AllAboutMalaysia: Flag of Malaysia

Flag of Malaysia

The Flag of Malaysia, also known as Jalur Gemilang ("Stripes of Glory") is composed of a field of 14 alternating red and white stripes along the fly and a blue canton bearing a cresent and a 14-point star known as the Bintang Persekutuan (Federal Star). The 14 stripes, of equal width, represent the equal status in the federation of the 13 member states and the federal territories, while the 14 points of the star represent the unity between these entities. The cresent represents Islam, the country's official religion. The blue canton symbolises the unity of the Malaysian people. The yellow star and cresent is the royal color of the Malay rulers.

In blazon, the Malaysian flag is described as: "A banner Gules, seven bars Argent; the canton Azure charged with decrescent and mullet of fourteen points Or". This means "a red flag with seven horizontal white stripes; the upper-left (hoist) quarter is blue with a yellow waning crescent (i.e. horns pointing to sinister) and a yellow 14-pointed star".

History

The flag of Malaysia, which was first raised on 16 September 1963, originated from the flag of the Federation of Malaya. Prior to the creation of the national flag, each state in Malaya had its own flag, many of which are unchanged in design to this day.

Flag ratio: 1:2. The Flag of Malaya in use from 1950 to 1963.

Selection

When the Federation of Malaya replaced the short lived Malayan Union, the federation government through the Federal Legislative Council called for a design contest for a new flag. Three flags were forwarded to the public. The first flag had 11 white stars with two Malay kris (daggers) in the middle against a blue backdrop. The second flag consisted of "concentric circle of 11 stars around crossed keris on a blue field". The third design had 11 alternate blue and white stripes and a yellow crescent and a five-pointed star on a red background in the top left hand corner". The third design was chosen as the winner - after some adjustments by switching the canton and stripe colors - through a public poll held by The Malay Mail. Since Malaya was fighting the communists during the Malayan Emergency, the five-pointed star had an ironic resemblance to the communists' symbols. Therefore, the star was modified to accommodate six more points.

The first proposed flag of Malaya

The second proposed flag of Malaya

The third proposed flag of Malaya, after changes to canton and stripe colors

The Malayan flag was approved by King George VI on 19 May 1950 and was first raised in front of the Sultan of Selangor's residence on 26 May 1950. On 31 August 1957, it was raised upon independence at Merdeka Square in place of the British Union Flag.

Original symbolism

As the flag was finalized for official use, the significance of the design were given as follows:

o red, white and blue - represents Malaysia as a country belonging in the Commonwealth

o crescent and star - represents Islam as the official religion for the Federation, as yellow
   symbolises sovereignty of the Malay Rulers and their roles as leader of the faith in the constituent
   constituent states. The eleven-pointed star itself symbolizes the "unity and co-operation" of said
   member states

The designer

Flag of the East India Company

The Malayan flag was designed by Mohamed Hamzah, a 29-year-old architect working for the Public Works Department (JKR) in Johor Baharu, Johore. HeHe entered the Malayan flag design competition in 1947 with two designs that he completed within two weeks. The first design was a green flag with blue kris in the middle, surrounded by 15 white stars. The second design, which was among the three finalists, was similar to the current flag but with a five-pointed star. It borrows major design elements from the East India Company flag, notably the red and white stripes. The competition attracted 373 entries and voting was made by the general public via post. Malayan senior statesman Dato' Onn Jaafar met with Mohamed Hamzah after he won the competition and suggested that the star be changed to an 11-pointed one to represent all the Malayan states. Mohamed Hamzah died just short of his 75th birthday on 13 February 1993 in Jalan Stulang Baru, Kampung Melayu Majidee, Johor

Modifications

The Malaysian flag flying above the Tourism Malaysia office in Trafalgar Square, London. The flag of Uganda is seen by its side over Uganda House

Following the formation of Malaysia on 16 September 1963, the design of the Malayan flag was modified to reflect and honour the new states in the federation.
Three additional stripes were added to the existing flag and the star was given 14 points to reflect the federation of the original 11 states in Malaya plus Sabah, Sarawak, and Singapore; the design remained the same even after Singapore's expulsion from the federation two years later. When Kuala Lumpur was designated a Federal Territory on 1 February 1974, the additional stripe and the point in the star were appropriated to represent this new addition to the federation. Eventually, with the addition of two other federal territories, Labuan in 1984 and Putrajaya in 2001, the fourteenth stripe and point in the star came to be associated with the federal government in general.

In 1997, when Malaysians were invited to name the flag, then Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad picked the name Jalur Gemilang to project the country's onward drive towards continuous growth and success.

Mark of respect

During the National Day celebrations, everyone is encouraged to fly the Jalur Gemilang at their homes, office buildings, shops and corporate premises.

o If the flag is fixed at home, it is to be raised pointing towards the road.

o If the flag is put in a group of flags with state and private company flags, the Malaysian flag must be raised in between two flags and its pole placed higher than the rest.

Historical flags