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Nepal has remained a separate,
sovereign kingdom and proudly flies its traditional flag, whose
basic design dates back for centuries. The background colour is
crimson, the border a dark blue—both popular colours in Nepalese art
and decoration. In the upper segment is a white moon emitting eight
rays, with a crescent attached below; in the bottom segment appears
a white, stylized sun with 12 rays. These two symbols are associated
with different dynasties and also express the hope that the country
may have the same longevity as the sun and moon. Originally, there
were facial features represented in red on both the sun and moon.
The present flag, which omits those features, was established under
the new constitution of December 16, 1962. The same symbols appear
on the dozens of different civil and military flags used by Nepalese
officials.
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Nepal is a
landlocked central Himalayan country in South Asia. Its flag is the
world’s only non-quadrilateral national flag. It is based on two
different pennants which belonged to rival branches of the Rana
dynasty, which ruled the country before. The two pennants were first
joined in the last century. However, it was not adopted as the
official flag until 1962, when a constitutional form of government
was established.
The moon in the upper portion stands for the royal house. The sun in
the lower section symbolizes a branch of the Rana family, members of
which were prime ministers until 1961. The style of these heavenly
bodies was streamlined on 16th December, 1962. The coat of arms
still portrays these charges along with facial features. Crimson is
deemed the national colour of Nepal. The motto on their coat of arms
is “The mother and the Mother Earth are more important than the
heavenly kingdom.”
The flag was adopted after Prithvi Narayan Shah, the first King of
unified Nepal and Gorkha Kingdom, unified all small principalities
of Nepal. In modern times, the concept of the flag has changed to
have a different meaning. The blue border symbolizes peace and
harmony. The crimson red is Nepal’s national colour, and reflects
the brave spirit of the Nepalese people. The two triangles symbolize
the Himalayan Mountains. The depiction of celestial bodies
represents permanence and the hope that Nepal will last as long as
the sun and the moon!
The moon symbolizes that the Nepalese are calm, while the sun
symbolizes fierceness. The moon also symbolizes the pleasant weather
of the Himalayas, whereas the sun symbolizes the heat and the higher
temperatures in the lower lying areas of Nepal.
There is yet another interesting interpretation of the flag’s
symbols. The flag’s shape is believed to symbolize a Nepalese pagoda
as observed by the local Nepalese. Placing a mirror at the hoist
side can generate an image of a pagoda. It symbolizes that as long
as the sun and moon exists, there will be the existence of Nepal and
its Nepalese people.
Hope you got a glimpse into the history of Nepal through its unique
flag!
Source copyright
from:
https://www.flagmakers.co.uk/flag-history/nepal/
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About Nepal
