Flag of Sri Lanka - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The flag
Flag
A flag is a piece of fabric with a distinctive design that is usually rectangular and used as a symbol, as a signaling device, or decoration. The term flag is also used to refer to the graphic design employed by a flag, or to its depiction in another medium.The first flags were used to assist...

of Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...

, also called the Lion Flag, consists of a gold lion, holding a kastane sword

Kastane

Kastane is a short curved single-edged sword of Sri Lanka.Kastanes often have elaborate hilts, especially shaped as lion heads.They first arise in the Kandyan Kingdom , likely inspired by the Portuguese period in Ceylon and as such in origin imitations of European Renaissance weapons.This type...

in its right fore paw, in front of a crimson background with four golden bo leaves, one in each corner. Around the background is a yellow border, and to its left are 2 vertical stripes of equal size in saffron

Saffron

Saffron is a spice derived from the flower of Crocus sativus, commonly known as the saffron crocus. Crocus is a genus in the family Iridaceae. Each saffron crocus grows to and bears up to four flowers, each with three vivid crimson stigmas, which are each the distal end of a carpel...

and green

Green

Green is a color, the perception of which is evoked by light having a spectrum dominated by energy with a wavelength of roughly 520–570 nanometres. In the subtractive color system, it is not a primary color, but is created out of a mixture of yellow and blue, or yellow and cyan; it is considered...

, with the saffron stripe closest to the lion. The lion represents the Sinhalese

Sinhalese people

The Sinhalese are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group,forming the majority of Sri Lanka,constituting 74% of the Sri Lankan population.They number approximately 15 million worldwide.The Sinhalese identity is based on language, heritage and religion. The Sinhalese speak Sinhala, an Indo-Aryan language and the...

ethnicity and the bravery of the Sri Lankan nation while the four Bo leaves represent Mettā

Metta

Mettā or maitrī is loving-kindness, friendliness, benevolence, amity, friendship, good will, kindness, love, sympathy, close mental union , and active interest in others. It is one of the ten pāramīs of the Theravāda school of Buddhism, and the first of the four sublime states...

, Karuna

Karuna

Karuā is generally translated as "compassion" or "pity". It is part of the spiritual path of both Buddhism and Jainism.-Buddhism:...

, Mudita

Mudita

Mudita in Buddhism is joy. It is especially sympathetic or vicarious joy, the pleasure that comes from delighting in other people's well-being rather than begrudging it...

and Upekkha

Upekkha

Upekkhā , is the Buddhist concept of equanimity. As one of the Brahma Vihara , it is a pure mental state cultivated on the Buddhist path to nirvāna.-Pali literary contexts:...

. The orange stripe represents the Sri Lankan Tamils, the green stripe represents Sri Lankan Moors

Sri Lankan Moors

The Sri Lankan Moors are the third largest ethnic group in Sri Lanka comprising 8% of the country's total population . They are predominantly followers of Islam. The Moors trace their ancestry to Arab traders who settled in Sri Lanka some time between the 8th and 15th centuries...

, and the maroon background represents the majority of Sinhalese, like the lion, this is the color used in early flags of Sri lanka by kings.

It was adopted in 1950 following the recommendations of a committee appointed by the 1st Prime Minister of Ceylon, The Rt Hon D.S. Senanayake.

History

When Vijaya, the first King of the island of Sri Lanka, arrived in Sri Lanka from India in 486 BC, he brought with him a flag with a symbol of a lion on it. Since then the Lion symbol played a significant role in the history of Sri Lanka. It was used extensively by monarchs who followed King Vijaya and it became a symbol of freedom and hope. When the legendary King

King

- Centers of population :* King, Ontario, CanadaIn USA:* King, Indiana* King, North Carolina* King, Lincoln County, Wisconsin* King, Waupaca County, Wisconsin* King County, Washington- Moving-image works :Television:...

Dutugemunu embarked on the campaign in which he defeated the Tamil King Elara

Elara

Elara may refer to one of the following:*Elara , a moon of Jupiter*Elara , the mother of Tityas in Greek mythology*Elara , an ancient Sri Lankan king...

, who had occupied part of Sri Lanka, he carried with him a banner which portrayed a lion carrying a sword on his right forepaw along with two other symbols, the Sun and the Moon.

The banner was in use until 1815, when the reign of the last king of the Kandyan Kingdom, King

King

Sri Vikrama Rajasinha

Sri Vikrama Rajasinha was the last king of Ceylon and the last of four kings from the Telugu origin of Nayakar dynasty...

, was brought to an end with the Kandyan nobility's signing of the Kandy convention on 2 March proclaiming King

King

George III

George III of the United Kingdom

George III was King of Great Britain and King of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of these two countries on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland until his death...

as King of Ceylon and replacing the Lion flag with the Union Flag

Union Flag

The Union Flag, also known as the Union Jack, is the flag of the United Kingdom. It retains an official or semi-official status in some Commonwealth Realms; for example, it is known as the Royal Union Flag in Canada. It is also used as an official flag in some of the smaller British overseas...

as the national flag of Ceylon. The government of British Ceylon

British Ceylon

British Ceylon refers to British rule prior to 1948 of the island territory now known as Sri Lanka.-From the Dutch to the British:Before the beginning of the Dutch governance, the island of Ceylon was divided between the Portuguese Empire and the Kingdom of Kandy, who were in the midst of a war for...

used its own flag. The Lion Flag was taken to England and kept at the Royal Hospital Chelsea

Royal Hospital Chelsea

The Royal Hospital Chelsea is a retirement home and nursing home for British soldiers who are unfit for further duty due to injury or old age, located in the Chelsea region of central London, now the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. It is a true hospital in the original sense of the word,...

. As the years passed, the design of the flag was forgotten by the Sri Lankan public.

Then, as the independence movement in Sri Lanka gained strength in the early 20th century, E. W. Perera

E. W. Perera

Edward Walter Perera was a Ceylonese barrister, politician and freedom fighter. He was known as the 'Lion of Kotte' and was a prominent figure in the Sri Lankan independence movement and a Senator....

, a prominent figure of the independence movement with the help of D. R. Wijewardene, the press baron, discovered the original Lion flag in Chelsea. A picture of it was subsequently published in a special edition of the Dinamina
Dinamina
Founded on December 17 1909, the Dinamina is a Sinhalese daily that claims the largest circulation among Sinhalese-speaking peoples in Sri Lanka. The newspaper was founded by the Sinhalese scholar H.S. Perera who acted as both owner and editor-in-chief of the paper at the outset. Upon Perera's...

newspaper to mark 100 years since the end of Sri Lankan independence. The Lion flag then became a centrepiece of attraction to the public, who for the first time since the fall of the Kandyan Kingdom were now aware of its actual design.

In 1948 the flag was adapted as the national flag of the Dominion of Ceylon, however the flag underwent several changes in 1953 and again in 1972. During the same year four leaves of the Bo tree were added to the four corners of the Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...

n National flag

National flag

A national flag is a flag that symbolizes a country. The flag is flown by the government, but usually can also be flown by citizens of the country.Both public and private buildings such as schools and courthouses may fly the national flag...

under the direction of Nissanka Wijeyeratne

Nissanka Wijeyeratne

Deshamanya Nissanka Parakrama Wijeyeratne was a Sri Lankan politician, civil servant and diplomat. He was also the Diyawadana Nilame of the Temple of the Tooth from 1975 to 1985...

. At the time, he was Permanent Secretary to the Ministry of Cultural Affairs and Chairman of the National Emblem and Flag Design Committee. Prior to 1972, the corners of the flag were occupied by symbols depicting spearheads. The four Bo Leaves added by Wijeyeratne reflect the core principles of Mettha (loving kindness), Karuna (compassion), Upeksha (equanimity) & Muditha (happiness).

Symbolism

The national flag of Sri Lanka represents the country and its heritage as rallying device that integrates the minorities with the majority race.
Most symbols in the flag have been given distinctive meanings.

Symbol	Represents
The Lion and the golden colour of lion	The strength and braveness of the Sri Lankan nation and the Sinhalese Sinhalese people The Sinhalese are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group,forming the majority of Sri Lanka,constituting 74% of the Sri Lankan population.They number approximately 15 million worldwide.The Sinhalese identity is based on language, heritage and religion. The Sinhalese speak Sinhala, an Indo-Aryan language and the... ethnicity.
The bo leaves	Buddhism and its influence on the nation. They also stand for the four virtues of Kindness, Friendliness, Happiness and Equanimity.
The sword of the lion	The sovereignty of the nation and the braveness of its people
The curly hair on the lion's head	Religious observance, wisdom and meditation
The eight hairs on lion's tail	Noble eightfold path that people supposed to follow
The beard of the lion	Purity of words
The handle of the sword	The elements of water, fire, air and earth that country made with
The nose of the lion	Intelligence
The two front paws of the lion	Purity in handling wealth.
The vertical orange stripe	The Tamil ethnicity
The vertical green stripe	The Muslim faith Islam in Sri Lanka Islam in Sri Lanka is practiced by a group of minorities who make up approximately 10% of the population.on the 2001 census of GOSL shows there are 1,711,000 Muslims The Muslim community is divided into three main ethnic groups: the Sri Lankan Moors, the Indian Muslims, and the Malays, each with... and Moor ethnicity Sri Lankan Moors The Sri Lankan Moors are the third largest ethnic group in Sri Lanka comprising 8% of the country's total population . They are predominantly followers of Islam. The Moors trace their ancestry to Arab traders who settled in Sri Lanka some time between the 8th and 15th centuries...
The yellow border round the flag	People from all cultures living together in Sri Lanka in including some Dutch burghers and Portuguese
The maroon background	This represents the majority of Sinhalese like the lion this is the color used in early flags of Sri lanka by kings .

External links

Lion Flag as depicted in the Constitution of Sri Lanka

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