Guatemala’s flag is three equal vertical stripes, sky blue, white and sky blue, with the coat of arms in the centre. The state news agency AGN dates it to Decree No. 12 of 17 August 1871, issued by President Miguel García Granados, followed by Decree No. 33 of 18 November 1871, which made the coat of arms official.
In short: The white stripe between the two blues stands for a country between the Pacific and the Caribbean; AGN also lists values for each colour (white: purity, integrity, faith, peace; blue: justice, loyalty, strength, the sky). On the coat of arms, the quetzal means liberty, the rifles strength, the swords justice and sovereignty, the laurel victory, and the scroll carries the independence date, 15 September 1821. A government agreement of 12 September 1968 regulated the colours and their placement. Flag Day is 17 August.
The legal dates, in order
| Date | Instrument | What it did | Who prints it |
|---|---|---|---|
| 17 August 1871 | Decree No. 12 (executive decree, President Miguel García Granados) | Established the national flag in sky blue and white | AGN, 17 August 2023; AGN, 15 September 2022 |
| 18 November 1871 | Executive Decree No. 33 | Gave the coat of arms its legal existence | Ministry of Culture (CulturaGuate), 18 November 2021; AGN, 17 August 2023 |
| 1961 | Not named | Start of the yearly Flag Day on 17 August | AGN, 17 August 2024 |
| 12 September 1968 | Government agreement (acuerdo gubernativo), President Julio César Méndez Montenegro | Regulated in detail the colours and their placement in the flag and the coat of arms | AGN, 4 September 2020 and 17 August 2021 |
Sources: AGN, Día de la Bandera 2023, CulturaGuate and AGN, 17 de agosto, Día de la Bandera, read 10 November 2026.
One AGN article disagrees: its 2025 Flag Day piece says Decree No. 12 was dated 18 November 1871 and formalised the design. AGN’s 2023 article and the Ministry of Culture keep the two decrees apart (No. 12 in August for the flag, No. 33 in November for the coat of arms), and that is the pairing used here. AGN does not give a number for the 1968 agreement, and none of these publishers prints the flag’s proportions or official colour codes, so this page gives none.
What the blue and the white mean
AGN’s history of the flag (4 September 2020) says the white stripe between the two sky-blue stripes stands for the fact that Guatemala lies between the Pacific Ocean to the west and the Caribbean Sea to the east. The same article attaches values to each colour, and AGN repeats them in 2021 and 2022. Other government publishers word the meanings differently:
| Colour | AGN, 2020 to 2022 | Ministry of Culture message, 17 August 2025 | AGN, 9 September 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sky blue | Justice, loyalty, sweetness (dulzura), strength, the Guatemalan sky and the two seas | Justice, truth and loyalty | The Pacific Ocean, the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean; strength, justice and loyalty |
| White | Purity, integrity, faith, obedience, firmness, vigilance, peace and the nation | Purity, peace and integrity | Purity, respect, faith, integrity and peace |
There is no single official list in these sources. The geographic reading (a white land between two blue seas) appears in AGN’s 2020, 2021 and 2023 articles, and the AGN list in the first column is the fullest version of the values.
Why blue and white: the 1871 change
AGN’s 2020 article draws on the historian Carlos Zeceña. In his account, the earlier flag was created by the conservative government of General Rafael Carrera, based on a proposal by Bishop Juan José de Aycinena y Piñol and other members of the Aycinena family, who wanted to keep Spanish elements in it. After the liberal revolution of 30 June 1871, led by Miguel García Granados and Justo Rufino Barrios, one of the new government’s first decrees changed the flag to remove Spain’s colours, yellow and red. AGN’s 2025 article describes the replaced flag as a red, yellow and blue tricolour.
The coat of arms in the centre was also modified, to remove the conservative elements and the date 21 March 1847, the founding date of the Republic of Guatemala. According to the same article, the liberal design follows the flag of the United Provinces of Central America, which in turn was based on the flag of the United Provinces of the Río de la Plata (today’s Argentina), where the stripes are horizontal and the outer ones blue rather than sky blue. The flags of the other countries that formed the Central American union follow the same pattern.
The coat of arms, element by element
The Ministry of Culture’s CulturaGuate article (18 November 2021) gives the meaning of each element. AGN’s report on the carved coat of arms in the National Palace of Culture (9 September 2020) adds what each element looks like in that relief.
| Element | Meaning (Ministry of Culture) | In the National Palace relief (AGN) |
|---|---|---|
| Quetzal | Liberty | A real, preserved quetzal above the scroll; AGN relays the story that it died of injuries from a fight with a quebrantahuesos, a bird of prey |
| Scroll | The date of Guatemala’s independence | Carved wood with the gold inscription Libertad 15 de setiembre de 1821 |
| Two crossed rifles | Strength | Two original Remington rifles used in the 1871 revolution |
| Two crossed swords | Justice and sovereignty | Gold-coloured swords, originally of gold, which AGN says represent honour |
| Laurel branches | Victory | Laurel crowns, which AGN says symbolise peace and victory |
Sources: CulturaGuate and AGN on the palace coat of arms, read 10 November 2026.
The month on the scroll. Setiembre is not a spelling mistake: AGN notes that the Real Academia Española’s dictionary records it and that it was the most common spelling at the time. The date belongs to independence in 1821, not to the flag; the flag and coat of arms date from 1871. Independence Day itself is covered on our Guatemala Independence Day guide.
Who designed it. The Ministry of Culture credits the Swiss artist Juan Bautista Frener, working under President García Granados. AGN is more cautious: it says the creator of the first form cannot be stated with certainty, that Frener was an engraver at the Casa de la Moneda who drew the first coins on which the coat of arms appears, and that a story (which AGN presents as a hypothesis) has him decorating a hall for the 50th anniversary of independence with two swords, rifles, a scroll with the independence date, laurel branches and a quetzal.
Used on its own. AGN’s 2026 symbols article cites the Congress of the Republic as saying that when the coat of arms is used separately from the flag, it goes on a light sky-blue field.
Where to see the carved version. The relief hangs in the Salón Banderas of the Palacio Nacional de la Cultura in Guatemala City. The palace’s head of guides told AGN that there is no exact date for when it was installed, but old photographs show it in place at President Juan José Arévalo’s inauguration in 1945. Palace visits are covered in the zona 1 section of our Guatemala City museums guide.
Flag, pabellón and Flag Day
AGN explains that the flag is called the pabellón when it carries the coat of arms and the official colours, and that in official ceremonies its entrance is usually accompanied by the march La Granadera.
Flag Day falls on 17 August, the date of the 1871 decree, and AGN reports that it has been celebrated on that day since 1961. AGN’s report on the 2025 ceremony, held in front of the Palacio Nacional de la Cultura and organised by the Comité Permanente Pro-Festejos de la Independencia Nacional under the departmental governor’s office, lists the raising of the flag by Escuela Politécnica cadets, the national anthem, honours and the pledge to the flag (Jura a la Bandera), the reading of the flag’s history, and the lowering at 18:00. The 2026 Flag Day ceremony and the rest of the independence programme are on our Independence Day guide.
The flag is one of several national symbols; the others, each with the decree that declared it, are on our Guatemala national symbols page.
Sources
All read 10 November 2026.
- AGN: Guatemala conmemora el Día de la Bandera, 17 August 2023: Decree No. 12 of 17 August 1871 and Decree No. 33 of 18 November 1871.
- AGN: Bandera nacional, símbolo de justicia, lealtad y pureza, 15 September 2022: executive decree of 17 August 1871; colour meanings.
- AGN: 17 de agosto, Día de la Bandera, 17 August 2024: Flag Day celebrated since 1961.
- AGN: La bandera es el símbolo más antiguo de Guatemala, 4 September 2020: historian Carlos Zeceña, the 1871 change, colour meanings, the 1968 agreement.
- AGN: Guatemala conmemora el Día Nacional de la Bandera, 17 August 2021: three equal vertical stripes; the 12 September 1968 agreement.
- AGN: Día Nacional de la Bandera, un homenaje a nuestra historia e identidad, 17 August 2025: the 2025 ceremony and the Ministry of Culture’s message.
- AGN: Cuáles son los símbolos patrios de Guatemala, 9 September 2026: colour meanings; coat of arms on a light sky-blue field.
- AGN: Conozca el escudo de armas que está hecho con elementos reales, 9 September 2020: the National Palace relief.
- Ministerio de Cultura y Deportes, CulturaGuate: Escudo de Armas, 18 November 2021: Decree No. 33 and the meaning of each element.
Frequently Asked Questions
What do the colours and the coat of arms on Guatemala's flag mean, and when was the flag adopted?
The white stripe between the two sky-blue stripes represents Guatemala lying between the Pacific Ocean to the west and the Caribbean Sea to the east. AGN lists purity, integrity, faith and peace among the meanings of white, and justice, loyalty, strength, the Guatemalan sky and the two seas for blue. On the coat of arms, the Ministry of Culture gives the rifles as strength, the swords as justice and sovereignty, the laurel as victory, the scroll as the date of independence and the quetzal as liberty. AGN dates the flag to Decree No. 12 of 17 August 1871 and the coat of arms to Decree No. 33 of 18 November 1871.
What bird is on the Guatemalan flag and what does it mean?
The quetzal, Guatemala’s national bird, perched on top of the scroll. The Ministry of Culture says it stands for liberty.
What does the date on the coat of arms mean?
The scroll reads Libertad 15 de setiembre de 1821, the date of Guatemala’s independence. It is not the date of the flag, which came in 1871. AGN notes that setiembre is a spelling the Real Academia Española accepts and was the most common one at the time.
When is Flag Day in Guatemala?
17 August. AGN reports that the day has been celebrated every 17 August since 1961, marking the date in 1871 when President Miguel García Granados decreed the flag.
What did the 1968 regulation change?
AGN reports that a government agreement of 12 September 1968, under President Julio César Méndez Montenegro, regulated in detail the colours and their placement in the flag and the coat of arms. AGN does not print the agreement’s number or its colour specifications.
Who designed Guatemala's coat of arms?
The Ministry of Culture credits the Swiss artist Juan Bautista Frener, during the government of Miguel García Granados. AGN adds that Frener was an engraver at the Casa de la Moneda, while noting that who created the first form of the coat of arms cannot be stated with certainty.
