The Secret History Behind Guyana's Flag
Guyana's flag, the Golden Arrowhead, was designed by an American student who was twenty years old.
Whitney Smith, then an undergraduate at Harvard, drew the design in 1960 and wrote to the Chief Minister, Cheddi Jagan, on his own initiative. Smith later founded the field of vexillology, the study of flags, and the term itself is attributed to him.
The black and white borders around the triangles were not in Smith's original design: the College of Arms in England added them. The flag became official on May 26, 1966, the day Guyana became independent.
The green field stands for the forests and farmland, the golden arrowhead for the country's mineral wealth and its future, the red triangle for the zeal and endurance of its people, the white border for the rivers and the black one for resilience.
The date printed on every Guyana design in our catalog, May 26, 1966, is Independence Day.
A student's letter that became a national flag.
Looking for a gift with a story? See our heritage gift guide, or read the story behind any other country's flag on our free Flag Stories page.