Flag of South Africa
CountryFlag of South Africa uses horizontal bands with a green horizontal Y and a black hoist triangle. Ratio 2:3, current adoption April 27, 1994 and design credited to Frederick Brownell.
Flag Reference
| Flag | Flag of South Africa |
|---|---|
| Entity Type | Country |
| Official Name | Republic of South Africa |
| Identifier | ZA / ZAF |
| Region | Southern Africa |
Flag Specifications
| Current Adoption | April 27, 1994 |
|---|---|
| First Documented Use | 1994 |
| Proportion | 2:3 |
| Shape | Rectangle |
| Colours | Red, White, Blue, Green, Yellow, Black |
| Designer | Frederick Brownell |
| Construction | Horizontal bands with a green horizontal Y and a black hoist triangle |
| Common Name | The Rainbow Flag |
Documented Colour Values
| Colour | Appearance | HEX | RGB | CMYK |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Red | #DE3831 | 222, 56, 49 | 0, 75, 78, 13 | |
| White | #FFFFFF | 255, 255, 255 | 0, 0, 0, 0 | |
| Blue | #002395 | 0, 35, 149 | 100, 77, 0, 42 | |
| Green | #007A4D | 0, 122, 77 | 100, 0, 37, 52 | |
| Yellow | #FFB612 | 255, 182, 18 | 0, 29, 93, 0 | |
| Black | #000000 | 0, 0, 0 | 0, 0, 0, 100 |
Design and Symbolism
| Red | bloodshed in the country’s history. |
|---|---|
| White | peace and European heritage. |
| Blue | the open sky. |
| Green | the fertility of the land. |
| Yellow | the mineral wealth. |
| Black | the people of South Africa. |
| Converging Y | The convergence of diverse elements of society taking the road ahead in unity — designed in a week and first flown at the 1994 election. |
Proportions
| Ratio | 2:3 |
|---|---|
| Hoist | 2 units |
| Fly | 3 units |
Verification sources
- Flags of the World — South Africa — Specialist vexillological reference
Other y-shaped pall flags
See all
Facts about the Flag of South Africa
- South Africa is recorded as horizontal bands with a green horizontal Y and a black hoist triangle.
- The reference proportion for the flag of South Africa is 2:3.
- The stored palette for South Africa contains Red, White, Blue, Green, Yellow and Black.
- The adoption field for this country flag record is April 27, 1994.
- The design record traces first use to 1994.
- Frederick Brownell is credited in the dataset as the designer of the flag.
- Its construction is grouped with the y-shaped pall design family in this library.
- Converging Y: The convergence of diverse elements of society taking the road ahead in unity — designed in a week and first flown at the 1994 election.
- The six colours make this the most colourful national flag in the world.
- It was designed by State Herald Frederick Brownell in early 1994, after a public competition and a national symbols commission had both failed to produce anything, and was intended to be temporary.
Frequently Asked Questions about the Flag of South Africa
What does the flag of South Africa look like?
Horizontal bands with a green horizontal Y and a black hoist triangle, with a recorded proportion of 2:3.
What proportion is recorded for the flag of South Africa?
The reference proportion stored for this flag is 2:3.
Which colours are recorded for the flag of South Africa?
The reference palette lists Red #DE3831, White #FFFFFF, Blue #002395, Green #007A4D, Yellow #FFB612 and Black #000000.
What do the symbols on the flag of South Africa represent?
Converging Y — The convergence of diverse elements of society taking the road ahead in unity — designed in a week and first flown at the 1994 election.
When was the present flag record for South Africa adopted?
The adoption field in this record is April 27, 1994.
Who designed the flag of South Africa?
The designer is recorded as Frederick Brownell.
Which design family does the flag of South Africa belong to?
WorldFlags.online groups it with y-shaped pall designs for visual browsing; that classification describes construction, not necessarily historical ancestry.