Flag of the Federated States of Micronesia

The flag of the Federated States of Micronesia was adopted on 30 November 1978. The blue field represents the Pacific Ocean. In an echo of U.S. heraldic practice, the stars represent the four federated states: Chuuk, Pohnpei, Kosrae and Yap, arranged like the points of the compass. It is based on the flag of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands.

History

alt=Flag of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands|thumb|Flag of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, which inspired the modern Micronesian flag

At the start of the First World War, Japan occupied Micronesia, and in 1920, the newly formed League of Nations entrusted the islands to Japan. This was the beginning of the South Seas Mandate. This lasted until the American occupation, which began in 1944, but wasn't officially revoked until 1947. The United Nations then created the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands (TTIP), which were transferred to the trusteeship of the United States. In the 1950s, the residents had protested the adoption of a flag, citing the lack of a cohesive identity for the disparate group of islands, and the scheme to create one was dropped.

The trust territory first adopted a flag on 24 October 1962, which featured a design of six white stars around a shade of blue based on the flag of the United Nations. The flag was designed by Gonzalo Santos and officially approved in 1965 by the National Congress. The six stars represented the districts of Yap, Truk, Pohnpei, Palau, Marshall Islands, and Northern Mariana Islands; the latter three did not become part of the eventual Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) in 1979.

Design

thumb|Students in [[Port Vila, Vanuatu, with Marshall Islands and Micronesia flags.]]

The four white stars are oriented in a circle with none of the "rays" pointing inwards, adorning a shade of blue representing the Pacific Ocean.

Colours

The colours on the Micronesian flag are:

Regulation and use

thumb|The flags of Pohnpei State and the municipality of [[Nett]]

The flag code establishes that the flag shall be flown, in the open air, from sunrise to sunset, only on buildings, boats which are registered in the Federated States of Micronesia, staffs or halyards. It shall be raised promptly, but lowered ceremoniously. On national territory, except in the case of embassies, consulates, diplomatic missions and offices of international agencies, it shall not be in a lower position than any other flag.

Historical flags

File:Flag of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands.svg| Flag of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands; was used in the FSM 1965 to 1978.

File:Flag of Pohnpei (1977-1992).svg|Former Flag of Pohnpei from 1977 to 1992

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State flags

File:Flag of Chuuk.svg| Chuuk

File:Flag of Kosrae.svg| Kosrae

File:Flag of Pohnpei.svg| Pohnpei

File:Flag of Yap.svg| Yap