Flag of Sierra Leone

What the flag means

No law gives the colours a meaning. They were taken from the coat of arms granted in 1960. The usual explanation is green for agriculture and the mountains, white for unity and justice, and blue for the natural harbour at Freetown.

History

The College of Arms in London approved the coat of arms in 1960, ahead of independence, and the flag was made from its colours. It replaced the British Blue Ensign with the colony's badge and was first hoisted at midnight on 27 April 1961, independence day. A 1963 law made it an offence to insult the national flag.

Apart from its lighter shades, the flag is almost the same as the flag of Ecuador's Galápagos Province.

Earlier flags of Sierra Leone

1. 1916–1961British Blue Ensign with the colonial badge of a ship arriving in harbour

Flags of Sierra Leone's neighbours

• Guinea
• Liberia