Flags With a Sun

What does the sun mean on a flag?

The sun often stands for a new beginning, independence or life itself. Japan's flag is a red disc on white, and its name in Japanese means "origin of the sun". The Philippines has a golden sun with eight rays, one for each of the first provinces that rebelled against Spain, beside three stars in a white triangle.

The Sun of May appears on the flags of Argentina and Uruguay. It refers to the May Revolution of 1810 in Buenos Aires, and the sun has a human face. Argentina's sun has 32 rays and Uruguay's has 16.

Notable flags with a sun

• Kazakhstan: a golden sun with 32 rays above a soaring steppe eagle, on sky blue.
• Kyrgyzstan: a yellow sun with 40 rays on red, which refers to the 40 tribes of legend.
• Namibia: a gold sun with 12 rays in the corner above a diagonal red band.
• Rwanda: a golden sun with 24 rays in the top right.
• Malawi: a red rising sun at the top of a black, red and green flag.
• Kiribati: a rising sun with a yellow frigatebird above blue and white waves.
• North Macedonia: a yellow sun with eight rays spreading across a red field.
• Antigua and Barbuda: a rising sun in a black triangle to show a new era.
• Taiwan: a white sun with 12 rays in a blue canton.
• Nepal shows a sun and a moon on its two pennants.

History of the sun on flags

Sun symbols appear on military banners long before nations used flags. Japan's sun-disc flag has been used for centuries, and a version with rays, the Rising Sun Flag, was used by the Imperial Japanese Army and Navy. It is still flown by Japan's maritime forces and remains controversial in China and South Korea.

In the 19th century, independence movements in South America adopted the Sun of May, while newer states like Malawi and Namibia used the sun for hope after independence.