Bolivia - Current

The current flag of Bolivia was originally adopted by Bolivia on 31st October 1851 and confirmed on 14th July 1888 [1]. The state flag and ensign (and war flag) is a horizontal tricolour of red, yellow, and green with the Bolivian coat of arms in the centre. The civil flag and ensign of Bolivia omits the coat of arms.

The colours of the flag are given as; red Pantone 485c,green Pantone 356c, and yellow is Pantone Process Yellow [3], or Pantone 107c [4].

One source, gives the symbolism of the colours as red for Bolivia's brave soldiers, while the green symbolizes fertility and yellow the nation's mineral deposits [2]. Another mentions the symbolism of the colours, as patriotic bloodshed, nature’s bounty, and verdure and hope [7].

The ratio of the flag is widely excepted to be 2:3 [5]. However it is also officially stated as 7.5:11(or 15:22) [6].

The Coat of Arms of Bolivia consists of an oval shield depicting a landscape with a stylized illustration of Mount Potosi in bright sunshine and, in the foreground, a South American alpaca, a breadfruit tree, and a wheat sheaf, with a forest and a house in the middle distance. The upper golden border of the oval bears the name of the country BOLIVIA in red letters, and the lower blue border is charged with ten gold five-pointed stars representing the departments of the country. Behind the oval there are two crossed cannon barrels, six Bolivian flags, four rifles, a Phrygian cap of liberty, an Inca battle-axe and a laurel wreath; perched on the oval shield is an Andean condor[8][9]. A extra star was added to symbolise the lost department of Litoral, Bolivia’s only access to the sea. Bolivia still claims this territory, which was lost in the Pacific War (1879-1884) to Chile[10].

Coat of Arms







A Wiphala [wiˈphala] is to be established as the dual flag of Bolivia along with the red, yellow, and green banner in the newly drafted and proposed Bolivian constitution to be ratified by national referendum on 25th January 2009. It is a square emblem, commonly used as a flag, representing the native peoples of the central Andes and Bolivian Amazon region of South America[11][12].

The Wiphala consists of seven colours the meanings of which are; red: the earth and the Andean man, orange: society and culture, yellow: energy, white: time, green: natural resources, blue: the heavens and violet: Andean government and self-determination[13].

Wiphala









[1] Ollé, Flags of the World - http://www.fotw.net/flags/bo.html
[2] Whitney Smith, Flags through the Ages and Across the World, McGraw-Hill Book Co.: New York, (1975)
[3] Art. 3 of the flag law - http://www.comunica.gov.bo/cgi-bin/index.cgi?m2004073005
[4] Official model of the Naval Ensign - http://www.fotw.net/flags/bo~.html
[5] Armand du Payrat, Album des pavillons nationaux et des marques distinctive, S.H.O.M. (Service Hydrographique et Océanographique de la Marine): Brest, (2000)
[6] Art. 2 of the flag law - http://www.comunica.gov.bo/cgi-bin/index.cgi?m2004073053
[7] Art. 1 of the flag law - http://www.comunica.gov.bo/cgi-bin/index.cgi?m2004073053
[8] Ludvík Mucha, Webster’s concise Encyclopedia of flags & coats of Arms, Crescent Books: New York,(1985)
[9] Noah Webster; William Torrey Harris, Webster’s new international dictionary of the English language, G. & C. Merriam Co.: Springfield, Mass. U.S(1924)
[10] Fischer, Flags of the World - http://www.fotw.net/flags/bo).html
[11] "Bandera indígena boliviana es incluida como símbolo patrio en nueva Constitución", United Press International. - http://espanol.upi.com/Politica/2008/10/22/bandera_indgena_boliviana_es_incluida_como_smbolo_patrio_en_nueva_constitucin/9741/
[12] Nueva Constitución Política del Estado, 2007 - http://www.scribd.com/doc/6056118/Nueva-Constitucion-Politica-de-Bolivia-Texto-completo-aprobado-2007
[13] Wikipedia - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wiphala#cite_note-0