_Islands.svg) | |
| Use | Civil andstate flag   |
|---|---|
| Proportion | 1:2 |
| Adopted | April 6, 2004; 21 years ago (2004-04-06) |
| Design | A green field with apalm tree on agold disc in thecanton, a goldcrescent in the centre of the flag and a goldSouthern Cross in the fly. |
| Designed by | Mohammed Minkom |
Theflag of theCocos (Keeling) Islands is a green field with symbols such as apalm tree on agold disc, which represents the islands' tropicalflora; acrescent, which represent theCocos Malays; and theSouthern Cross, which representAustralia and theSouthern Hemisphere. The flag mostly uses thenational colours of Australia.
The flag was designed during a flag designing competition in 2003. The winning submission was designed by teenager Mohammed Minkom. Minkom's design was formally declared on 6 April 2004 by then-Administrator of the Australian Indian Ocean TerritoriesEvan Williams. Despite its designation as such, the flag's design is not officially recognised by theAustralian Government.
The flag consists of a green field with apalm tree on agold disc in thecanton, a goldcrescent moon in the centre of the flag and a goldSouthern Cross in the fly. The palm tree represents the islands' tropicalflora; the colours areAustralia's national colours; the crescent representsIslam,[1] the religion of theCocos Malays who make up a majority of the islands' population; and theSouthern Cross is a symbol ofAustralia and theSouthern Hemisphere.[2]
Then-teenage Mohammed Minkom competed in a competition in 2003[3] to design the official flag of the Cocos (Keeling) Islands. He had won the contest and his design of the flag would be adopted by the territory.[4] Minkom's design of the flag was formally declared on 6 April 2004 by then-Administrator of the Australian Indian Ocean TerritoriesEvan Williams.[3] Although it was adopted and regularly used as such, the flag's design is not officially recognised by theAustralian Government, alongside theflag of Christmas Island.[5]
