Flag of Ecuador

Flag origins

Ecuador’s flag has yellow-blue-red horizontal bands, with yellow twice as wide as either other band and a central coat of arms. Its tricolour descends from independence pioneer Francisco de Miranda’s flag, sharing roots with Colombia and Venezuela. Yellow represents wealth and fertile land, blue the sea and sky, and red blood shed by soldiers and martyrs in the independence war. The arms show an Andean condor above, Chimborazo volcano and the Guayas River at the center, and the steamship Guayas on the river. The ship is described as the first steamship built in South America, in 1841.

Flag story

Ecuador, Colombia and Venezuela resemble one another because they, with present-day Panama and other areas, once formed Gran Colombia. Each inherited the independence movement’s yellow-blue-red colors. Ecuador’s Foreign Ministry also explains their common origin and present distinguishing details. After the revolution of 1845, Ecuador temporarily used a different white-and-light-blue flag. It returned to the tricolour in 1860, and specifications underlying the present design were formally settled in 1900.

Editorial notes and references

Edited by ABELHA WORKS. The English text translates the administrator-edited Japanese description. Legends should be distinguished from documented history. General reference links do not substantiate every statement in the text.

• Ecuador — general information on Wikipedia
• Japan MOFA: countries and regions (Japanese)

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