Flag of Jamaica

{{Infobox flag

| Name = Jamaica

| Image = Flag of Jamaica.svg

| Nickname = The Cross

| Morenicks = Black, green and gold

| Use = 111110

| Symbol = {{FIAV|111110}}{{Cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/flagsarmsacrossw0000smit/page/111|title=Flags and arms across the world|last=Whitney.|first=Smith|date=1980|publisher=McGraw-Hill|others=Smith, Whitney.|isbn=9780070590946|location=New York|pages=[https://archive.org/details/flagsarmsacrossw0000smit/page/111 111]|oclc=4957064|url-access=registration}} {{FIAV|normal}} {{FIAV|Equal}}

| Proportion = 1:2

| Adoption = {{Start date and age|1962|08|06|df=y}}

| Design = A gold diagonal cross divides the field into four triangles of green (top and bottom) and black (hoist side and fly side)

| Image2 = Civil Ensign of Jamaica.svg

| Use2 = 000100

| Symbol2 = {{FIAV|000100}} {{FIAV|normal}}

| Design2 = A Red Ensign with the national flag in the canton

| Image3 = Naval Ensign of Jamaica.svg

| Use3 = 000001

| Symbol3 = {{FIAV|000001}} {{FIAV|normal}}

| Design3 = A White Ensign with the national flag in the canton

| Image4 = Ensign_of_the_Jamaica_Defence_Force_Air_Wing.svg

| Use4 = Air force ensign

| Symbol4 = {{FIAV|001000}} {{FIAV|normal}}

| Design4 = The Jamaican flag in the canton with a logo of the JDF Air Wing in the middle.

}}

File:First proposed flag of Jamaica.svg

File:Proposed flag of Jamaica.svg

File:Jamaican flag.jpg

The flag of Jamaica was adopted on 6 August 1962, the day Jamaica became independent from British Empire. The flag consists of a gold saltire, which divides the flag into four sections: two of them green (top and bottom) and two black (hoist and fly).[http://jis.gov.jm/symbols/jamaica-national-flag/ Jamaican Flag on JIS site]{{cite web |url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/jamaica/ |title=CIA World Factbook – Jamaica|access-date= 29 July 2019}} It is currently the only national flag that does not contain a shade of the colours red, white, or blue. Jamaica's national flag is also sometimes referred to as "The Cross" or as the "Black, Green, and Gold" due to its form and colours.{{cite web |url=https://www.worldatlas.com/flags/jamaica |title=Flags, Symbols, & Currency Of Jamaica |date=24 February 2021 |access-date= 24 August 2021}}

Design and symbolism

Prior to Jamaica's independence, the Jamaican government ran a flag design competition for Jamaica's new flag. Over 360 designs were submitted, and several of these original submissions are housed in the National Library of Jamaica.{{Cite web|date=2017-08-03|title=The Story of the Jamaican National Flag|url=https://nlj.gov.jm/story-jamaican-national-flag/|access-date=2021-10-21|website=The National Library of Jamaica|language=en-US}} However, the competition failed to yield a winner, and a bipartisan committee of the Jamaican House of Representatives eventually came up with the modern design.{{Cite web|title=Jamaican Flag – Jamaica Information Service|url=https://jis.gov.jm/information/symbols/jamaica-national-flag/|access-date=2021-10-21|website=jis.gov.jm}} It was originally designed with horizontal stripes, but this was considered too similar to the flag of Tanganyika (as it was in 1962), and so the saltire was substituted.{{Cite web|title=Flag of Jamaica|url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/flag-of-Jamaica|website=Encyclopedia Britannica|language=en|access-date=2020-05-28}} John McGhie claims the saltire design was directly inspired by the Flag of Scotland.{{cite web |last1=McGhie |first1=John |title=Jamaica: Alternate History of the Flag |url=https://www.crwflags.com/fotw/flags/jm.html#alt |website=Flags of the World (FOTW) |publisher=Flags of the World |access-date=12 July 2024}}

An earlier interpretation of the colours was, "hardships there are but the land is green and the sun shineth" as stated in the government Ministry Paper 28 – National Flag dated 22 May 1962.{{cite web |url=http://www.nlj.gov.jm/MinistryPapers/1962/No.28.pdf |title=National Library of Jamaica |access-date=11 February 2020 |archive-date=3 March 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190303101957/http://www.nlj.gov.jm/MinistryPapers/1962/No.28.pdf |url-status=dead }} Gold recalls the shining sun, black reflects hardships, and green represents the land. It was changed in 1996 to black representing the strength and creativity of the people which has allowed them to overcome difficulties, gold for the wealth of the country and the golden sunshine, and green for the lush vegetation of the island, as well as hope.{{cite web |url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/jamaica/ |title=CIA World Factbook – Jamaica|access-date= 29 July 2019}} The change was made on the recommendation of the committee to Examine National Symbols and National Observances appointed by the then Prime Minister P. J. Patterson and chaired by Rex Nettleford.{{Citation needed|date=July 2019}} The flag is blazoned: Per saltire vert and sable, a saltire Or.{{Citation needed|date=June 2020}}

= Construction details, sizes and colours =

The flag has a length-to-width ratio of 1:2, which means that the length is twice as long as the breadth. The normal proportions are {{convert|1.5|by|3|m|ft|abbr=off|sp=us}}.

{{gallery

|height=250

|width=475

|File:Flag of Jamaica (construction sheet).svg|flag construction sheet

}}

Etiquette

Standard etiquette applies in Jamaica to use of the national flag, primarily ensuring it is always the primary flag flown and is in good condition.{{Citation needed|date=July 2019}} The National Flag Code (a set of rules that owners of a flag should follow) was instituted by the government.

Jamaica's state ensign is a Blue Ensign with the Jamaican national flag in the canton; it is normally only used by the Jamaican Government.{{citation needed|date=July 2021}} Jamaica's naval ensign follows the British system and is a White Ensign with a Saint George's Cross and the Jamaican national flag in the canton, although due to the island's lack of a navy, it is normally only used by the Jamaican Coast Guard.