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Taiwan 2002 |
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National Symbols |
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National Flag
The "White sun in a blue sky" portion of the Republic of China's national flag
was originally designed by Lu Hao-tung 陸皓東, a martyr of the Chinese revolution.
Lu presented his design upon the founding of the Hsing-chung Hui 興中會 (Society
for Regenerating China) in Hong Kong on February 21, 1895. It was redesigned
to include a crimson background during the years just prior to the revolution.
This design is still used today as the national emblem.
Before the Wuchang Uprising 武昌起義 in 1911, the revolutionary armies in different provinces had different flags: the one used in the Wuhan area had 18 yellow stars, representing the 18 administrative divisions of China at the time; the Shanghai army adopted a five-color flag of red, yellow, blue, white, and black, representing the five main ethnic groups of China; and Guangdong, Guangxi, Yunnan, and Guizhou provinces used the "White sun in a blue sky." When the Provisional Government 臨時政府 was first established, the five-color flag was adopted as the national flag, the 18-star flag was used by the army, and the "White sun in a blue sky" by the navy. The five-color national flag was replaced by the current ROC national flag on May 5, 1921; however, it was only used in the south. It was officially adopted by the new national government on December 17, 1928, following the successful completion of the Northern Expedition and the unification of China. Thereafter, it was used nationwide. The 12 points of the white sun in the emblem represent the 12 two-hour periods of the day, symbolizing unceasing progress. At one level, the three colors of blue, white, and crimson stand for the Three Principles of the People: nationalism 民族, democracy 民權, and social well-being 民生. At another level, the colors embody qualities that evoke other concepts enumerated in the Three Principles: the blue signifies brightness, purity, freedom, and thus a government that is of the people 民有; the white--honesty, selflessness, equality, and thus a government that is by the people 民治; and the crimson--sacrifice, bloodshed, brotherly love, thus a government that is for the people 民享.
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