The Senyera (; meaning "pennon", "standard", "banner", "ensign", or, more generically, "flag" in

Catalan Catalan may refer to: Catalonia From, or related to Catalonia: * Catalan language, a Romance language * Catalans, an ethnic group formed by the people from, or with origins in, Northern or southern Catalonia Places * 13178 Catalan, asteroid #1 ...

) is a

vexillological symbol Flag information symbols are used by vexillologists to indicate certain characteristics of flags, such as where they are used, who uses them, and what they look like. The symbols were created by vexillologist Whitney Smith and then adopted by the ...

based on the

coat of arms of the Crown of Aragon The so-called Bars of Aragon, Royal sign of Aragon, Royal arms of Aragon, Four Bars, Red Bars or Coat of arms of the Crown of Aragon, which bear four red pallets on gold background, depicts the familiar coat of the Kings of Aragon." Léon Jé ...

, which consists of four red stripes on a yellow field. This

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldic visual design on an escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central element of the full heraldic achievement, which in its ...

, often called ''bars of Aragon'', or simply ''"the four bars"'', historically represented the

King King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the tit ...

of the

Crown of Aragon The Crown of Aragon ( , ) an, Corona d'Aragón ; ca, Corona d'Aragó, , , ; es, Corona de Aragón ; la, Corona Aragonum . was a composite monarchy ruled by one king, originated by the dynastic union of the Kingdom of Aragon and the County of ...

. The senyera pattern is currently in the flag of four

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

autonomous communities eu, autonomia erkidegoa ca, comunitat autònoma gl, comunidade autónoma oc, comunautat autonòma an, comunidat autonoma ast, comunidá autónoma , alt_name = , map = , category = Autonomous administra ...

( Aragon,

Catalonia Catalonia (; ca, Catalunya ; Aranese Occitan: ''Catalonha'' ; es, Cataluña ) is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a '' nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy. Most of the territory (except the Val d'Aran) lies on the nort ...

, the Balearic Islands and the

Valencian Community The Valencian Community ( ca-valencia, Comunitat Valenciana, es, Comunidad Valenciana) is an autonomous community of Spain. It is the fourth most populous Spanish autonomous community after Andalusia, Catalonia and the Community of Madrid wi ...

), and is the flag of the historically Catalan-speaking city of

Alghero Alghero (; ca, label= Alguerese, L'Alguer ; sc, S'Alighèra ; sdc, L'Aliera ) is a city of about 45,000 inhabitants in the Italian insular province of Sassari in northwestern Sardinia, next to the Mediterranean Sea. The city's name comes from ...

(

: ''L'Alguer'') in

Sardinia Sardinia ( ; it, Sardegna, label=Italian, Corsican and Tabarchino ; sc, Sardigna , sdc, Sardhigna; french: Sardaigne; sdn, Saldigna; ca, Sardenya, label=Algherese and Catalan) is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after ...

. It is also used on the

coat of arms of Spain The coat of arms of Spain represents Spain and the Spanish nation, including its national sovereignty and the country's form of government, a constitutional monarchy. It appears on the flag of Spain and it is used by the Government of Spain, the ...

, the

of Pyrénées-Orientales and of

Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur (; or , ; commonly shortened to PACA; en, Provence-Alps-French Riviera, italic=yes; also branded as Région Sud) is one of the eighteen administrative regions of France, the far southeastern on the mainland. Its pref ...

, the flag of Roussillon,

Capcir Capcir (; ) is a historical Catalan comarca of Northern Catalonia, now part of the French department of Pyrénées-Orientales. The capital of the comarca was Formiguera, and it borders the historical comarques of Conflent and Alta Cerdanya. Ca ...

Vallespir Vallespir (; ) is a historical Catalan comarca in Northern Catalonia, part of the French department of Pyrénées-Orientales. The capital of the comarca is Ceret, and it borders Conflent, Rosselló, Alt Empordà, Garrotxa and Ripollès ...

and

Provence Provence (, , , , ; oc, Provença or ''Prouvènço'' , ) is a geographical region and historical province of southeastern France, which extends from the left bank of the lower Rhône to the west to the Italian border to the east; it is bor ...

in France, one quarter of the

coat of arms of Andorra The coat of arms of Andorra (Catalan: ''Escut d'Andorra'') is the heraldic device consisting of a shield divided quarterly by the arms of the Bishop of Urgell and the Count of Foix – who have historically been the two co-princes of Andorra – ...

, and on the local flags of many municipalities belonging to these territories. The Senyera (sometimes together with the flag of Andorra) is also used informally in Catalonia to represent the

Catalan language Catalan (; autonym: , ), known in the Valencian Community and Carche as ''Valencian'' (autonym: ), is a Western Romance language. It is the official language of Andorra, and an official language of three autonomous communities in eastern ...

. It is also a synonym (in

''Senyal Reial or Senyera'' and old

''Señal Real or Señera'') for ''Royal Flag'', although the word normally refers to the Aragonese and Catalan flags. Also in Aragonese, it is usually referred to as ''O Sinyal d'Aragón'', i.e. "The Sign of Aragón".

Origin and history

The Senyera is one of the oldest flags in Europe still used in the present. There are several theories advocating either a purely Aragonese or a purely

origin for the symbol. The ''

Gran Enciclopedia Aragonesa The ''Gran Enciclopedia Aragonesa'' (''Great Aragonese Encyclopedia'', commonly abbreviated ''GEA'') is a Spanish language, Aragon-themed, encyclopedia. It was first published in 1981, under the direction of Eloy Fernández Clemente. In 1999, ...

'' states that its first material undisputed evidence dates back to a royal seal of Alfonso II of Aragon (1159), and that all evidence about a "Catalan" origin is debatable since historically nothing can be accepted other than the concept of "barcelonès", and understanding that as allusive to the

House of Barcelona The House of Barcelona was a medieval dynasty that ruled the County of Barcelona continuously from 878 and the Crown of Aragon from 1137 (as kings from 1162) until 1410. They descend from the Bellonids, the descendants of Wifred the Hairy. Th ...

(

Counts of Barcelona The Count of Barcelona ( ca, Comte de Barcelona, es, Conde de Barcelona, french: Comte de Barcelone, ) was the ruler of the County of Barcelona and also, by extension and according with the usages and Catalan constitutions, of the Principality ...

), and then, nothing referring to the ancient geographical area known as ''Cathalania'', ''Catalonie'' (Catalonia) where the County of Barcelona was found. The '' Gran Enciclopèdia Catalana'' (1968) claims that the first appearance of the flag is in the arms of the tomb of

Ramon Berenguer II, Count of Barcelona Ramon Berenguer II ''the Towhead'' or ''Cap de estopes'' (1053 or 1054 – December 5, 1082) was Count of Barcelona from 1076 until his death. He was the son of Ramon Berenguer I, Count of Barcelona, and Almodis de La Marche. The '' Chronic ...

, died in 1082 as well as later in the seals of Ramon Berenguer IV, Count of Barcelona of Barcelona and III of Provence in Provençal (1150) and then in Catalan (1157) documents. Besides, amongst the ancient manuscripts preserved today in

Poblet Monastery Poblet Abbey, otherwise the Royal Abbey of Santa Maria de Poblet ( ca, Reial Monestir de Santa Maria de Poblet), is a Cistercian monastery, founded in 1151, located at the foot of the Prades Mountains, in the comarca of Conca de Barberà, in Ca ...

is found a ''carte plegada on son tots los Reys d'Arago e Comtes de Barchinona figurats'', a genealogical roll of the Kings of Aragon and Counts of Barcelona commissioned between 1396 and 1400 by

King Martin I of Aragon Martin the Humane (29 July 1356 – 31 May 1410), also called the Elder and the Ecclesiastic, was King of Aragon, Valencia, Sardinia and Corsica and Count of Barcelona from 1396 and King of Sicily from 1409 (as Martin II). He failed to secure ...

. In the document, the four red stripes on a golden background appears only in the royal images painted of Wilfred the Hairy Count of Barcelona (878–897), Ramon Berenguer IV, Count of Barcelona (1131–1162),

(1356–1410) and King Martin I of Sicily (1390–1409). So it may suggest the ''Four Red Bars on Golden Background'' emblem was believed to belong to the

and the

in times of the initial dynasty (1164–1410) who ruled the Crown of Aragon. Furthermore, the Pennon of the Conquest of

Valencia Valencia ( va, València) is the capital of the autonomous community of Valencia and the third-most populated municipality in Spain, with 791,413 inhabitants. It is also the capital of the province of the same name. The wider urban area al ...

is documented as the world's oldest extant flag, dating from 1238, even though the yellow part was originally white, but the red stripes design was the same. The Government of Catalonia states about its official symbols that it may derive from 11th century or 12th century pre-heraldic symbols and the

County of Barcelona The County of Barcelona ( la, Comitatus Barcinonensis, ca, Comtat de Barcelona) was originally a frontier region under the rule of the Carolingian dynasty. In the 10th century, the Counts of Barcelona became progressively independent, here ...

's coat of arms, in which the yellow and red bars were vertical, while horizontal in the flag. The dynastic coat of arms became also the one for the lands ruled by the counts. It is thus present in the flags and shields of the territories that once were part of the

and also in the arms of

Andorra , image_flag = Flag of Andorra.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Andorra.svg , symbol_type = Coat of arms , national_motto = la, Virtus Unita Fortior, label=none (Latin)"United virtue is stro ...

, Provence-Côte d'Azur and

Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...

among others. Flag of the Papal States (pre 1808)

Another version is that the

Kings of Aragon This is a list of the kings and queens of Aragon. The Kingdom of Aragon was created sometime between 950 and 1035 when the County of Aragon, which had been acquired by the Kingdom of Navarre in the tenth century, was separated from Navarre in ...

used and adopted the colours of the

Papal States The Papal States ( ; it, Stato Pontificio, ), officially the State of the Church ( it, Stato della Chiesa, ; la, Status Ecclesiasticus;), were a series of territories in the Italian Peninsula under the direct sovereign rule of the pope fro ...

in their own coat of arms as a public and notorious submission to the

Pope The pope ( la, papa, from el, πάππας, translit=pappas, 'father'), also known as supreme pontiff ( or ), Roman pontiff () or sovereign pontiff, is the bishop of Rome (or historically the patriarch of Rome), head of the worldwide Cathol ...

, something which the County of Barcelona would have followed shortly after according to this version. The colours for the city of

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

, which in those times was controlled by the

, were the same. According to the ''Encyclopædia Britannica'', the flag of the

Holy See The Holy See ( lat, Sancta Sedes, ; it, Santa Sede ), also called the See of Rome, Petrine See or Apostolic See, is the jurisdiction of the Pope in his role as the bishop of Rome. It includes the apostolic episcopal see of the Diocese of R ...

's Navy from the 12th century on consisted of two vertical red and yellow bands, sometimes bearing the

tiara A tiara (from la, tiara, from grc, τιάρα) is a jeweled head ornament. Its origins date back to ancient Greece and Rome. In the late 18th century, the tiara came into fashion in Europe as a prestigious piece of jewelry to be worn by women ...

and the keys. According to the

Vatican Vatican may refer to: Vatican City, the city-state ruled by the pope in Rome, including St. Peter's Basilica, Sistine Chapel, Vatican Museum The Holy See * The Holy See, the governing body of the Catholic Church and sovereign entity recognized ...

official website, the yellow and red of the flag of the Holy See were two colours traditional of the Roman Senate and People. This ancient flag can still be seen on the

Capitoline Hill The Capitolium or Capitoline Hill ( ; it, Campidoglio ; la, Mons Capitolinus ), between the Forum and the Campus Martius, is one of the Seven Hills of Rome. The hill was earlier known as ''Mons Saturnius'', dedicated to the god Saturn. ...

, near the Roman Forum. The Papal States changed its colours in 1808 to the present yellow and white, while the City of

sticks to the old colours to this day. We can reject this theory based on the works of Geronimo de Blancas, chronicler of the Kingdom of Aragon, 1585. This author reports that Pope Innocent III after crowning the King Pedro II (the Catholic) accepted that Aragon was a tributary kingdom of the Apostolic See. To compensate for this gesture the Pope appointed King Peter II

Gonfalonier of the Church The gonfalonier of the Church or papal gonfalonier ( it, Gonfaloniere della Chiesa, "standard-bearer"; la, Vexillifer Ecclesiæ) was a military and political office of the Papal States. Originating from the use of the Papal banner during comba ...

and that the Church's banner had the colours of the crown of Aragon. The Almogavars of the

Catalan Company The Catalan Company or the Great Catalan Company (Spanish: ''Compañía Catalana'', Catalan: ''Gran Companyia Catalana'', Latin: ''Exercitus francorum'', ''Societas exercitus catalanorum'', ''Societas cathalanorum'', ''Magna Societas Catalanorum' ...

used a royal pennon with the arms of the Kings of Aragon when campaigning in the

Byzantine Empire The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...

. It was used as ensign of the Aragonese Navy from 1263 to 1516. The plain version of this was used as official flag of the Autonomous Community of Catalonia during the

Second Spanish Republic The Spanish Republic (), commonly known as the Second Spanish Republic (), was the form of government in Spain from 1931 to 1939. The Republic was proclaimed on 14 April 1931, after the deposition of King Alfonso XIII, and was dissolved on 1 ...

and since the Spanish transition to democracy. In its plain version, it is also used in the French ''département'' of Pyrénées-Orientales ( Northern Catalonia), part of the former Principality of Catalonia until 1659. It is also used as the flag of

, a distinct region with historic ties to the Counts of Barcelona and the Crown of Aragon. The

blazon In heraldry and heraldic vexillology, a blazon is a formal description of a coat of arms, flag or similar emblem, from which the reader can reconstruct the appropriate image. The verb ''to blazon'' means to create such a description. The vi ...

of this standard version is ''Or, four bars Gules''.

Modern usage

The senyera pattern is nowadays in the flag of four

: without any change for

, and, with variations, for the territories of the former kingdoms of the Crown of Aragon: Aragon proper, the Balearic Islands and

(while the latter two are modern interpretations, the Valencian ''Senyera Coronada'' does originate back to

medieval times In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire an ...

). It also forms the basis of various unofficial versions, such as the blue or red

estelada The Estelada (; pl. ''Estelades''; full name '' Senyera estelada'', , from ''estel'', "star") is an unofficial flag typically flown by Catalan independence supporters to express their support for either an independent Catalonia or independent ...

used by

Catalan independence The Catalan independence movement ( ca, independentisme català; Spanish: ''independentismo catalán'') is a social and political movement (with roots in Catalan nationalism) which seeks the independence of Catalonia from Spain. The beginning ...

supporters. Camp Nou during El Clasico October 2012

The senyera is also the basis for the

of Pyrénées-Orientales, the flag of the

pays In France, a ''pays'' () is an area whose inhabitants share common geographical, economic, cultural, or social interests, who have a right to enter into communal planning contracts under a law known as the Loi Pasqua or LOADT (''Loi d'Orientation ...

of Roussillon in France, and one quarter of the

Coat of arms of Andorra The coat of arms of Andorra (Catalan: ''Escut d'Andorra'') is the heraldic device consisting of a shield divided quarterly by the arms of the Bishop of Urgell and the Count of Foix – who have historically been the two co-princes of Andorra – ...

. Dozens of municipalities belonging to these territories base their local flags on the Senyera as well.

Origin legends

According to a 14th-century

legend A legend is a genre of folklore that consists of a narrative featuring human actions, believed or perceived, both by teller and listeners, to have taken place in human history. Narratives in this genre may demonstrate human values, and possess ...

, the flag dates back from the 9th century, when the four red bars were drawn, as an act of gratitude, on Wilfred I the Hairy's ( Count of Barcelona) golden shield by king

Charles the Bald Charles the Bald (french: Charles le Chauve; 13 June 823 – 6 October 877), also known as Charles II, was a 9th-century king of West Francia (843–877), king of Italy (875–877) and emperor of the Carolingian Empire (875–877). After a ...

's fingers drenched with blood from the Count's war wounds prior to Wilfred's death in 897 during the siege of Barcelona by Lobo ibn Mohammed, the Moorish governor of Lleida. This legend would relate the emblem unambiguously to the Counts of Barcelona title. However, Charles the Bald had died 20 years earlier, in 877. Romantic-driven Catalan nationalists were particularly keen on this legend during the

Renaixença The ''Renaixença'' (; also written ''Renaixensa'' before spelling standardisation), or Catalan Renaissance, was a romantic revivalist movement in Catalan language and culture through the mid 19th century, akin to the Galician ''Rexurdimento ...

, in the 19th century, albeit it has always been recognized and divulged as such even in patriotic circles. Another version of this legend cites

Louis the Pious Louis the Pious (german: Ludwig der Fromme; french: Louis le Pieux; 16 April 778 – 20 June 840), also called the Fair, and the Debonaire, was King of the Franks and co-emperor with his father, Charlemagne, from 813. He was also King of Aqui ...

as the king drawing the bars during the conquest of Barcelona, in this version drawing them in a golden shield, but Louis died before Guifré was born. Also, Barcelona was conquered long before the events described on the legend. Another medieval variant of the legend features Ramon Berenguer painting the bars with his own blood on a yellow shield, with the yellow field of the shield being the arms of Aragon before his marriage.

Variations

There are a few variations in the official flags of other territories. For instance, in Aragon an extra

coat-of-arms A coat of arms is a heraldic visual design on an escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central element of the full heraldic achievement, which in its w ...

, in Balearic Islands a castle in the canton, and in València a blue crowned fringe on the hoist. Current official territorial flags File:Flag_of_Alghero.svg,

(Italy) File:Flag of Aragon.svg,

Aragon, Spain Aragon ( , ; Spanish and an, Aragón ; ca, Aragó ) is an autonomous community in Spain, coextensive with the medieval Kingdom of Aragon. In northeastern Spain, the Aragonese autonomous community comprises three provinces (from north to sout ...

File:Flag of the Balearic Islands.svg, Balearic Islands File:Flag of Barcelona.svg,

Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...

File:Flag of Barcelona (province).svg,

Barcelona (province) Barcelona (, ) is a province of eastern Spain, in the center of the autonomous community of Catalonia. The province is bordered by the provinces of Tarragona, Lleida, and Girona, and by the Mediterranean Sea. Its area is .Castelló de la Plana File:Flag of Catalonia.svg,

File:Bandera de Formentera.svg, Formentera File:Bandera de Girona.svg,

Girona Girona (officially and in Catalan , Spanish: ''Gerona'' ) is a city in northern Catalonia, Spain, at the confluence of the Ter, Onyar, Galligants, and Güell rivers. The city had an official population of 103,369 in 2020. Girona is the capital ...

File:Flag of Girona province (unofficial).svg, Girona (province) File:Ibiza flag.svg, Ibiza File:Bandera de la provincia de Lérida.svg,

Lleida (province) The Province of Lleida (; Aranese Occitan: Lhèida ; es, Lérida ) is one of the four provinces of Catalonia. It lies in north-eastern Spain, in the western part of the autonomous community of Catalonia, and is bordered by the Provinces of ...

File:Flag of Mallorca.svg, Mallorca File:Bandera de Menorca.svg,

Menorca Menorca or Minorca (from la, Insula Minor, , smaller island, later ''Minorica'') is one of the Balearic Islands located in the Mediterranean Sea belonging to Spain. Its name derives from its size, contrasting it with nearby Majorca. Its capi ...

File:Flag of Roussillon.svg, Northern Catalonia (Pyrénées-Orientales, France) File:Flag of Provence-Alpes-Cote dAzur.svg, Provence-Alpes-Côte-d'Azur (France) File:Bandera de Salamanca.svg,

Salamanca Salamanca () is a city in western Spain and is the capital of the Province of Salamanca in the autonomous community of Castile and León. The city lies on several rolling hills by the Tormes River. Its Old City was declared a UNESCO World Herit ...

File:Bandera de Tarragona.svg,

Tarragona Tarragona (, ; Phoenician: ''Tarqon''; la, Tarraco) is a port city located in northeast Spain on the Costa Daurada by the Mediterranean Sea. Founded before the fifth century BC, it is the capital of the Province of Tarragona, and part of Tarr ...

File:Bandera de la Comunidad Valenciana (2x3).svg,

city and

(

Senyera Reial The flag of the Valencian Community and of the city of Valencia, known as ''Reial Senyera'' (, "Royal Senyera"), is the traditional Senyera, composed of four red bars on a yellow background, crowned with a blue strip party per pale next to the ...

) Historical flags File:Royal Banner of Aragón.svg,

flag File:Penó de la Conquesta.svg, The Pennon of the Conquest of Valencia. File:Senyera valenciana preautonòmica.svg, interim

(1979–1980) File:Bandiera del Regno di Sicilia 4.svg, Kingdom of Sicily flag File:Bandera de Nápoles - Trastámara.svg, Kingdom of Naples flag (1442–1501) File:Bandera_del_Reino_de_Mallorca.svg,

City A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...

and Kingdom of Majorca File:Flag of Languedoc-Roussillon.svg, Flag of the former French region of

Languedoc-Roussillon Languedoc-Roussillon (; oc, Lengadòc-Rosselhon ; ca, Llenguadoc-Rosselló) is a former administrative region of France. On 1 January 2016, it joined with the region of Midi-Pyrénées to become Occitania. It comprised five departments, and b ...

(1970–2015) Military File:Standard of the 6th Airborne Brigade Almogávares (Obverse).svg, Guindom of the 6th Airborne Brigade "Almogávares" (Obverse) Flags of political movements File:EstreladaAragonesa.svg, ''Estrelada aragonesa'' (Aragonese nationalist flag) File:Estelada blava.svg, Catalan Independentist blue

. File:Estelada roja.svg, Catalan

Socialist Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes the ...

Independentist red

. File:Senyera del nacionalisme valencià.svg, Valencian nationalist estrelada. File:EVIS flag.svg,

Sicilian Independentist Movement The Movement for the Independence of Sicily ( it, Movimento per l'Indipendenza della Sicilia, scn, Muvimentu pâ Nnipinnenza dâ Sicilia, MIS) was a separatist Sicilian political party originally active in Sicily from 1943 to 1951. Its best e ...

flag

References

External links

*
Senyera History
Historic images {{Spanish Flags Crown of Aragon Flags of Spain Flags of France National flags History of Catalonia Catalan symbols Heraldic charges Flags of indigenous peoples Aragonese culture ca:Senyera Reial