Flag of Papua New Guinea

Flag origins

Papua New Guinea's flag is divided diagonally into red at upper right and black at lower left. A yellow bird-of-paradise appears on red and five white Southern Cross stars on black. Educational explanations connect red, black and yellow with traditional art and dress, the bird with the nation taking flight, and the constellation with the Southern Hemisphere and South Pacific. Adopted on 1 July 1971, the flag predates independence from Australia in September 1975.

Flag story

Its designer, Susan Karike, was only fifteen. An earlier official proposal using green, yellow and blue had attracted little support. At school on Yule Island, she drew the red-and-black design with the bird and stars on a notebook page in 1971. The committee selected it; the central bank also commemorated her youthful role when issuing fiftieth-anniversary independence currency.

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.

• Papua New Guinea — general information on Wikipedia
• Japan MOFA: countries and regions (Japanese)

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