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Flag ratio: 1:2
The first proposed design for the Jamaican flag
The flag of Jamaica was adopted on August 6, 1962 which was the original Jamaican Independence Day. The flag consists of the colours green, gold, and black. Black symbolises the strength and creativity of the Jamaican people. Gold represents sunlight and the country's natural wealth. Green represents hope for the future and agricultural richness. The flag is blazoned per saltire vert, sable, of the second, and of the first, a saltire Or.
The present design emerged from those sent in by the public in a national competition. It was originally designed with vertical stripes, but this was considered too similar to the Tanganyikan flag, and so the saltire was substituted. Black, green, and yellow are Pan-African colors. Yellow recalls the shining sun, black reflects hardships, and green represents the land. "Hardships there are but the land is green and the sun shineth" is the local explanation of the colors.
Jamaica's navy jack is a White Ensign with the national flag in the canton.
After the inconclusive German election of 2005, the flag of Jamaica was used frequently in the German media to illustrate one of several possible governing coalitions: the "Jamaica coalition" of CDU/CSU (conservative, black), FDP (liberal, yellow) and the German Greens. This coalition never materialized.
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