Flag of Togo

The national flag of Togo consists of five horizontal stripes, alternating between green and yellow, with a red square bearing a five-pointed white star in the canton. It is one of many African flags that use the pan-African colours of green, yellow, and red. Togolese artist Paul Ahyi designed the flag in 1960, just before its adoption on 27 April of that year, coinciding with Togo's proclamation of independence. When Togo was an autonomous republic within the French Union (the successor to the French colonial empire), it flew a green flag with the French tricolour in the canton and two five-pointed yellow stars, one in the lower hoist and one in the upper fly.

Togolese Republic

Use	National flag and ensign
Proportion	3:5, 1:𝜑 or 2:3
Adopted	27 April 1960 (1960-04-27)
Design	Five horizontal stripes alternating between green and yellow; in the canton, a five-pointed white star on a red field
Designed by	Paul Ahyi

Design

Togolese artist Paul Ahyi (1930–2010) was the designer of the flag. Ahyi studied art in France and graduated from the École nationale supérieure des beaux-arts in Paris in 1959 before returning to Togo. The following year, he designed the flag of Togo, which was adopted upon the country's proclamation of independence on 27 April 1960.

The design of the flag is outlined in Title I, Article 3 of the Constitution of Togo, 1992 (2019 revision). It states:

The national emblem is the flag composed of five alternating horizontal bands of green and yellow. It bears in the upper left corner a white five-pointed star on a red square background.

L'emblème national est le drapeau composé de cinq bandes horizontales alternées de couleur verte et jaune. Il porte à l'angle supérieur gauche une étoile blanche à cinq branches sur fond carré rouge.

The proportions of the flag are not mentioned in the constitution and sources differ as to the exact ratio. American vexillologist Whitney Smith, writing in the Encyclopædia Britannica, stated that the width-to-length ratio is approximately 3:5. Polish vexillologist Alfred Znamierowski meanwhile stated that the ratio is 2:3. It has also been claimed that Ahyi followed the golden ratio (represented by the Greek letter phi, 𝜑) when designing the flag, which would make it a golden rectangle. In other words, its width-to-length ratio would be 1:𝜑, where 𝜑 = ⁠1+√5/2⁠ ≈ 1.618.

Symbolism

The flag uses the pan-African colours of green, yellow, and red, which were adopted by several other African countries upon independence. Its five stripes represent the five regions of Togo. The office of the Togolese president gives the following significance to the flag's colours and symbols: green represents forests, agriculture, and hope; yellow represents natural resources, faith, and maturity; red represents the blood shed by those who fought for Togolese independence; and the white star represents peace, intelligence, and light.

Historical flags

Flag of French Togoland (1956–1960)

During the colonial era, Togo flew the flag of its colonial ruler: Germany from 1884 to 1914 (as part of German Togoland) and France from 1916 to 1960. The United Nations trusteeship system established after World War II obliged France to move Togo (then French Togoland) towards self-government. Togo was made an autonomous republic within the French Union on 24 August 1956, and a new flag was adopted along with a motto, an anthem, and a national day. The flag was a green field with the French tricolour in the canton and two five-pointed yellow stars, one in the lower hoist and one in the upper fly. The green field represented agriculture, hope, and youth, while the two stars represented Togo's northern savannas and southern coastal plains.

Coat of arms

Coat of arms of Togo

The flag of Togo is featured on the country's coat of arms. Its inclusion is described in the Togolese constitution:

The coat of arms of the Togolese Republic is thus constituted ... [a] silver shield of oval shape and with a sinople border, in the chief the national emblem, two flags back-to-back and the motto on a banner; in the heart of sable, the initials of the Togolese Republic on a background of indented gold; at the base, two lions guled back-to-back.

Les armoiries de la République togolaise sont ainsi constituées ... écu d'argent de forme ovale et à la bordure de sinople, en chef l'emblème national, deux drapeaux adossés et devise sur banderole ; en coeur de sable les initiales de la République togolaise sur fond d'or échancré ; en pointe, deux lions de gueules adossés.

See also

• List of Togolese flags

References

Sources

• "Constitution du Togo, 1992" [Constitution of Togo, 1992]. Digithèque MJP (in French). Lomé: Government of Togo. 2019 [14 October 1992]. Archived from the original on 7 June 2021.
• "Décès de Paul Ahyi, le Picasso africain" [Death of Paul Ahyi, the African Picasso]. Le Télégramme (in French). 5 January 2010. Archived from the original on 19 July 2011.
• Gayibor, Nicoué Lodjou, ed. (1997). Le Togo sous domination coloniale (1884–1960) [Togo under colonial rule (1884–1960)] (in French). Presses de l'UB. ISBN 978-2-909886-34-3. (PDF)
• Gayibor, Nicoué Lodjou (1994). Les Togolais face à la colonisation [The Togolese facing colonisation] (in French). Presses de l'UB. ISBN 978-2-909886-19-0. Retrieved 26 August 2024.
• Johar, Syafiq (4 January 2024). "Some Applications of Real Sequences". The Big Book of Real Analysis: From Numbers to Measures. Springer Nature. pp. 263–296. ISBN 978-3-031-30832-1.
• Knoll, Arthur J. (1978). Togo Under Imperial Germany, 1884–1914: A Case Study in Colonial Rule. Hoover Institution Press. ISBN 978-0-8179-6091-9.
• "Les symboles de la république Togolaise" [The Symbols of the Togolese Republic]. Presidency of the Togolese Republic (in French). Lomé: Government of Togo. 2021.
• Minahan, James B. (23 December 2009). The Complete Guide to National Symbols and Emblems: [2 volumes]. Bloomsbury Publishing USA. ISBN 978-0-313-34497-8.
• Panara, Marlène (27 April 2020). "Togo : une histoire mouvementée" [Togo: A Turbulent History]. Le Point (in French).
• Posamentier, Alfred S.; Lehmann, Ingmar (20 December 2011). The Glorious Golden Ratio. Prometheus Books. ISBN 978-1-61614-424-1.
• Roussel, Jane (14 January 2020). "Paul Ahyi : ce musée qui lui est dédié à Lomé" [Paul Ahyi: This Museum Dedicated to Him in Lomé]. Le Point (in French).
• Smith, Whitney (16 February 2001). "Flag of Togo". Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
• Znamierowski, Alfred (20 September 2020). The World Encyclopedia of Flags: An Illustrated Guide to International Flags, Banners, Standards and Ensigns. Anness Publishing. ISBN 978-0-7548-3480-9.

External links

• Media related to Flags of Togo at Wikimedia Commons
• Togo at Flags of the World