Banner o Greenland

The banner o Greenland wis designed bi Greenland native Thue Christiansen. It features twa equal horizontal baunds o white (top) an red wi a lairge disk slichtly tae the hoist side o centre. The top hauf o the disk is red, the bottom hauf is white. The entire banner measures 12 bi 18 pairts; each stripe measures 6 pairts; the disk is 8 pairts in diameter, horizontally affset bi 7 pairts frae the hoist tae the centre o the circle, an vertically centered.

Its local name in the Greenlandic leid is Erfalasorput, which means "oor banner", but Aappalaartoq (meaning "the red") is an aa uised for baith the Greenlandic banner an the Dannebrog. Today Greenlanders display baith the Erfalasorput an the Dannebrog, aften side-bi-side. It is an aa the anerlie Nordic banner athoot a Nordic Cross.

Greenland first entertained the idea o a banner o its awn in 1973 when five Greenlanders proposed a green, white an blue banner. The follaein year, a newspaper solicitit eleiven design proposals (aw but ane o which wis a Nordic cross) an polled the fowk tae determine the maist popular. The Dannebrog was better liked than ony. Little came o this effort.

In 1979, Denmark grantit hame rule tae Greenland, makin it an equal member o the Rigsfællesskab. The hame rule govrenment held an offeecial call for banner proposals, receivin 555 (o which 293 wur submittit bi Greenlanders).

The decidin committee came tae nae consensus, so mair proposals wur solicitit. Finally the present red-an-white design bi Christiansen narraelie wan ower a green-an-white Nordic cross bi a vote o fowerteen tae eleiven. Christiansen's red-an-white banner wis offeecially adoptit on Juin 21, 1985.

Tae honour the tent anniversary o the Erfalasorput, the Greenland Post Office issued commemorative stamps an a leaflet bi its creator. He described the white stripe as representin the glaciers an ice cap, which cover mair than 80% o the island; the red stripe, the ocean; the red semicircle, the sun, wi its bottom pairt sunk in the ocean; an the white semicircle, the icebergs and pack ice. The design is an aa reminiscent o the settin sun hauf-submerged belaw the horizon an reflectit on the sea. The colours o the banner are the same as those o the Dannebrog, seembolisin Greenland's place in the Dens Realm.

Ither proposals

The first serious proposal from 1973, suggesting green, white and blue would be appropriate

The Nordic Cross proposal by Sven Tito Achen in 1984 which was narrowly defeated by the current flag

Anonymous proposal in 1991 (white for the ice of Greenland, green for the name of Greenland)

Another proposal based heavily on the Dannebrog

Freemit airtins

• FOTW: Greenland - History o the Erfalasorput
• Ither banner proposals for a Nordic cross design