Flag of Ecuador

What the flag means

Ecuadorian government sources give yellow for crops and fertile soil, blue for the ocean and sky, and red for the blood of the independence heroes. The arms show Mount Chimborazo, the Guayas river with the steamship Guayas, and a sun with the zodiac signs for March to July, a reference to the March Revolution of 1845.

History

After the Battle of Guayaquil, Gabriel García Moreno brought back the Gran Colombia colours on 26 September 1860, replacing a white and blue flag with stars. The date is now Flag Day. A decree of 1900 added the coat of arms for official use and left the plain flag to the merchant navy. Regulations issued by the National Secretariat of Communication in November 2009 fixed the size at 2.20 by 1.47 metres, a 2:3 ratio.

The 1900 decree limited only the merchant navy to the plain flag, so Ecuadorians commonly fly the version with the coat of arms.

Earlier flags of Ecuador

1. 1820–1822First national flag: five blue and white stripes, three white stars in the middle
2. 1845–1860Vertical white, blue and white bands with white stars on the blue
3. 1860–1900Yellow, blue and red bands without the coat of arms

Flags that look like this one

ColombiaEcuadorVenezuela

All three are yellow, blue and red. Colombia's yellow stripe fills the top half. Ecuador uses the same layout with its coat of arms in the centre. Venezuela has three equal stripes and an arc of eight white stars.

Flags of Ecuador's neighbours

• Colombia
• Peru