The Flag of Ethiopia was adopted on February 6, 1996. The three traditional colors (green, yellow and red) date back to Emperor Menelik who reigned from 1889 until his death in 1913. The star testifies to Ethiopia's bright future and possibly echoes the connection with the House of King Solomon, while the yellow rays which it emits are equidistant and are said to represent the equality of all Ethiopians regardless of race, creed, or sex. Past versions of the flag are shown below:
Before the rectangular flag was created, Ethiopia flew three colored pennants. Note that the red was originally on the top.
The old flag featuring the Lion of Judah remains popular with the Rastafari movement and people loyal to Haile Selassie.
This flag was used under the Derg regime.
This is the flag of the People's Democratic Republic of Ethiopia.
Prior to 1996 (and to some extent even today) the 'plain' flag was commonly seen across the nation and the world.
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