3 Flag of the Menabe Kingdom, similar to the Austrian flag
• 
  2:3 First flag of the Tamatave Kingdom, 1750–1819
• 
  2:3 Second flag of the Tamatave Kingdom, 1819-1822
• 
  2:3 Third flag of the Tamatave Kingdom, 1822-1826
• 
  2:3 Fourth and final flag of the Tamatave Kingdom, 1826-1828
• 
  2:3 Flag of the Tanibe Kingdom, 1822-1828
• 
  2:3 Standard of the Merina Kingdom, c. 1787–1885
• 
  2:3 Flag of the Merina Kingdom, c. 1810–1885, similar to the Polish flag
• 
  2:3 Flag of the Malagasy Protectorate, 1885–1896
• 
  2:3 The French tricolour of the colonial period, 1896–1958

Presidential Standards

Malagasy Republic

• 
  2:3 Philibert Tsiranana, 1959
• 
  2:3 Philibert Tsiranana, 1959–1972, obverse side
• 
  2:3 Philibert Tsiranana, 1959–1972, reverse side
• 
  2:3 Gabriel Ramanantsoa, 1972–1975, obverse side
• 
  2:3 Gabriel Ramanantsoa, 1972–1975, reverse side

Democratic Republic of Madagascar

• 
  2:3 Didier Ratsiraka, 1976–1993, obverse side
• 
  2:3 Didier Ratsiraka, 1976–1993, reverse side

Third Republic of Madagascar

• 
  2:3 Albert Zafy, 1993–1996, obverse side
• 
  2:3 Albert Zafy, 1993–1996, reverse side
• 
  2:3 Didier Ratsiraka, 1998–2002, obverse side
• 
  2:3 Didier Ratsiraka, 1998–2002, reverse side

See also

• Seal of Madagascar

References

1. https://www.worldatlas.com/webimage/flags/countrys/africa/madgscar.htm
2. Merina local flag (Madagascar). Flags of the World (2015-05-20). Retrieved on 2017-10-17.

External links

• Madagascar at Flags of the World
• Madagascar flag at Flagscorner