Angola Flag

The official name of Angola is the Republic of Angola. They have a population of over twelve million people with their capital city of Luanda having over two million inhabitants.

On November 11, 1975 at independence, Angola started using the national flag of Angola. The Angola flag, divided horizontally, has a black lower half and a red upper half. Like several other African countries, the Angola flag is a similar to the ruling party’s flag. First, the guerilla movement and later the MPLA or Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola used the exact design that had a golden star in the center. The meaning of the Angolan flag is the black standing for Africa and the red for socialism. Sponsored by the Movement for the Liberation of Angola, they modeled this after the Soviet Unions red star.

Later, information on the Angolian flag changed and become less party wise. The Angola flag symbol now had the red on the flag signifying the Angolans blood spilt during Angola’s independence struggles and the continent of Africa symbolized by the black. The symbol in the middle of flags of Angola changed to a crossed cogwheel representing industry and workers, a machete, which symbolized Angola’s peasantry, and a red star. They adapted this flag when they had a Marxist government in Angola. This was though to evoke the common Communism symbol of the hammer and sickle image found on the former Soviet Union’s flag.

Although some people in Angola have Angola flag wallpapers or the Angola flag and soccer logo, the flag of Angola has remained controversial. Some believe it is an overly political symbol similar with the Movement for the Liberation of Angola’s party flag. Others criticize the Angola flag symbols as standing for memories of the countries violent, bloody past instead of promise, and hope for the future.

Although they proposed a more optimistic Angola flag in 2003, to date they have not formally adopted this flag. The sun design placed in the center is remindful of Tchitundo-Hulu cave paintings. The proportions of the flag will remain the same, while the flag is radically different in symbolism and design. Many of the people in Angola are against the new flag proposal because they believe it has no real significant meaning, unlike the current flags historical associations. Others feel that because it resembles the flag of Costa Rica and other national flags, the proposed Angola flag will not be unique to Angola.