We explain what the Brazilian flag means and its changes throughout its history. Also, the coat of arms of Brazil and Flag Day.
What does the flag of Brazil mean?
Known as Auriverdethe Flag of Brazil, the main patriotic symbol of this South American nation, contains a symbology and a set of references that place it among the most striking flags on the continent. It is made up of a green rectangle (of proportion 7 to 10) on which there is a yellow rhombus in a horizontal position that has a blue circle inside. Inside the blue circle there is a wavy white stripe containing the motto Order and progress (“Order and progress” in Portuguese) and also twenty seven white stars distributed in its lower half.
As is common in Latin American flags, the meaning of the Brazilian flag It is strongly associated with the founding of the nation during the 19th century since with its appearance it sought to distance the young Brazilian nation from its former colonial condition, dependent on the Portuguese crown. In fact, the current flag of Brazil is a contemporary recreation of the flag of the Empire of Brazil created in 1820 by Jean-Baptiste Debret, and It was established when the Brazilian Republic was proclaimed in 1889.
The use of the Brazilian flag is solemn in its country and must be used strictly following the established proportions and design, and can be raised from dawn to dusk, or also at night, as long as it is properly illuminated.
History of the Brazilian flag
The first Brazilian flags emerged during the era of colonial Brazil that is, when its political and economic administration was in Portuguese hands. The first of them arose in 1645 and was typical of the then principality of Brazil but it served as inspiration for the creation of the flag of the Kingdom of Brazil in 1808, when the colonial authorities fled from Portugal occupied by Napoleon I to establish themselves in their American colonies.
Until the proclamation of Brazilian independence in 1822, the local flag consisted of variations of this same motif, which combined blue and white with the Portuguese royal coat of arms.
The history of the Brazilian flag itself begins in that same year, at the end of 1822 when Pedro I announced the separation of the ties that united Brazil with the Portuguese metropolis. The nascent Empire of Brazil, then, assumed as its own a flag in which a rectangular green pavilion already appeared (typical of the Braganza house, to which Don Pedro belonged) and a yellow rhombus in a horizontal position (typical of the house of the Habsburgs, family of Empress Maria Leopoldina).
In the center of this yellow rhombus was the imperial shield of Brazil, which combined a red cross with other traditional colonial emblems, a crown at the top of the shield and, for the first time, nineteen white stars in a thin blue circle, representing the first provinces. independent. In 1853 another star would be added by decree, when the province of Paraná was created. On the sides of the shield were two plants: coffee and tobacco, tied at the base of the shield with a yellow and green ribbon.
The Brazilian empire lasted until 1889, when through military and civil pressures the monarchy was overthrown and the Republic was proclaimed, so that The imperial flag had to be replaced by a republican flag which was initially a kind of Brazilian translation of the American flag, since initially the nation would be called the Republic of the United States of Brazil.
Therefore, it was a flag with rectangular stripes that alternated between green and yellow, except for a blue box in the upper left corner, within which there were 21 white stars.
This flag, however, It was only used from November 15 to November 19, 1889. From then on, certain changes proposed by Raimundo Teixeira Mendes, Miguel Lemos and Manuel Pereira Reis, members of the Positivist Church, of great national influence at that time, were applied.
This is how it was obtained the second republican flag of Brazil, adopted by decree of the Provisional Government and raised for the first time in Rio de Janeiro. This last design would be the pattern of the current flag, to which six stars were added since 1992, thus reaching a total of 27.
Meaning of colors, shapes and stars
The set of elements of the Brazilian flag reflect its rich history and the cultural elements that marked its origin, so it is advisable to study them separately:
- The colors. The dominant colors of the Brazilian flag are yellow and green, each of which represents the houses of the first emperors of Brazil, Dom Pedro and Maria Leopoldina, who belonged to the house of Braganza (green) and the Habsburgs ( yellow) respectively. By using these colors, the new empire moved away from the traditional black and white of European empires, and the blue and white of the Portuguese crown.
Furthermore, these two colors symbolized the fertility and abundance of the New World, which in an agricultural power like Brazil, translated into wealth and prosperity. For its part, the blue of the circle refers to the sky of Rio de Janeiro at the time when Brazilian independence was proclaimed.
- The shapes. The shapes of the Brazilian flag are inherited from its colonial flags: the usual rectangle in the flags of the West, and the rhombus in the center crowned no longer by the imperial emblem, but by the sky vault of Rio de Janeiro as it was. on November 15, 1889, when the republic was proclaimed. The 27 stars, each of which represents a Brazilian province of the federation, appear forming real constellations and reproducing the Brazilian sky, which extends to the northern hemisphere.
- The registration. The central inscription in the blue circle of the flag, “order and progress”, belongs to the Positivist Church and pays tribute to the contribution of positivist thought in the founding of the Brazilian republic. It comes from Auguste Comte's quote: L'amour pour principe et l'ordre pour base; progress pour but (“Love as a principle, order as a basis, progress as an end” in French).
State flags of Brazil
In addition to the flag of the brazilian republic, which identifies the entire federation, Each of the provinces of Brazil has its own state flag, so there are 26 provincial flags and one of the Federal District. The difference in styles, colors and shapes between these flags is very significant, since some were inspired by the first republican flag of Brazil, while others point to variations of the second.
Flag Day
In Brazil Flag Day is celebrated on November 19 of each year, and on those days the flag is raised and lowered solemnly at 12 and 6 p.m.
shield of brazil
The Coat of Arms of Brazil is another of its national symbols, created together with the republican flag in 1889. It consists of a red, green and yellow star, a symbol of national unity which has in the center a celestial circle with 20 white stars. All crossed by the edge of a sword pointed upwards, which represents justice, and surrounded by two plants on its sides: one of coffee and the other of tobacco, the main agricultural products of Brazil in 1889.
The whole rests on a background of yellow stripes, like beams of light from a dawning sun, which symbolizes the birth of a luminous republic. At the foot of the shield, a blue ribbon has the inscription: “Federative Republic of Brazil” and “November 15, 1889”, the date on which the republic was proclaimed.
Continue with: Brazilian Independence Day
References
- “Flag of Brazil” in Wikipedia.
- “Federative Republic of Brazil” in the Central American Integration System (SICA).
- “Things you might not have known about the Brazilian flag” in Milenio.
- “Flag of Brazil” in The Encyclopaedia Britannica.
