Flag and emblem of Mava

Mava

Name	Kaamatuulikalat ("Our Blue Flag")
Use	National flag and ensign
Proportion	2:3
Adopted	13 June 1925
Design	A horizontal bicolour of white and blue, with a counterchanged wave mirrored horiontally.
Variant flag of Mava
Use	Presidential standard
Proportion	2:3
Design	The national flag of Mava with gold border around the upper, lower, and fly side of the flag

The flag of Mava consists of a horizontal bicolour of white and blue, featuring in its centre a stylised wave mirrored horizontally. The wave is counterchanged: that part within the white is coloured blue, and that within the blue part is coloured white. The flag was adopted on 13 June 1925 by resolution of the Mavean Assembly, being the first state symbol formally adopted following independence earlier that year. 13 June is celebrated each year as "Flag Day", which has largely superseded the country's official independence day as the primary day for national celebration.

The flags official name, as specified in the Flag Act 1929, is the "National Flag of the Republic of Mava" (Mavean: Kaamatyakii Maava Yakiinaigaalu). However, the flag is more commonly known as Kaamatuulikalat ("Our Blue Flag"), which is the name used by the Department for Education in its flag regulations.

History

Mava came under Atitlanese sovereignty in 1829 when the Mavean chiefs formally relinquished control to the resident Atitlanese military command. During the period of Atitlanese rule, Mava had no unique flag. Where a unique flag was required, the flag of the Governor of Mava was used (the Atitlanese flag charged with the coat of arms of Mava). This flag has since become the de facto flag of colonial Mava and is widely used as such in historical displays and exhibitions.

When it became clear that independence was inevitable, the Legislative Council (the home-rule government) initiated a competition to design a new flag. The eventual flag was selected by the Council on 18 June 1924, although the resolution adopting it was not official and the flag continued to have no formal status in law. On independence, the newly-established Council of State adopted the flag as part of the first series of "Orders in Council" issued by the new president. The order did not establish the specifications of the flag beyond broad design requirements, resulting in a variety of colour schemes and variants arising. In 1929, the Flag Act formalised the design.

In the 1980s, a small artistic commune in Paas proposed an amendment to the flag, rotating it 180 degrees so that the base is white. The proposal, which sought to emphasise peace and harmony, was dismissed by the government of Niqimuyaak Maait.

Design and symbolism

The general design of the national flag of Mava was first established in the National Flag (Design and Specification) Order 1925, which was an Order in Council promulgated as a provisional flag law. The full design was eventually specified in the Flag Act 1929. According to the act, the flag is a rectangular cloth, with the ratio of its length to breadth being 3:2. The base is a horizontal bicolour of white and blue. At the bottom of the white bar is a wave "alike in appearance to a distant coastline", the high points and low points extending 31 percent and 16 percent of the height of the white bar respectively. The act specifies two high points. The lower half is the same as the upper, albeit mirrored with inverted colours

There is no official interpretation for the colours of the flag. However, prime minister Paaliuk Kaasatok suggested the following meanings: blue represents the ocean; white represents peace; the combination of the two represents the peace enjoyed by virtue of Mava's status as an island nation, separate from the Trianian continent; whilst the wavy charge represents the land.

The designer of the flag, which was proposed anonymously, has been subject to some discussion. The most common view is that artist and heraldist Taamaket Yiiat is the designer, although he publicly claimed no involvement in its design. The official attribution is to "Mavamuqtun Yakiialakat" ("Mavean Patriot"; lit. "Mavean Country Lover").

Colour scheme

Colors scheme	Blue	White
RGB	66-127-148	255-255-255
Hexadecimal	#417F94	#FFFFFF
CMYK	32, 8, 0, 42	0, 0, 0, 0

Mavean flag days

According to the Flag (Display and Use) Act 1991, the following days are officially sanctioned as days for the display of the flag. Although the flag may be flown at any time and by any person, the act specifies that the flag must be raised, fully drawn, at official buildings.

• The birthday of the president of Mava
• International Workers' Day
• Ancestors' Memorial Day
• Mavean National Day
• Christmas Day

The flag must be flown at full mast on these days, irrespective of whether the country is in a period of mourning. The president may issue an order permitting flying a flag at half mast on these days, although this is rarely done.

The flag of the president can only be flown in the presence of the president (e.g., when they are in residence). As, constitutionally, the presidency is always occupied, even if only on an interim basis, the presidential flag is not flown at half mast on the occasion of a president's death. The president's flag is the only flag, therefore, that is not flown at half mast during periods of mourning.

Other flags

Presidential standard

• 

  Flag uses by members of the Presidency of Mava

Military flags

• 

  Flag of the Special Duties Unit

• 

  Flag of the Mavean Coast Guard

• 

  Flag of the Mavean Coast Guard Air Arm

See also

• Politics of Mava
• Culture of Mava

External links

• Flag of Mava. International Flag Database