Flag of Burundi
A white diagonal cross divides the flag into red triangles at top and bottom and green ones at the sides, with a white disc in the centre holding three red six-pointed stars. The Presidency of Burundi says the red recalls the sacrifices made to defend the nation and win independence, the green hope and prosperity, the white peace and unity, and that the three stars traditionally stand for the national motto, “Unity, Work, Progress”.
Easily confused with
How to read it
Article 10 of the constitution of 2018 says the flag is tricolour, green, white and red: a rectangle divided by a diagonal cross, with a white disc in the centre bearing three six-pointed red stars, placed as an equilateral triangle in an imaginary circle centred on the disc, its base parallel to the length of the flag. The law sets the dimensions and other details. Article 11 gives the motto, “Unity, Work, Progress”. The Presidency says the flag was adopted after independence on 1 July 1962 and changed several times before reaching its present form; Larousse dates it to 1967.
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What the three stars stand for
The Presidency says the three red stars traditionally stand for the motto, “Unity, Work, Progress”, the three principles the Republic rests on, and are also often read as the historic pact that joins citizens in their diversity around a common destiny. Larousse says the stars stand for the three words of the motto and also for the country’s three ethnic groups. On the flag each star is edged in green.
Two readings of the colours
The Presidency gives red for the sacrifices of past generations in defending the nation and winning independence, and for courage; green for hope, prosperity and the country’s natural wealth, and for farming; white for peace, unity and concord between citizens. Larousse gives green for hope, red for the struggles for independence and white for the love of peace.
Read next
- Next in African flagsFlag of the ComorosThe Comoros flag is four horizontal stripes, yellow, white, red and blue from the top, with a green triangle along the pole holding a white crescent and four white stars in a line between its tips. Norway’s Store norske leksikon explains the crescent as the symbol of Islam and the four stars as the four islands of the Comoros; Lex says the four stripes are said to stand for the islands too.
- The same shape in North and Central American flagsFlag of DominicaDominica’s flag is forest green with a cross of yellow, black and white stripes and a red disc in the centre holding a Sisserou parrot ringed by ten green stars. The government says the ten stars are the ten parishes, each with equal status, the red is Dominica’s commitment to social justice and the three-coloured cross is the Trinity.
More african flags
The same shape elsewhere
Browse symbols drawn with circles, crosses, squares and rectangles or stars.
Sources
- Burundi 2018 Constitution, Constitution of Burundi of 2018, Articles 10 and 11 (English translation), Constitute Project, Articles 10 and 11
- Le Drapeau (Présidence de la République du Burundi), Presidency page on the national flag, Présidence de la République du Burundi, Le Drapeau; Signification des couleurs; Les trois étoiles
- Drapeau du Burundi (Larousse), Encyclopédie Larousse en ligne, image entry with caption, Larousse, Caption
Researched, edited and approved by Rory Hansen before publishing. Last reviewed October 13, 2026. How we research
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