The

national flag A national flag is a flag that represents and symbolizes a given nation. It is flown by the government of that nation, but usually can also be flown by its citizens. A national flag is typically designed with specific meanings for its colours a ...

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federal constitutional monarchy consists of thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two regions: Peninsular Malaysia and Borneo's East Mal ...

, also known as the Stripes of Glory ( ms, Jalur Gemilang), is composed of a field of 14 alternating red and white stripes along the

fly Flies are insects of the order Diptera, the name being derived from the Greek δι- ''di-'' "two", and πτερόν ''pteron'' "wing". Insects of this order use only a single pair of wings to fly, the hindwings having evolved into advanced ...

and a blue

canton Canton may refer to: Administrative division terminology * Canton (administrative division), territorial/administrative division in some countries, notably Switzerland * Township (Canada), known as ''canton'' in Canadian French Arts and ente ...

bearing a crescent and a 14-point star known as the ''Bintang Persekutuan'' (Federal Star). The 14 stripes, of equal width, represent the equal status in the federation of the 13 member states and the federal territories, while the 14 points of the star represent the unity among these entities. The

crescent A crescent shape (, ) is a symbol or emblem used to represent the lunar phase in the first quarter (the "sickle moon"), or by extension a symbol representing the Moon itself. In Hinduism, Lord Shiva is often shown wearing a crescent moon on his ...

represents

Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God (or '' Allah'') as it was revealed to Muhammad, the ...

, the country's

state religion A state religion (also called religious state or official religion) is a religion or creed officially endorsed by a sovereign state. A state with an official religion (also known as confessional state), while not secular, is not necessarily a t ...

; the blue canton symbolises the unity of the Malaysian people; the yellow of the star and crescent is the royal colour of the Malay rulers. It is in the stars and stripes and the Muslim crescent flag families.

Construction sheet

History

Selection

The current Malaysian flag is based on the flag of the

Federation of Malaya The Federation of Malaya ( ms, Persekutuan Tanah Melayu; Jawi: ) was a federation of what previously had been British Malaya comprising eleven states (nine Malay states and two of the British Straits Settlements, Penang and Malacca)''See' ...

. In 1949, a year after the Federation was created, the

Federal Legislative Council The Federal Legislative Council (also known simply as the Legislative Council) was the legislative body of the Federation of Malaya and the predecessor of the Malaysian Parliament. It was formed in 1948 after the abolition of the Malayan Union and ...

called for a contest to design a new national flag. The competition attracted 373 entries, three of which were put forward to the public in a poll held by ''

The Malay Mail ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...

''. The first flag had a ring of 11 white stars on a blue background, with two red Malay ''

kris The kris, or ''keris'' in the Indonesian language, is an asymmetrical dagger with distinctive blade-patterning achieved through alternating laminations of iron and nickelous iron (''pamor''). Of Javanese origin, the kris is famous for its dist ...

'' (daggers) in the middle. The second was the same as the first but with two concentric rings of 5 and 6 stars. The third had 11 blue and white stripes, and a red field in the top-left corner with a white crescent and five-pointed star on it. This last design was chosen as the winner. File:1949 Malaya Flag Proposal 1-new.svg, First proposed flag File:1949 Malaya Flag Proposal 2-new.svg, Second proposed flag File:1949 Malaya Flag Proposal 3-new.svg, Third proposed flag In December 1949, the Federal Legislative Council decided to make changes to the winning design. At the suggestion of statesman

Onn Jaafar {{Table Oghamletters Onn is the Irish name of the seventeenth letter of the Ogham alphabet, ᚑ, meaning " ash-tree", which is related to Welsh ''onn(en)'', from the root was *''ōs-, *osen'' 'ash'. Its phonetic value is The letter's Bríatha ...

, the red and blue colours were swapped, the crescent and star were changed from white to yellow, and six more points were added to the star. The final version of the Malayan flag was approved by

George VI George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until his death in 1952. He was also the last Emperor of I ...

on 19 May 1950 and was first raised in front of the Sultan of Selangor's residence on 26 May 1950. On 31 August 1957, it was raised upon independence at Merdeka Square in place of the British Union Flag.

Symbolism

As the flag was finalised for official use, the significance of the design were given as follows: * Red, white and blue – represents Malaysia as a country belonging in the

Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. Historically, it has been synonymous with "republic". The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the ...

. * Crescent and star – represents Islam as the

official religion A state religion (also called religious state or official religion) is a religion or creed officially endorsed by a sovereign state. A state with an official religion (also known as confessional state), while not secular, is not necessarily a th ...

for the

Federation A federation (also known as a federal state) is a political entity characterized by a union of partially self-governing provinces, states, or other regions under a central federal government ( federalism). In a federation, the self-gover ...

, as

yellow Yellow is the color between green and orange on the spectrum of light. It is evoked by light with a dominant wavelength of roughly 575585 nm. It is a primary color in subtractive color systems, used in painting or color printing. In th ...

symbolises sovereignty of the Malay Rulers and their roles as leader of the faith in the constituent states. The eleven-pointed star itself symbolises the "unity and co-operation" of said member states.

The designer

The Malayan flag was designed by Mohamed Hamzah, a 29-year-old architect working for the

Public Works Department This list indicates government departments in various countries dedicated to public works or infrastructure. See also * Public works * Ministry or Board of Public Works, the imperial Chinese ministry overseeing public projects from the Tang ...

(JKR) in Johor Baharu,

Johor Johor (; ), also spelled as Johore, is a state of Malaysia in the south of the Malay Peninsula. Johor has land borders with the Malaysian states of Pahang to the north and Malacca and Negeri Sembilan to the northwest. Johor shares mariti ...

. He entered the national flag design competition with two designs that he had completed in two weeks. The first was a green flag with blue ''kris'' in the middle, surrounded by 15 white stars. The second, which became one of the three finalists, was said to be inspired by the flag of Johor, but with five white stripes added to the blue field. Mohamed Hamzah died just short of his 75th birthday on 13 February 1993 in Jalan Stulang Baru, Kampung Melayu Majidee,

Modifications

Malaysia and Uganda Flags, Trafalgar Square

Following the formation of Malaysia on 16 September 1963, the design of the Malayan flag was modified to reflect and honour the new states in the federation. Three additional stripes were added to the existing flag and the star was given 14 points to reflect the federation of the original 11 states in Malaya plus

Sabah Sabah () is a state of Malaysia located in northern Borneo, in the region of East Malaysia. Sabah borders the Malaysian state of Sarawak to the southwest and the North Kalimantan province of Indonesia to the south. The Federal Territory ...

Sarawak Sarawak (; ) is a state of Malaysia. The largest among the 13 states, with an area almost equal to that of Peninsular Malaysia, Sarawak is located in northwest Borneo Island, and is bordered by the Malaysian state of Sabah to the northeast, ...

, and

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, bor ...

; the design remained the same even after Singapore's expulsion from the federation two years later. When

Kuala Lumpur , anthem = ''Maju dan Sejahtera'' , image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Malaysia#Southeast Asia#Asia , pushpin_map_caption = , coordinates = , sub ...

was designated a

Federal Territory A federal territory is an administrative division under the direct and usually exclusive jurisdiction of a federation's national government. A federal territory is a part of a federation, but not a part of any federated state. The states constit ...

on 1 February 1974, the additional stripe and the point in the star were appropriated to represent this new addition to the federation. Eventually, with the addition of two other federal territories,

Labuan Labuan (), officially the Federal Territory of Labuan ( ms, Wilayah Persekutuan Labuan), is a Federal Territory of Malaysia. Its territory includes and six smaller islands, off the coast of the state of Sabah in East Malaysia. Labuan's capita ...

in 1984 and

Putrajaya Putrajaya (), officially the Federal Territory of Putrajaya ( ms, Wilayah Persekutuan Putrajaya), is a planned capital city which functions as the administrative capital and the judicial capital of Malaysia. The seat of the federal governm ...

in 2001, the fourteenth stripe and point in the star came to be associated with the federal government in general. In 1997, when Malaysians were invited to name the flag, then Prime Minister

Mahathir Mohamad Mahathir bin Mohamad ( ms, محاضير بن محمد, label= Jawi, script=arab, italic=unset; ; born 10 July 1925) is a Malaysian politician, author, and physician who served as the 4th and 7th Prime Minister of Malaysia. He held the office ...

picked the name ''Jalur Gemilang'' to project the country's onward drive towards continuous growth and success.

Mark of respect

During the National Day celebrations, everyone is encouraged to fly the Jalur Gemilang at their homes, office buildings, shops and corporate premises. * If the flag is fixed at home, it is to be raised pointing towards the road. * If the flag is put in a group of flags with state and private company flags, the Malaysian flag must be raised in between two flags and its pole placed higher than the rest.

Historical flags

File:Flag of the Kingdom of Sarawak (1870).svg, alt=Flag of the Kingdom of Sarawak., Flag of the

Kingdom of Sarawak (While I breathe, I hope) , national_anthem = ''Gone Forth Beyond the Sea'' , capital = Kuching , common_languages = English, Iban, Melanau, Bidayuh, Sarawak Malay, Chinese etc. , government_type = Abso ...

from 1870 to 1946. File:Flag of Sarawak (1946–1963).svg, alt=Flag of the British Crown Colony of Sarawak 1946–1963., Flag of the Crown Colony of Sarawak from 1946 to 1963. File:Flag of North Borneo (1882–1902).svg, alt=Flag of North Borneo colony., Flag of

North Borneo (I persevere and I achieve) , national_anthem = , capital = Kudat (1881–1884);Sandakan (1884–1945);Jesselton (1946) , common_languages = English, Kadazan-Dusun, Bajau, Murut, Sabah Malay, Chinese etc. , ...

from 1882 to 1902. File:Flag of North Borneo (1902–1946).svg, alt=Flag of North Borneo colony., Flag of

from 1902 to 1946. File:Flag of North Borneo (1948–1963).svg, alt=Flag of North Borneo colony., Flag of the

Crown Colony of North Borneo The Crown Colony of North Borneo was a British Crown colony on the island of Borneo established in 1946 shortly after the dissolution of the British Military Administration. The Crown Colony of Labuan joined the new Crown Colony during its f ...

from 1948 to 1963. File:Flag of Labuan (1912–1946).svg, alt=Ensign of vessels of administration of the Crown Colony of Labuan 1912–1946., Flag of the

Crown Colony of Labuan The Crown Colony of Labuan was a Crown colony on the northwestern shore of the island of Borneo established in 1848 after the acquisition of the island of Labuan from the Sultanate of Brunei in 1846. Apart from the main island, Labuan consists ...

from 1912 to 1946. File:Flag of the British Straits Settlements (1904–1925).svg, alt=Flag of the British Straits Settlements (1904-1925)., Flag of the

Straits Settlements The Straits Settlements were a group of British territories located in Southeast Asia. Headquartered in Singapore for more than a century, it was originally established in 1826 as part of the territories controlled by the British East India Com ...

from 1904 to 1925. File:Flag of the British Straits Settlements (1925–1946).svg, alt=Flag of the British Straits Settlements (1925-1946)., Flag of the

from 1925 to 1946. File:Flag of Penang (1946-1949).svg, alt=Flag of Penang (1946-1949)., Flag of Crown Colony of Penang from 1946 to 1949. File:Flag of Malacca (1946-1957).svg, alt=Flag of Malacca (1946-1957)., Flag of Crown Colony of Malacca from 1946 to 1957. File:Flag of Singapore (1946–1952).svg, alt=Flag of Singapore colony., Flag of the Crown Colony of Singapore from 1946 to 1952. File:Flag of Singapore (1952–1959).svg, alt=Flag of Singapore colony., Flag of the Crown Colony of Singapore from 1952 to 1959. File:Flag of the Federated Malay States (1895 - 1946).svg, alt=Flag of four stripes along the fly coloured white, red, yellow and black respectively. In the middle is a white oblong circle with a Malayan tiger in it.,

Flag of the Federated Malay States A flag is a piece of fabric (most often rectangular or quadrilateral) with a distinctive design and colours. It is used as a symbol, a signalling device, or for decoration. The term ''flag'' is also used to refer to the graphic design empl ...

from 1896 to 1946; later adopted by the

Malayan Union The Malayan Union was a union of the Malay states and the Straits Settlements of Penang and Malacca. It was the successor to British Malaya and was conceived to unify the Malay Peninsula under a single government to simplify administration. ...

from 1946 until 1948 and the

from 1948 to 1950. File:Flag of Malaya.svg, alt=Flag with 11 alternating red and white stripes along the fly and a blue canton (occupying 7 stripes) bearing a crescent and an 11-point star., Flag of the

from 1950 to 1963. File:Flag of Malaysia.svg, alt=Flag with 14 alternating red and white stripes along the fly and a blue canton bearing a crescent and a 14-point star., Flag of

in current use since 1964.

Flag anthem

The flag anthem is written as dedication and pride of the Malaysian national flag. It is performed on Hari Merdeka, the nation's independence day on 31 August every year. The original anthem ''Benderaku'' was written by Malaysian songwriter Tony Fonseka. After the flag was given the name Jalur Gemilang, the flag anthem was updated in 1997 to reflect this change. This was then followed by an introduction of a new flag anthem, with arrangements by Malaysian songwriter Pak Ngah and lyrics by Malaysian songwriter Siso Kopratasa.

Other ensigns and flags

Government vessels use the Jalur Gemilang as the state ensign. The following is a table of the other ensigns used in Malaysia with the national flag inside.

Federal Star (Bintang Persekutuan)

The Federal Star is similar in concept of

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

Commonwealth Star The Commonwealth Star (also known as the Federation Star, the Seven Point Star, or the Star of Federation) is a seven-pointed star symbolising the Federation of Australia which came into force on 1 January 1901. Six points of the Star represen ...

in that it symbolises the unity of states in the Malaysian federation and its Federal government, featuring 14 points to represent the federation's 13 states and the federal territories. It is also used on the

Royal Malaysian Air Force The Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF, ms, Tentera Udara Diraja Malaysia; TUDM; Jawi: ) was formed on 2 June 1958 as the Royal Federation of Malaya Air Force (; ). However, its roots can be traced back to the Malayan Auxiliary Air Force format ...

roundel A roundel is a circular disc used as a symbol. The term is used in heraldry, but also commonly used to refer to a type of national insignia used on military aircraft, generally circular in shape and usually comprising concentric rings of dif ...

, the

Malaysian Chinese Association The Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA; zh, 马来西亚华人公会; ; ta, மலேசிய சீனர் சங்கம், initially known as the Malayan Chinese Association) is a uni-racial political party in Malaysia that seeks to ...

(MCA) and the former United Malayan Banking Corporation (UMBC) logo. The Patani Malayu National Revolutionary Front, a Southern Thai Malay separatist group involved in the

South Thailand insurgency The South Thailand insurgency ( th, ความไม่สงบในชายแดนภาคใต้ของประเทศไทย; ms, Pemberontakan di Thailand Selatan) is an ongoing conflict centered in southern Thailand. It ...

, originally adopted an independence flag that incorporated a crescent and 15-point variation of the Federal Star on its flag to represent the southernmost Thai provinces' closer tie to Malay and Muslim-majority Malaysia over that of Thailand. File:Roundel of Malaysia.svg,

. File:Flag of the Malaysian Chinese Association.svg,

(MCA) flag. File:Flag of the Barisan Revolusi Nasional (Koordinasi).svg, Deprecated Patani Malayu National Revolutionary Front flag, with a crescent and 15-point Federal Star. File:Malaysian flag on pole.png, Malaysian flag on pole

Notes

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Flag of Malaysia

National symbols of Malaysia

Jalur Gemilang The national flag of Malaysia, also known as the Stripes of Glory ( ms, Jalur Gemilang), is composed of a field of 14 alternating red and white stripes along the fly and a blue canton bearing a crescent and a 14-point star known as the ''Bintan ...