Flag of Labrador
Encyclopedia
Flag
A flag is a piece of fabric with a distinctive design that is usually rectangular and used as a symbol, as a signaling device, or decoration. The term flag is also used to refer to the graphic design employed by a flag, or to its depiction in another medium.The first flags were used to assist...
of Labrador
Labrador
Labrador is the distinct, northerly region of the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. It comprises the mainland portion of the province, separated from the island of Newfoundland by the Strait of Belle Isle...
, while unofficial, is used to represent the mainland part of the Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
province of Newfoundland and Labrador
Newfoundland and Labrador
Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada. Situated in the country's Atlantic region, it incorporates the island of Newfoundland and mainland Labrador with a combined area of . As of April 2011, the province's estimated population is 508,400...
as distinct from the island of Newfoundland. It was designed in 1973 by Michael S. Martin. The flag has been influential in Labrador; its colours are mirrored in the flag of Nunatsiavut
Flag of Nunatsiavut
The flag of Nunatsiavut is the flag adopted by the Labrador Inuit Association to represent the Inuit of Labrador and their Land Claims Settlement Area called Nunatsiavut. The flag features the traditional Inuit Inukshuk coloured white, blue, and green, echoing the flag of Labrador.The flag became...
, and its spruce twig was adopted for use on the Franco-Terreneuvien flag.
Impetus
In 1973, the government of Newfoundland asked the citizens of the province to adopt special projects to commemorate the event of the 25th anniversary of Newfoundland’s 1949 confederationCanadian Confederation
Canadian Confederation was the process by which the federal Dominion of Canada was formed on July 1, 1867. On that day, three British colonies were formed into four Canadian provinces...
with Canada. Michael S. Martin, the Member of the House of Assembly for the district of Labrador South took this as an opportunity to do something significant to celebrate Labrador’s heritage as part of Newfoundland. The entire province of Newfoundland was without its own identity when it came to the flag, as the Union Jack, the flag of the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, had been adopted as the flag of Newfoundland in 1952. Martin and several others decided that their project to celebrate would be the creation of a flag for Labrador to give at least that part of Newfoundland an outward symbol of identity.
Design
The flag itself is 1:2 in its proportions and composed of three fessFess
In heraldry, a fess or fesse is a charge on a coat of arms that takes the form of a band running horizontally across the centre of the shield. Writers disagree in how much of the shield's surface is to be covered by a fess or other ordinary, ranging from one-fifth to one-third...
es. From the top they are white, green (Pantone
Pantone
Pantone Inc. is a corporation headquartered in Carlstadt, New Jersey, USA. The company is best known for its Pantone Matching System , a proprietary color space...
Green 256 U) and blue (Pantone Blue 2975 U), in a proportion of 2:1:2. In the left of the white field is a stylized representation of a sprig of the black spruce
Black Spruce
Picea mariana is a species of spruce native to northern North America, from Newfoundland west to Alaska, and south to northern New York, Minnesota and central British Columbia...
a common tree in Labrador. It has two year-growths, the first growth shorter than the second growth, and both have three branches (including the centre branch), each of approximately equal length.
Symbolism
The top white bar represents the snow which colours the culture and lifestyle of Labradorians like no other element. The bottom blue bar represents the waters of Labrador which serve as the highway and sustainer of the people of Labrador. The centre green bar represents the nurturing land. It is thinner than the other two, as the northern climes of Labrador have short summers.The twig is in two year-growths to represent the past and future of Labrador. The shorter growth of the inner twigs represents the hardships of the past, while the outer twigs are longer as a representation of the hope Labradorians have for the future. The three branches represent the three founding nations of Labrador; the Innu
Innu
The Innu are the indigenous inhabitants of an area they refer to as Nitassinan , which comprises most of the northeastern portions of the provinces of Quebec and some western portions of Labrador...
, the Inuit
Inuit
The Inuit are a group of culturally similar indigenous peoples inhabiting the Arctic regions of Canada , Denmark , Russia and the United States . Inuit means “the people” in the Inuktitut language...
, and the white settler. The three branches emerging from a single stalk represents the unity of the distinct peoples in the brotherhood of mankind.
Presentation
Originally, 64 flags were manufactured, each sewn together by Martin's wife; one for each of the 59 towns and villages in Labrador, one of each of the three Labrador Members of the House of Assembly, and one each for Martin and his wife personally. The flags were sent out to the communities for display on March 31, 1974, the 'technical' anniversary of Newfoundland joining confederation (the time was one split second before midnight so as not to be on April 1). On April 1, the three flags intended for MHAs were presented to them in a public ceremony at the Confederation Building, which houses the Provincial LegislatureNewfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly
The Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly is one of two components of the General Assembly of Newfoundland and Labrador, the other being the Lieutenant-Governor of Newfoundland and Labrador. The Newfoundland and Labrador General Assembly meets in the Confederation Building at St...
, in St. John's
St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador
St. John's is the capital and largest city in Newfoundland and Labrador, and is the oldest English-founded city in North America. It is located on the eastern tip of the Avalon Peninsula on the island of Newfoundland. With a population of 192,326 as of July 1, 2010, the St...
.
See also
- Flag of Newfoundland and LabradorFlag of Newfoundland and LabradorThe flag of Newfoundland and Labrador was introduced in 1980, and was designed by Newfoundland artist Christopher Pratt. The flag design, with the proportions 2:1, was approved by the House of Assembly of the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, on May 28, 1980. It was flown for the first...
- Newfoundland TricolourNewfoundland TricolourThe Newfoundland Tricolour, more commonly known as the "Pink, White and Green", is a popular but unofficial flag in use in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador and is incorrectly believed by many to have once been the Flag of Newfoundland and Labrador, or more usually, of just the...
- Flag of NunatsiavutFlag of NunatsiavutThe flag of Nunatsiavut is the flag adopted by the Labrador Inuit Association to represent the Inuit of Labrador and their Land Claims Settlement Area called Nunatsiavut. The flag features the traditional Inuit Inukshuk coloured white, blue, and green, echoing the flag of Labrador.The flag became...