Flag of Cuba
North America
Quick Facts
- Capital
- Havana
- Flag adopted
- 1902
- Population
- 9,748,007
- Area
- 109,884 km²
- Languages
- Spanish
- Currency
- Cuban convertible peso ($) — CUC, Cuban peso ($) — CUP
- Demonym
- Cuban
- Government
- communist state
- Subregion
- Caribbean
- Driving side
- Right
- Timezones
- UTC-05:00
- Independence
- 1902
Religions
- Christian 58.9%
- None 23.2%
- folk religion 17.6%
- Buddhist 1%
- Hindu 1%
- Jewish 1%
- Muslim 1%
- Other 1%
About This Flag
The flag of Cuba consists of five alternating blue and white horizontal stripes with a red equilateral triangle at the hoist bearing a white five-pointed star. The three blue stripes represent the three departments into which Cuba was divided during the independence struggle.
The two white stripes symbolize the purity and justice of the patriotic cause. The red triangle represents the blood shed for independence, and the white star — the 'Lone Star' — symbolizes freedom and was added as a reference to the struggle for liberty.
The flag was designed by the Venezuelan-born revolutionary Narciso Lopez in 1849 and was officially adopted on May 20, 1902, when Cuba became a republic.
What the colors & design mean
The three blue stripes represent Cuba's three colonial departments. White symbolizes the purity of the independence cause. The red triangle represents the blood shed for freedom. The white 'Lone Star' symbolizes independence and liberty.
Pattern: Horizontal Stripes
Fun Facts
- The flag was designed in 1849 by Narciso Lopez, a Venezuelan filibuster who led several failed expeditions to liberate Cuba from Spain — he was eventually captured and publicly garroted in Havana.
- Cuba's flag is strikingly similar in concept to the flags of Puerto Rico and Texas — all three feature a triangle or similar element with a lone star, reflecting shared 19th-century independence movements.
- The flag was first flown in Cuba during Lopez's 1850 invasion at Cardenas, though Cuba would not achieve independence for another half century.
- Cuba is the largest island in the Caribbean and was the last major Spanish colony in the Americas to gain independence, in 1898 following the Spanish-American War.
Similar looking flags
These flags share similar colors and patterns:
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