The Nauru flag is not the first flag to represent the country, but it is the first flag that is completely dedicated to its nation and people. Its position as the only unique flag in the history of the country means the flag of Nauru as a strong symbol of the nation and its independence from all foreign powers.
The Nauru Flag was designed by a tenant by Evans, an Australian flag company. This flag symbolizes the geographical location of the island country.
The white star of the twelve flags on the flag represents the twelve unique tribes of the country. Also, the blue background is a symbol of the vast Pacific Ocean and the endless sky.
The white star symbolizes the country’s position in relation to the equator. The division of the flag into two equal halves recalls the history of the nation’s original people, who originated from two boulders.
History
Nauru did not have a national flag until colonization when it became part of the German Empire. The German government did not give Nauru a specific colonial flag, so the island showed itself with the German flag when it decided to choose its flag entirely.
Nauru became independent from Germany after World War I and then became a British mission under British rule.
It used the British flag from 1919 to 1948, at which time it became one of the United Nations trust zones associated with both Britain and Australia. During this period a new flag was used which had a red field with Union Jack in canton and six white stars in this field.
As it approached independence, it held a competition to design a new flag. The flag was used in 1968 and has represented the nation of Nauru ever since.
Meaning and colors
The flag of Nauru has a dark blue background that is cut in half horizontally with a thin yellow stripe. A white star with twelve dots is located below the bar near the flag hoist.
Flag Square represents the Pacific Ocean, and the strip that runs through the middle of the square represents the equator.
The star is placed directly below the bar to represent Nauru, which is just one degree south latitude of the equator. The star has twelve points to mean the flag of Nauru as a symbol of the country’s twelve indigenous tribes.
In honor of the role that phosphate mining played in the development of the country’s economy, white was chosen for this star.
Nauru Flag Color Codes
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The Republic of Nauru
The Republic of Nauru is a small island nation in the Micronesian region of Oceania. Nauru is located in the South Pacific and its capital is Yarn. Nauru was formerly called the “Pleasant Island” and became independent in 1968..
The official languages are English and Nauru, and the currency is the Australian dollar. With a population of 12,475, Nauru is the least populous country in the world after the Vatican.
Nauru is also the smallest republic in the world with an area of 21 square kilometers. Its closest neighbor is Banaba Island in Kiribati, 300 km east of Nauru.
History
Nauru was inhabited by the people of the Micronesian and Polynesian islands at least 3,000 years ago. Traditionally, 12 tribes or clans lived in Nauru, which is reflected in the 12-pointed star seen on the country’s flag. Neo-Norwegians traditionally identified their descent from the mother (maternal system).
The main occupation of the islanders was aquaculture, and by trapping Ibiza juveniles, they raised them in the freshwater of Boada Wetland, thus providing a reliable source of food for themselves. Coconut and pandanus fruit were other food items of the locals.
The name Nauro is probably derived from the Nauru word Anáoero, which means “I go to the beach”.
The first Westerner to visit the island was the British whaling captain and hunter John Fern, who arrived on the island in 1798 and called it the “Pleasant Island.”
From then on, the islanders gradually got in touch with the European whale hunters and the merchants, and these hunters depleted the island’s resources and consumed too much of the island’s freshwater.
It was at this time that insurgents separated from European ships began to live on the island. Nauru’s indigenous islanders traded with Westerners and received palm wine and weapons in exchange for food.
These weapons were used during the 10-year war of the Nauru tribes that began in 1878.
Nauru was annexed by Germany in 1888 and became part of the German Marshall Islands. The arrival of the Germans ended the Civil War, and the kings established themselves as rulers of the island. The most famous king of this period was named Avidia.
Christian missionaries arrived in Nauru from the Gilbert Islands in 1888. German immigrants called the island Navodo or Onavero. The Germans ruled Nauru for almost three decades.
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Robert Rush, a German businessman who married a native woman, was the first governor of the island and was appointed in 1890.
Albert Ellis Fuller discovered the probe in 1900 in Nauru Phosphate. The Pacific Phosphate Company began exploiting phosphate reserves in 1906 in agreement with Germany and exported its first shipment in 1907.
In 1914, with the outbreak of World War I, Nauru was occupied by Australian forces. Australia, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom signed the “Island of Nauru Agreement” in 1919, which established the British Phosphate Commission (BPC) and gave it the right to extract phosphate mines.
The island contracted the pandemic of the flu in 1920, which killed 18 percent of Nauru’s natives. In 1923, the League of Nations granted Australia custody of Nauru, declaring Britain and New Zealand the two Australian guarantors of the island.
On December 6 and 7, 1940, two German auxiliary warships, the Comet and the Orion, sank five supply ships in waters near Nauru, and the Comet shelled Nauru’s phosphate mines, oil storage depots, and coastal openings on the island.
Japanese troops occupied Nauru on August 25, 1942. The Japanese built a small airport on the island, which was first bombed on March 25, 1943, to prevent food from reaching Nauru.
The Japanese deported 1,200 Nauruans to Chowk Island for work. Absolutely abandoned by the Americans, Nauru was finally liberated on September 13, 1945, when Japanese commander Hyasaki Soda surrendered the island to the Australian Army and the Royal Australian Navy. After that, 737 Nauruans who had survived Japanese captivity on Chowk Island were repatriated.
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In 1947, a trusteeship was established for the island by the United Nations, with three countries, Australia, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom.
Nauru became self-governing in January 1966 and became independent following a two-year constitutional convention in 1968, with Hammer Drobort becoming the country’s first president.
In 1967, the people of Nauru bought the assets of the British Phosphate Commission, and in June 1970 the control was transferred to the local Nauru Phosphate Company.
The income from phosphate mines made the Nauruans one of the highest living standards in the Pacific.
In 1989, Nauru complained to the International Court of Justice about Australia’s management of the island, in particular Australia’s disregard for the environmental damage caused by phosphate mining.
Nauru and Australia reached an out-of-court settlement on the reconstruction of Nauru’s mined areas.
Economy
Nauruan’s economy peaked in the mid-1970s when its per capita GDP was $ 50,000, second only to Saudi Arabia. Most of this was achieved through phosphate extraction, which has declined since the early 1980s.
Small-scale extraction is still performed by RONPhos, formerly known as Nauru Phosphate Corporation. The government invests a percentage of RONPhos in the Naties Phosphate Royalties Trust. This trust manages long-term investments to support citizens after the depletion of phosphate reserves.
Culture
Angam Day, celebrated on October 26, celebrates the recovery of Nauruan after the two world wars and the 1920 flu epidemic. The displacement of indigenous culture by the colonial and contemporary influences of the West is significant.
A few old customs preserved, but some forms of traditional music, arts and crafts, and fishing still persist.
Geography
Nauru is an elliptical island with an area of 21 square kilometers (8 square miles) located in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It is located 42 km (26 miles) south of the equator.
The island surrounded by coral reefs that protrude from the water at low tide and form an area full of jagged cliffs. The presence of these coral reefs has prevented the creation of a port in Nauru, but the presence of waterways between the cliffs allows small boats to access the island.
A fertile shoreline 150 to 300 meters (490 to 980 feet) wide on land near the shore. Nauru’s central plateau surrounded by coral reefs. The highest point of the plateau, Command Ridge, is 71 meters (233 feet) above sea level.
The only fertile areas in Nauru are a narrow coastal belt, where coconut trees grow. It also grows in the fields around Boada Lagoon, bananas, pineapples, vegetables, pandanus trees, and native foliage such as the Romano tree.
Nauru was one of three large rock islands containing phosphate in the Pacific Ocean (Banaba Island in Kiribati and Mactea in French Polynesia were the other two phosphate islands).
Phosphate extraction in the Central Plateau leaves a vast expanse of barren land filled with jagged limestone ridges that sometimes reach 15 meters (49 feet) high.
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Also, phosphate mining has destroyed about 80 percent of Nauru’s land and has affected the surrounding special economic zone. It estimated that 40% of marine life has been killed by leachate and phosphate runoff.
Only about 60 species of endemic vascular plants have been found on the island, none of which are endemic. Coconut cultivation, mining, and the introduction of new species have seriously disrupted native plants.
The island has no native terrestrial mammals, but native insects, terrestrial crabs, and birds such as Cesca reeds are native to Nauru. Ships arriving in Nauru brought mice, cats, dogs, pigs, and chickens from the Polynesian islands to Nauru.
Natural freshwater resources limited in Nauru. Rainwater storage tanks can be found on many rooftops, but the islanders are largely affiliated with the three desalination plants located at Nauru Municipal Services.
Nauru’s climate is hot and humid throughout the year due to its proximity to the equator and ocean. Nauru sees monsoon rains between November and February but does not normally experience hurricanes.
Temperatures in Nauru range between 26 degrees Celsius (79 ° F) and 35 degrees Celsius (95 ° F) during the day and between 22 degrees Celsius (72 ° F) and 34 degrees Celsius (93 ° F) at night.
As an island, Nauru is vulnerable to climate change and sea-level change. Nauru is the seventh most threatened country by global warming. At least 80% of Nauru located at safe altitudes, but not until the phosphate mine damage recovery plan implemented. This area will remain uninhabitable.
