The Aruba flag was officially adopted on March 18, 1976, and retained its style after becoming an autonomous region of the Netherlands. The flag is light blue and has two narrow stripes, horizontal and yellow at the bottom, and a red four-pointed star with a white corner. The top of the flag was designed by vexillologist – Whitney Smith.
Also, the light blue color symbolizes the waters and skies of the Caribbean and was deliberately chosen to match the shade used in the UN flag.
The “red four-pointed red star” represents Aruba – its red soil and rusty white sand beaches. As well as the pride of Aruba,s people in the struggle for freedom for their island.
These four points symbolize the four major languages (Papyrian, Dutch, Spanish and English) as well as the four compass points, to indicate that its inhabitants came from all over the world.
These two yellow stripes represent the two main “industries” of the island, the flow of tourists to sunken beaches, and the flow of minerals from the earth. Yellow also indicates Aruba plants that bloom yellow. The width to length ratio of the flag is 2: 3.
History
In the early 16th century, Spain colonized Aruba and the flag of the Spanish Empire, the flag of the Burgundy Cross, was hoisted. Also, in 1639 Aruba came under Dutch rule and three horizontal colors were used: red, white, and blue.
Aruba, in 1815, became the colony of Curaçao and its dependencies under the same Dutch flag, but in 1949 the country became an autonomous country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
On November 19, 1959, Aruba became a member of the Netherlands Antilles and its flag became a white area with a vertical red stripe and a horizontal blue stripe. In the center of the flag are six white stars and five feathers representing Aruba, Bonier, Curaçao, Saba, Saint Eustatius, and Saint Martin.
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Until 1976, when Aruba had its own flag. It is a sky blue background with two narrow yellow stripes in the lower half and a red four-pointed star with a white border on the upper left.
There is a lot of symbolic meaning to this flag. The blue background is said to represent the sea, peace, hope, the sky, and the past and future of Aruba.
The yellow stripes represent the industrial minerals of the past. This four-pointed star represents the island, the blood of Aruba’s people during the French War, and patriotic love.
National Flag Day was chosen on March 18 because that was the date when Aruba became an autonomous country.
Aruba became independent from the Netherlands Antilles in 1986 but has not yet gained full independence and is still a country in the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
Meaning and colors
There is a contradictory meaning to the color of the Aruba flag. One theory is that the four-pointed star represents the island itself and its four main languages are Papyrian, Spanish, English, and Dutch. Light blue represents the sea and the sky. Yellow stripes mean anglo, a yellow rainbow.
Another theory states that yellow is abundant, reflecting the past and present industries of gold, aloe, and Aruba oil. Red means the love that every Arab has for his country and for the ancient industry of Brazilwood. And white represents the snow-white beaches as well as the sincerity of the hearts of the Aruba natives who strive for justice, order, and freedom.
The yellow stripes symbolize the free and separate position that the island enjoys in the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
Aruba Flag Color Codes
Coat of arms
The national emblem of Aruba was designed in 1955 in Amsterdam and has been the national emblem of Aruba ever since.
It shows a lion sitting on top of a shield with laurel branches surrounded in the lower half. The lion is a symbol of power and generosity, and the branches of the law are traditional symbols of peace and friendship.
The shield is divided into four parts by a white cross that represents sacrifice and faith. In the first quarter, the shield is the island’s first major export – the aloe plant. In the second quarter, the most well-known and second-highest Aruba hill is Hubert, which represents the rise of Aruba from the sea.
The third quarter shows the shaking of the hand, which is a symbol of Aruba’s good relations with the world. Finally, the fourth quarter includes gears, representing the industry.
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About Aruba
Aruba is an island and country of origin of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in the south-south Caribbean, about 29 km (18 miles) north of the Venezuelan peninsula of Paraguay and 80 km (50 miles) northwest of Curacao.
Its length from northwest to southeast end is 32 km (20 miles) and at its widest point, it is 10 km (6 miles).
Aruba, along with Bonaire and Curacao, forms a group known as the ABC Islands. In total, these important islands and the three major Dutch islands in the Caribbean are often referred to as the Dutch Caribbean, where Aruba has a population of about 1/3.
Aruba is one of the four countries that make up the Kingdom of the Netherlands, along with the Netherlands, Curaçao, and Sin Martنn. Citizens of these countries are all citizens of the Netherlands.
Aruba has no administrative subdivisions but is divided into eight regions for census purposes. Its capital is Oranjestad.
Unlike most of the Caribbean, Aruba has a dry climate and dry, desert landscapes, scattered cactus.
This climate has helped tourism because visitors to the island can expect clear, warm, and sunny skies throughout the year. Its land area is 179 square kilometers (69.1 square meters) and according to the 2010 census, it is very populous out of 101,484 inhabitants. Current population estimates are 116,600 (estimated in July 2018).
History
The history of Aruba dates back to about 1000 years when the Arawak tribe of Cactus Indians fled to Aruba to escape the savagery of the Caribbean Indians.
Many cacti remained on the island, while others moved to South America instead of to other Caribbean islands due to heavy currents and the difficulty of crossing nearby islands by boat.
However, in 1499, the Spanish explorer Alonso de Ojeda entered Aruba and established a colony on the island. Fortunately, Caquetios did not experience the fate of the Caribbean Indians living in other Caribbean islands in European hands.
Although many were abused and sent to Hispaniola for abduction, they did not become extinct like the Caribbean.
Aruba’s early history was full of war. For more than 80 years, the Dutch and the Spanish conquerors fought for control of this small but beautiful island.
In 1636 the Dutch won the war and took control of the whole island. During the occupation of the Netherlands, the remaining Cactus lived freely. However, from 1805 to 1816, the British took control of Aruba. In 1816, Britain ceded control of the island to the Dutch.
Throughout the history of Aruba, conquerors from various European countries sought gold.
However, this precious metal was only discovered in 1824 during the Dutch colonization. Significant amounts of gold were mined and became the country’s main export.
In 1916 the gold mines were forced to close because the supply of this precious metal was very low. Fortunately, another valuable commodity was discovered in abundance on the island. Black gold brought the discovery and prosperity of this small country. In 1928, the first refinery under Royal Royal Shell was established, and the history of Aruba changed forever.
The island flourished due to the significant amount of oil pumped from its shores.
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However, in 1985, the country’s refineries were forced to close due to the global supply of petroleum products. For this reason, the people of this small Caribbean island decided to focus on tourism.
Even with the reopening of oil refineries in 1991, Aruba continued to focus on the tourism industry.
One of the things that are not known in the history of Aruba was the name of this small island. Some say that Aruba is derived from “oro huba”, a Spanish phrase meaning “there was gold”. Others think that Aruba is from “Oruba”, meaning strategic or in the right place.
Economy
The island’s economy based on four main industries: tourism, aloe exports, oil refining, and overseas banking. Aruba has one of the highest living standards in the Caribbean. Per capita GDP (PPP) for Aruba in 2017 was $ 37,500. Its main trading partners are Colombia, the United States, Venezuela, and the Netherlands.
The agricultural and manufacturing sectors are relatively small. Gold mining was important in the nineteenth century.
Cornelius established the aloe vera mummification faith, and over time the industry became very important to the economy.
At one time, two-thirds of the island covered in aloe vera fields, and Aruba became the world’s largest exporter of aloe. The industry continues today, albeit on a smaller scale.
Access to bioavailability in Aruba is much lower than the global average. In 2016, Aruba had a global population of 0.57 hectares [biological capacity per capita], which is well below the global average of 1.6 hectares per capita.
In 2016, Aruba used 6.5 hectares of global biological capacity per person – the footprint of their ecological consumption.
This means that they use about 12 times the biological capacity of Aruba. This is the extent of Aruba’s lack of biological capacity.
The official exchange rate of Aruban fluorine to US $ 1.79 fluorine tied to the US $ 1. This fact and most tourists are American, means that hotel and leisure businesses prefer to bank and trade with customers in US dollars.
Geography
Aruba is a flat, riverless island in the arch of the Leeward Antilles, one of the smallest Antilles in the southern Caribbean. It is located 77 km west of Curaçao and 29 km (18 miles) north of the Venezuelan Paraguayan Peninsula. Also, Aruba has white sandy beaches on the west and south coasts of the island that is relatively safe from extreme ocean currents.
This is where a large part of the population lives and where the greatest development of tourism has taken place.
The lower part of the island has some rolling hills such as Hoyberg with 165 meters (541 feet) and Mount Jamanota, which is the highest island with 188 meters (617 feet) above sea level.
Oranjestad, the capital, is located at 12 ° 31′01 ″ N 70 ° 02′04 ″ West.
The Natural Bridge was a large, naturally shaped limestone bridge on the north coast of the island. It was a popular tourist destination until its fall in 2005.
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