Flag of Burkina Faso
Description
- Two equal horizontal bands of red (top) and green (bottom) with a yellow five-pointed star centred
- The colours are Pan-African, matching several neighbours including Ghana and Senegal
- Adopted on 4 August 1984 when Upper Volta was renamed Burkina Faso under Thomas Sankara
Trivia
- Replaced the black-white-red French-tricolour-inspired flag of Upper Volta on 4 August 1984
- Burkina Faso translates as 'Land of the Upright People' in Mossi and Dyula
- The design was promoted by revolutionary leader Thomas Sankara to break with the colonial past
Flag of Burkina Faso
Burkina Faso's flag features two equal horizontal bands of red over green with a yellow five-pointed star at the centre. Adopted on 4 August 1984, it replaced the black-white-red tricolour of Upper Volta when revolutionary leader Thomas Sankara renamed the country Burkina Faso, meaning 'Land of the Upright People'.
The design uses the Pan-African colours shared with many neighbours. Red recalls the revolution that transformed the country, green stands for hope and the agricultural wealth of the land, and the yellow star represents the guiding ideal of that revolution. Sankara chose the palette deliberately to sever the visual link with the former colonial power and align the young nation with African solidarity.
json:data
{
"g": "nf,africa",
"ns": "burkina-faso",
"id": "burkina-faso",
"index": "c/burkina-faso",
"title": "Flag of Burkina Faso",
"ratio": "2:3",
"colors": [
{
"color": "red",
"hex": "#EF2B2D",
"note": "Upper band evoking the revolution of 1983 that renamed the country Burkina Faso."
},
{
"color": "green",
"hex": "#009E49",
"note": "Lower band symbolising the hope and abundance of natural resources."
},
{
"color": "yellow",
"hex": "#FCD116",
"note": "Central five-pointed star representing the guiding light of the revolution."
}
],
"desc": "- Two equal horizontal bands of red (top) and green (bottom) with a yellow five-pointed star centred\n - The colours are Pan-African, matching several neighbours including Ghana and Senegal\n - Adopted on 4 August 1984 when Upper Volta was renamed Burkina Faso under Thomas Sankara",
"article": "burkina-faso/flag.md",
"use": {
"as": "national flag",
"since": "1984-08-04"
},
"of": {
"country": "burkina-faso"
},
"countryData": {
"name": "Burkina Faso",
"officialName": "Burkina Faso",
"continent": "africa",
"un": "member"
},
"trivia": "- Replaced the black-white-red French-tricolour-inspired flag of Upper Volta on 4 August 1984\n - Burkina Faso translates as 'Land of the Upright People' in Mossi and Dyula\n - The design was promoted by revolutionary leader Thomas Sankara to break with the colonial past\n",
"flag": "burkina-faso/flag.svg",
"_name": "Burkina Faso",
"_namespace": "burkina-faso",
"_namePart": ""
}