Flag of Moldova

The national flag of the Republic of Moldova is the main official symbol of the country's sovereignty and independence. It is a rectangular cloth with three vertical stripes of blue, yellow and red and the State Emblem in the middle of the yellow color.

What do the colors and coat of arms of the Moldovan flag mean?

The national flag symbolizes the past, present and future of Moldova, reflects its democratic principles, historical traditions of the people, equality of rights, friendship and solidarity of all citizens. 

The flag was created by imitating the French flag to show that the Romanians are a Latin people, like the French, and are a rebellious people, followers of republican views, republican states. Except that the white shade of the French flag was replaced by yellow. The colors of the national flag also have heraldic significance: 

• blue - the color of air and sky;
• yellow - the color of the sun;
• red - the color of fire and blood.

The presence of the coat of arms on the flag of the Republic of Moldova was made on purpose, as the tricolor without the coat of arms is an ethnically Romanian national flag, and Moldova is only a part of the whole of Romania. The coat of arms is the second state symbol and comes from the medieval coat of arms of the Principality of Moldova. It consists of a horizontally divided red and blue shield, with red in the upper part of the shield and blue in the lower part, and a bull's head in the center with an eight-rayed star between the horns. The bull's head is surrounded by a five-petaled rose on the right and a crescent turned to the left. All the elements of the shield are golden, and the shield itself is placed on the chest of an eagle with a golden cross in its beak, which holds a green olive branch in its right claw and a golden scepter in its left. The national emblem was designed by artist Heorhii Vrabie. 

What flags are similar to the Moldovan flag?

The flag of the Republic of Moldova has similar colors to the national flags of Romania(2), Andorra(1) and Chad(3). In the case of Romania, it is the same tricolor that both states inherited. In the case of Chad, it is a coincidence. At the time of adoption, the difference between the Romanian flag and the Chadian flag was the coat of arms of the Romanian Socialist Republic, which was removed from the Romanian flag in 1989, and therefore its current design is indistinguishable from the Chadian flag. In the case of Andorra, the colors are part of the country's traditions. But these coincidences do not entail any semantic confusion between them.

History of the flag of Moldova

In the late 1980s, the Moldavian SSR needed to adopt a national flag and symbols for the newly independent state. The existing coat of arms and flag of the Ukrainian SSR did not reflect the national history and character of the Moldovan people, as they were united by all-Soviet symbols. Traditional Moldovan symbols (the tricolor and the medieval coat of arms) were used at national gatherings, but they did not have official status. In October 1989, a commission was set up to "study national and state symbols" and proposed a competition for a new flag and symbols. In its resolution, the People's Front of Moldova supported the idea of national symbols, noting that until 1940 Moldovans used blue, yellow, and red colors to reflect their national identity. At the First Session of the Supreme Soviet of the RSFSR, the tricolor flag with the coat of arms was officially legalized. According to the Constitution of Moldova, the flag has a vertical tricolor stripe with the coat of arms in the center.

On April 27, 1990, Gheorghe Ghimpu, a member of parliament, raised the tricolor on the dome of the Moldovan parliament, which was the first time the national flag of Moldova was raised. However, the country's coat of arms was approved later. Until November 3, 1990, Moldova did not have an official coat of arms and used a tricolor without a coat of arms. In the spring of 1990, the Supreme Soviet of the MSSR announced a competition to create a new state coat of arms. 130 works by 100 artists were submitted. The development of the coat of arms was a complicated process, as there were not enough specialists in the field of heraldry in Moldova, and many artists did not have sufficient knowledge of the history of Moldovan heraldry. In April 1990, two versions of the coat of arms were presented: one by the master Gheorghe Vrabie and the other by a team led by Simion Odainici.

The version of the Moldovan coat of arms, according to Gheorghe Vrabie, depicts a bull's head with a crescent moon, a rose, a star, a sword, a mace, and a crown on the bird's chest. On the bird's wings are symbols of the sun and moon. The shield contains three inscriptions: RSSM, Moldova, Virtus Moldaviae rediviva, Dacia romana. Semen Odainici's group proposed a different version of the coat of arms with a bull's head, a star between horns, a sun and a crescent moon on a red and blue bisected shield, supported by an oak wreath and a wreath of three ears of wheat. The Moldovan coat of arms has always had the basic elements: a bull's head, the sun, a rose, and a crescent moon. These elements represent power, light, faith, and rebirth. The main elements of the coat of arms come from the "Legend of the Purification of Moldova" and have a connection with the history of Moldova and its symbols.

The Parliament of the Republic of Moldova adopted the new coat of arms of the country - a project by Gheorghe Vrabie and Maria Dogaru - on November 3, 1990. This version of the coat of arms was chosen after the rejection of the previously proposed versions by Gheorghe Vrabie and the team of S. Odainici.

Gheorghe Vrabie's design was modified under the guidance of Maria Dogaru, who was an expert in Romanian heraldry and history. The coat of arms became less stylized and full of symbols. The project of Gheorghe Vrabie and Maria Dogaru caused a debate in the parliament because of the similarity with the Romanian coat of arms, but eventually the coat of arms was accepted by the society.

According to the Constitution of the Republic of Moldova, the country's coat of arms consists of a horizontally divided shield with red at the top and blue at the bottom. The shield is crowned with a bull's head, in which there is an eight-rayed star, and a rose on the right, a crescent on the left, all elements are depicted in gold. The shield is located on the chest of an eagle holding a cross of golden color in its beak. The right claw of the eagle holds a green olive branch, and the left claw holds a golden scepter.

Maestro Gheorghe Vrabie died on March 31, 2016. His work was recognized by the Order of the Republic, which he was awarded in 2010, as well as by the gratitude of the people of the Republic of Moldova, whose symbol Gheorghe Vrabie's work became.