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| Use | Civil andstate flag,civil andstate ensign   |
|---|---|
| Proportion | 2:3 |
| Adopted | August 3, 1995; 30 years ago (1995-08-03) by elected Puerto Rican government after issuing regulation identifying colors but not specifying color shades; medium blue replaced dark blue asde facto shade of triangle[1] |
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| Use | Civil andstate flag,civil andstate ensign |
| Proportion | 2:3 |
| Adopted | July 24, 1952; 73 years ago (1952-07-24) by elected Puerto Rican government with the establishment of thecommonwealth after issuing law identifying colors but not specifying color shades; dark blue becamede facto shade of triangle, replacing presumed original light blue[2][3] |
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| Use | Civil andstate flag,civil andstate ensign |
| Proportion | 2:3 |
| Adopted | December 22, 1895; 129 years ago (1895-12-22) by pro-independence members of theRevolutionary Committee of Puerto Rico exiled in New York City; members identified colors as red, white, and blue but did not specify color shades; some historians have presumed members adopted light blue shade based on thelight blue flag of theGrito de Lares revolt[4] |
| Design | Five equal horizontal stripes, alternating from red to white, with a blue equilateral triangle based on the hoist side bearing a large, white, upright five-pointed star in the center |
| Designed by | Disputed between Puerto RicansFrancisco Gonzalo Marín in 1895 andAntonio Vélez Alvarado in 1892; Based onCuban flag by VenezuelanNarciso López and CubanMiguel Teurbe Tolón in 1849 |
This is alist of the flags of Puerto Rico. These flags represent and symbolizePuerto Rico and thePuerto Rican people. The most commonly used flags of Puerto Rico are thecurrent flag, which represents the people of thecommonwealth of Puerto Rico; theGrito de Lares flag, which represents theGrito of Lares (Cry of Lares) revolt againstSpanish rule in 1868; municipal flags, which represent the 78municipalities of the archipelago; political flags, which represent the different political beliefs of the people; and sports flags, which identify Puerto Rico as the country represented by its athletics during competitions.
Each of the 78 municipalities of Puerto Rico has adopted flags which represent the municipality and its people, employing designs that oftentimes derive their symbolism from the municipality's coat of arms. Most of the political parties in Puerto Rico also have their own flags, which represent and symbolize the political ideals of its members. These political party flags are usually displayed in public during political rallies, meetings, or parades in a show of political strength and unity. Various sports associations in Puerto Rico have adopted flags which represent them and which are used during competitions and other sport events.
The introduction of a flag in Puerto Rico can be traced to whenChristopher Columbus landed on the island's shore and with the flag appointed to him by theSpanish Crown claimed theisland, which he namedSan Juan Bautista, in the name of Spain. Columbus wrote in his logbook that on October 12, 1492, he used the royal flag, and that his captains used two flags which the admiral carried in all the ships as ensign, each white with a green cross in the middle and an 'F' and 'Y', both green and crowned with golden, open royal crowns, forFerdinand II of Aragon andYsabel (Isabel I).[5] Theconquistadores under the command ofJuan Ponce de León proceeded to conquer and settle the island. They carried as their military standard theSpanish Expedition Flag. After the island was conquered and colonized, the flag of Spain was used in Puerto Rico, same as it was used in all of its other colonies.[6]
Once the Spanish armed forces established themselves on the island, they began the construction of military fortifications, such asLa Fortaleza,Fort San Felipe del Morro,Fort San Cristóbal andSan Gerónimo. The Spanish Army designed theBurgundy Cross, adopting it as their standard. This flag flew wherever there was a Spanish military installation.[7]
Theindependence movement in Puerto Rico gained momentum with the liberation successes ofSimón Bolívar andJosé de San Martín in South America. In 1868, Puerto Rican independence leaderRamón Emeterio Betances urgedMariana Bracetti to knit arevolutionary flag using theflag of the Dominican Republic as an example, promoting the then popular ideal of uniting the threeSpanish-speaking Caribbean territories into anAntillean Confederation. The materials for the flag were provided by Eduvigis Beauchamp Sterling, named Treasurer of the revolution by Betances.[8]
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The flag is quautered by a white cross, with two lower rectangles in red and the two upper rectangles in blue with, the upper left of which bears a white five-pointed star. According to Puerto Rican poetLuis Lloréns Torres, the white cross on it stands for the yearning for homeland redemption; the red squares, the blood poured by the heroes of the rebellion and the white star in the blue solitude square, stands for liberty and freedom.[9] Therevolutionary Lares flag was used in the short-lived rebellion againstSpain in what became known asGrito de Lares (The Cry of Lares).[10]
During the revolt, the flag was proclaimed the national flag of the "Republic of Puerto Rico" byFrancisco Ramírez Medina, who was sworn in as Puerto Rico's first president, and placed on the high altar of the Catholic Church ofLares, thus becoming the first Puerto Rican flag.[11] One of two surviving original Lares flags was taken by a Spanish army officer as a war prize. Many years later, it was returned and transferred to the Puerto Rican people. It is now exhibited in the University of Puerto Rico's Museum.[11]
In 1873, following the abdication of Amadeus, Duke of Aosta, as king (1870–1873) and with Spain's change from Kingdom to Republic, the Spanish government issued a new colonial flag for Puerto Rico. The new flag, which was used until 1873, resembled the flag of Spain, with the difference that it had thecoat of arms of Puerto Rico in the middle. Spain's flag once more flew over Puerto Rico with the restoration of the Spanish kingdom in 1873, until 1898 the year that the island became a possession of the United States under the terms of theTreaty of Paris (1898) in the aftermath of theSpanish–American War.[12]
The following are historical flags related to Puerto Rico:
| Historical flags flown in Puerto Rico | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Flag of the Kingdom of Castile (1492) |  Burgundy Cross Flag (Spanish military flag) |  Flag of Spain (1701–1793) in fortresses and castles | First Puerto Rican flag, the originalrevolutionary flag of theGrito de Lares revolt (1868) | |||||
.svg) Puerto Rico Provincial Flag (1873–1875) | .svg) Flag of Spain (1793–1873, 1875–1898) |  Spanish American War flag Flag of the Batallón Provisional No. 3 de Puerto Rico (3rd Provisional Battalion of Puerto Rico) |  Flag of Spain (1873–1874) First Spanish Republic | |||||
 Puerto Rican flag aboard the Space ShuttleDiscovery March 15, 2009 | ||||||||
| Historical flags of the United States flown in Puerto Rico (1898–1959) (from 1898 to 1952 the American flag was the only one permitted in Puerto Rico) | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
.svg) 45-star American flag, the first U.S. flag flown in Puerto Rico (1898–1908) | .svg) 46-star American flag (1908–1912) | .svg) 48-star American flag (1912–1959) |  49-star American flag (1959–1960) | |||||
Each of the municipalities of Puerto Rico, including the islands ofCulebra andVieques, have adopted a flag which represents the region and its people. The colors and designs may vary. Some flags contain acoat of arms or images of an object associated with the region, such as a bird, animal, or crop. In the case ofLares, in 1952, the town Municipal Assembly adopted theGrito de Lares flag as their official emblem.[13] Thebarrios of the municipality ofCaguas also have their own flags.[14]
Many of the municipal flags of Puerto Rico pay tribute to theCacíques of theTaíno people in Puerto Rico, who ruled the island before the arrival of the Spaniards. The flag ofUtuado for example has a Taino Sun in honor of the Supreme Taino CaciqueAgüeybaná whose name means "The Great Sun".[15] Other flags, such asSan Germán's, contain a mural crown. The crown pays tribute to Spain and the Spanish who settled the area.[16]
Throughout Puerto Rico's political history various parties have designed and displayed flags representing their ideals. Political flags in Puerto Rico are usually displayed in public during rallies, meetings, or parades in show of political strength and unity. ThePuerto Rican Nationalist Party flag has a white Calatrava Cross, also known as theCross potent on the middle of a black background. The Cross of Calatrava was first used by theCrusaders of Calatrava and later by theFrench revolutionists. The black background symbolized the mourning of the Puerto Rican Nation in colonial captivity.[17] It was usually displayed by theCadets of the Republic, also known as the Black Shirts (Camisa Negras) because of their black shirt and white trousers uniform. On occasions the Nationalists would also carry the Puerto Rican flag with the light blue triangle, which was presumably theflag of Puerto Rico between 1898 and 1952.
The three main political parties of Puerto Rico are theNew Progressive Party, which favors statehood and whose flag has what might resemble a blue palm tree inside a round cornered square in the middle with a white background; thePopular Democratic Party of Puerto Rico, flag has a red image of what is supposed to resemble a Puerto Ricanjíbaro (farmer) in the middle with a white background; and thePuerto Rican Independence Party, whose flag has a white cross symbolizingChristianity and purity, on a green background which symbolizes hope.[18]
Founded in 2003, the flag of thePuerto Ricans for Puerto Rico Party has a light brown colored "coqui" as its symbol with the wordsPor Puerto Rico (For Puerto Rico) in the middle.
Another political flag is that of theBoricua Popular Army, also known asLos Macheteros, an underground pro-independence group which believes and has often resorted to the use of violence.[19] This ensign displays a green machete and a red star imposed on a black background.
| Political Flags of Puerto Rico | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Puerto Rican Nationalist Party (Partido Nacionalista Puertorriqueño) founded 1922 | ||||||||
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| Puerto Rican Independence Party (Partido Independentista Puertorriqueño) founded 1946 | ||||||||
| New Progressive Party of Puerto Rico (Partido Nuevo Progresista de Puerto Rico) founded 1967 | ||||||||
| Popular Democratic Party of Puerto Rico (Partido Popular Democrático de Puerto Rico) founded 1938 | ||||||||
The standard representative symbol carried by Puerto Ricans at international sports events, such as theOlympics,Pan American Games,Central American and Caribbean Games, and theWorld Cup of Baseball, is the currentflag of Puerto Rico. However, various sports associations have adopted flags which are also used during sports events. Prior to the adoption of the Puerto Rican flag, athletes from the archipelago competed under both theUnited States flag and aspecial white banner containing a variation of the seal and the words "Puerto Rico" present above it.[20] The symbolism in thisensign includes a green background that represents the main island's vegetation, theLamb of God symbolizingJesus of Nazareth, and a book with the seven seals where the lamb sits, in reference to theBook of Revelation.
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