Philippines Flag

Description

The Philippines flag is available from Flags Online in full-size and desk formats, printed on both sides and made to last outdoors.

About the Philippines Flag

The Philippines flag is unusual for a further reason beyond its colours and stars: it is one of the few national flags designed to be flown upside down as a deliberate signal. It pairs a white equilateral triangle at the hoist with two horizontal bands, royal blue above and red below. First flown in 1898 at the proclamation of Philippine independence from Spain, the design has survived colonial suppression, foreign occupation and several rounds of legal codification to remain the flag flown across the islands today.

Colours and Symbolism

Inside the white triangle sit a golden sun with eight rays and three small five-pointed stars. The eight rays of the sun represent the provinces that took the earliest and most active part in the 1896 revolution against Spanish rule, among them Manila, Cavite, Bulacan and Batangas. The three stars stand for the country’s three main island groups: Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao. Blue is generally read as standing for peace, truth and justice, red for patriotism and valour, and the white triangle for equality and fraternity, echoing the ideals of the revolutionary movement that led the fight against Spain.

History of the Philippines Flag

The Philippines flag was first unfurled on 12 June 1898 in Kawit, Cavite, at the proclamation of independence from Spain, based on a design associated with Emilio Aguinaldo. Its early years were troubled: under American colonial administration, the Flag Act of 1907 banned the display of the flag outright, a prohibition that stood until 1919. During the Japanese occupation in the Second World War it was banned again, before being restored under the Japanese-backed Second Philippine Republic and then carried through to full independence in 1946. The blue and red shades and the flag’s exact proportions were only fixed in law relatively recently, through the Flag and Heraldic Code signed in 1998.

Flying and Displaying the Flag

Under Philippine law the flag must be flown blue-side up in peacetime; reversing it, so the red band sits on top, is reserved for signalling a state of war and should never happen by accident through careless hoisting. The Philippines flag is flown daily at government buildings and schools, and is raised and lowered with particular ceremony on Independence Day, 12 June. Because the white triangle and its sun and stars sit at a fixed point near the hoist rather than centred, printers and flagmakers need to get the geometry right – a triangle that is too shallow or too deep changes the look of the flag noticeably.

Philippines Flag Sizes and Pricing

• 180 x 120cm — R860
• 22 x 15cm Desk Flag (10 units) — R800
• 10 x 15cm Desk Flag (10 units) — R650
• 90 x 60cm — R400

Material and Construction

Made from 100% polyester bunting material and digitally printed on both sides. Hemmed all around with two rows of stitching and finished with a polyester webbing heading. Rope and toggle for hoisting included.

Supplied in packs of 10. Printed on both sides onto polyester and supplied with a black plastic stick and removable base — take the base off and it doubles as a hand waving flag.

Ordering and Delivery

Every Philippines flag is printed to order and dispatched from our Gqeberha (Port Elizabeth) and Johannesburg branches, with courier delivery nationwide. Bulk and school orders are welcome — contact us for volume pricing on quantities of 10 or more.

Additional information