The flag of the Cayman Islands consists of a Blue Ensign defaced with the British overseas territory's coat of arms. Adopted in 1959 to supplement the Union Jack and to replace the flag of the Colony of Jamaica, it has been the flag of the Cayman Islands since the territory was granted self-government that year. The design of the present flag entailed removing the white disc and outlining the coat of arms with a white trim, although the previous version is often used in an official capacity. The Cayman Islands' flag is similar to the flags of eight other British Overseas Territories, which are also Blue Ensigns with their respective coats of arms.
History
The Cayman Islands were first spotted by Christopher Columbus on 10 May 1503, during his fourth and final journey to the West Indies. The Spanish initially named the islands Las Tortugas due to the sizable population of turtles living in the nearby waters. Less than three decades later, the territory was referred to as the Caimanas or Caymanes, in regard to the alligators (caimánes) that were purportedly native to the isles. in which Habsburg Spain permanently relinquished sovereignty over the Cayman Islands and several other islands in the Caribbean to the Kingdom of England. It was consequently utilised on the Blue Ensign, with a white disc as its background. This was adopted as a proxy national flag in 1959, after authorisation was granted by the Admiralty. The territory was given self-government in July of the same year, and because they regard the white disc version to be correct, the vast majority of flags produced have white discs. The white disc flag is employed as the backdrop for the official 2020 portrait of the Governor of the Cayman Islands on the UK Government Website and for the portraits of most government officials.
Design
Symbolism
The colours and symbols of the flag carry cultural, political, and regional meanings. The blue and white waves evoke the Caribbean Sea, while the three green stars represent the territory's three islands of Grand Cayman, Little Cayman, and Cayman Brac. The yellow lion on the red field is a conspicuous symbol of the Kingdom of England, the Cayman Islands' mother country. The turtle alludes to the original Spanish name for the islands (Las Tortugas), When displayed together with the flags of other sovereign nations, the foreign flag should not be flown on top of or to the right (i.e. observer's left) of the Caymanian flag.
The guidelines also state that the flag is not to touch the ground, nor should it be suspended vertically.