Flag of Lesotho

Flag origins

Lesotho's flag has blue, white and green horizontal bands with a black mokorotlo, the traditional Basotho conical hat, at the center. Adopted on the fortieth anniversary of independence, 4 October 2006, it associates blue with sky and rain, white with peace, green with prosperity, and the hat with Basotho identity. The hat's shape is often linked to Qiloane mountain near Thaba Bosiu.

Flag story

The 1987–2006 flag displayed a shield, spear and knobkerrie following the 1986 military coup. In 2006, the peaceful hat emblem returned, recalling the first independence flag of 1966. The sequence—hat, weapons, then hat again—shows how changing national priorities can be expressed through a central symbol.

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.

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

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