Thenational flag ofSenegal (drapeau national du Sénégal) is atricolour consisting of three vertical green, yellow and red bandscharged with afive-pointed green star at the centre.[1] Adopted in 1960 to replace the flag of theMali Federation, it has been the flag of the Republic ofSenegal since the country gained independence that year. The present and previous flags were inspired by theFrench tricolour, whichflew over Senegal until 1960.
UnderFrench colonial rule overSenegal, the authorities forbade the colony from using its owndistinctive colonial flag because they were worried that this could increase nationalistic sentiment and lead to calls for independence.[2] With the rise of thedecolonization movement in Africa, the French were obliged to grant limited autonomy to Senegal as a self-governing republic within theFrench Community. Senegal was combined withFrench Sudan on April 4, 1959, to form theMali Federation.[3] That day, a new flag was adopted: a vertical green, yellow and red tricolour with astylized depiction of a human being (referred to as akanaga) on the centre band.[4][5] The federation attained independence fromFrance on June 20, 1960.[3]
The federation between the two former colonies did not last long and ended two months after independence.[4][6] On August 20, Senegal separated from the federation and became an independent country.[5] The new nation's flag kept the colours and stripes of the federation's flag, with the only change being the replacement of thekanaga with a green star.[7]
In April 2004, the flag and its design were hoist into the public colloquium whenMoustapha Niasse, then-leader of theAlliance of the Forces of Progress, hosted a press conference regarding the "modification of the election code and the set up of an independent commission to check the lawfulness of the next legislative and presidential elections."
At the conference's coda, Niasse explored what he felt was "defense of the symbols of the Republic against the division threat and the offence against national unity", and produced "[a] visible replacement, on certain official documents, of the green star of the central yellow stripe of the national flag by a goldenbaobab", alongside what he described as "the non-performance of the national anthem during official ceremonies".[8][9]
The newspaperWalFadjri reported on the same press conference with an emphasis on the alleged transmutation of the national symbology, even going so far as to entitle the feature "PresidentWade creates a new flag". Niasse again produced what he flaunted as an "official document signed by the head of state...with a golden baobab instead of the green star." Niasse himself stated "Only the Senegalese people is sovereign to decide any modification of the symbols of our Republic".[9]
Much symbolism and many connotations are beholden to the stripes and singular star of the Senegalese flag. From a national perspective, green is highly symbolic within all of the country's primary religions. In Islam, the country's majority religion at 97% percent of the population,[10] the green of both the first stripe and the star representthe colour of the Prophet,[11][12] Christians see the presence of green as a portent of hope, and Animists (or adherers toTraditional African religions) view green as representative offecundity.[5]
The Senegalese government offers exegesis for the presence of yellow and red as well, yellow being "the symbol of wealth; it represents the product of work, for a nation whose main priority is the progress of economy, which will allow the increase of the cultural level, the second national priority." Additionally, yellow is denoted as "the colour of arts, literature, and intellect", primarily because literature teachers in Senegal are known to wear yellow blouses. Red "recalls the colour of blood, therefore colour of life and the sacrifice accepted by the nation, and also of the strong determination to fight against underdevelopment."[5][9][13]
Historically, the three colours represent the three political parties which merged to form Union Progressiste Sénégalaisé (Senegalese Progressist Union, nowSocialist Party of Senegal,Leopold Senghor's party): green for Bloc Démocratique Sénégalais (Senegalese Democratic Bloc), yellow for Mouvement Populaire Sénégalais (Senegalese Popular Movement) and red for Parti Sénégalais d'Action Sociale (Senegalese Party of Socialist Action).[9]
Green, yellow and red are the colours of thePan-Africanist movement.[7] That pattern was replicated on Senegal's flag as a sign of unity among African countries.[12] The quinary points of the star are said to either "recall the human ideogram which was displayed in the middle of the flag of the former Mali Federation"[9] or an adoption of theSerer cosmogonical and religious starYooniir ― the symbol of the universe inSerer spirituality and cosmogony,[14][15] which also symbolises "good fortune and destiny" in the Serer worldview.[14] The symbol is represented by a black 5 pointed star which also spiritually and/or metaphorically denotes "theBlack man standing head held high, hands raised representing work and prayer. Sign of God: Image of Man."[16] The firstPresident of Senegal―Léopold Sédar Senghor who was ofSerer origin, a founding-member of theNégritude Movement, and who had a history of appropriating (others say "celebrating") Serer religious symbols, mythology, and spiritual references in his works despite being a Catholic,[17] probably adopted the Serer religious star just like he did in 1978 when he bought the country's presidential plane and named it "Point de Sangomar" in reference to theSerer sacred site thePoint of Sangomar - which in Serer means "the village of shadows".[18][19]
^abMadiya, Clémentine Faïk-Nzuji, Canadian Museum of Civilization, Canadian Centre for Folk Culture Studies, "International Centre for African Language, Literature and Tradition", (Louvain, Belgium), pp. 27, 155,ISBN0-660-15965-1
^Gravrand, Henry,La civilisation sereer, vol. II : "Pangool", Nouvelles éditions africaines, Dakar, 1990, p 21,ISBN2-7236-1055-1
^Harney, Elizabeth, "In Senghor's Shadow: Art, Politics, and the Avant-Garde in Senegal, 1960–1995",Duke University Press (2004), p. 278,ISBN9780822333951[1] (retrieved 25 August 2023)
^Jeune Afrique, "Avions présidentiels – Sénégal : Abdoulaye, Karim et Viviane sont dans un avion…" (3 July 2014). By Mehdi Ba[2] (retrieved 25 August 2023).
^Gravrand, Henry, "Visage africain de l'Église", Orante, Paris, 1961, p. 285
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