Bandila | Teen Ink

Bandila

January 27, 2015
By Softgrl SILVER, Cannon Falls, Minnesota
Softgrl SILVER, Cannon Falls, Minnesota
8 articles 0 photos 0 comments

     Have you considered what the flags around you mean? Well as we all know every flag has a meaning behind it. I have always wondered about the Philippines flag and what the meaning behind it  is. Considering the fact that the Philippine is my birth place, I would think that I would know something about the flag or the anthem, but I don’t. I knew about it at one time before I moved to America but I no longer remember. So now after I’m done with this project I hope that I would know more about the flag of the Philippines.

There are many ways to color and decorate a flag. But each flag's colors and design are unique. The flag is described as blue over red bicolor. The white equilateral triangle by hoist containing yellow sun and three yellow five-pointed stars. The blue represents noble ideals (translated from google translation as marangal ideals). The red represents courage and patriotism (tapang at pag-ibig sa bayang-tinubuan). The white equilateral triangle by hoist is just to fit the width of the flag but also represents liberty, equality and fraternity. The sun represents unity, freedom, sovereignty and people’s democracy (pagkakaisa, kalayaan, soberanya at demokrasya ng mga tao). The eight rays of the sun represents the start of the revolution (simula ng rebolusyon). The other three rays stars represents the major group of islands (ang mga pangunahing pangkat ng mga isla).
All of the symbols that are on the flag symbolize the Philippine Revolution. The revolution  started out as the revolution of Cuba against Spain which inspired the Philippine Revolution. The Philippine Revolution took place two years before the flag was created. The revolution started at the main group of islands in the Philippines, Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao. The flag in the Philippines was created in 1898 after the war between the Americans and Spaniard ended. Which then prompted the United States of America to promised the Philippines independence. It was 1946 was when the independence of the Philippines, that the United States had promised, finally became official.
There were many who wanted to create and design the flag, but only so many people could do it.It was the President of the Revolutionary Government, General Emilio Aguinaldo, who thought of the Filipino’s flag. The flag design idea came from the Cuban’s revolutionary flag. The flag was sewn by Marcela Marino Agoncillo, who was the wife of the first Filipino diplomat Felipe Agoncillo, at 535 Morrison Hill Road, Hong Kong. With the help of Marcela’s  daughter, Lorenza and Delfina Herbosa Natividad, the niece of Dr. Jose Rizal and the wife of General Salvador Natividad she was able to create the flag. For the first time the flag was shown during May 28 of 1898.
Now May 28th is the day when the Filipino celebrates Flag Day.  On June 12 of 1898 the flag was brought to Hong Kong to be unfolded for the very first time at the historic window in Kawit, Cavite. It was at the Aguinaldo Mansion that the flag was finally unfolded to declare to the people of the Philippines that their country was independent.
Everyone and I have wondered what the flags around them mean and why the flag was created. I have just learned what one of the flag around me represents and the history behind it.



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