Day of the Flag — February 23 — Mashramani Today's featured design is a fond favorite in the flag community, not only for its aesthetics but also for its ties to vexillology's most influential proponent. Guyana, which is located on the northern coast of South America, was under British control from [dates]. When the dissolution process began, a contest was initiated to find a flag for the soon-to-be independent country. A college student named Whitney Smith submitted a design (overlapping chevrons of yellow and green on a red field) and heard nothing back. When the flag was unveiled in 1966, Smith noticed the strong similarity to his own design (the colors were reversed and the fimbriations added), so he got in touch with the selection committee. Turns out, they'd been trying to get in touch with him. They loved his contribution to the process and later included him in a state dinner at the White House and he went on to essentially found the field of vexillology. So, that's the flag, but why today? Today is Mashramani, usually called Republic Day in English. Mashramani was born after a successful Carnival event was fused with the fervor of nascent patriotism. The name itself is a bit of an oddity. It may very well be the Arawak word for "festival," but the accuracy of that claim is debatable. Nevertheless, it was considered at the time to be a debate without any settlement, and therefore a safe name to choose for the celebration. In 1970, under Pres. Forbes Burnham, Mashramani (Mash for short) became an official national celebration, commemorated every February 23rd. It still incorporates many Carnival-esque elements, replete with parades, music, costumes, and dancing. [V=] ❤️🖤💛🤍💚 #dayoftheflag #flinsta #flags #nationalflags #whitneysmith #vexillology #mashramani https://www.instagram.com/p/CaWF1UAM5rq/?utm_medium=tumblr
