The Croatian Flag The Croatian flag - as shown below - was officially adopted as the flag of Croatia in December 1990 (although it had been in use since July 1990), prior to declaration of independence by the country in June 1991. The red, white and blue colours - used in the flags of several Slavic countries - has actually been used in the flag of Croatia since 1848. Likewise, a coat of arms in the centre of the flag (although not the same one as is used today) was also used in flags in the 19th century - an early version contains the shields of Croatia, Dalmatia and Slavonia.
Prior to use of this flag, the flag of Yugoslavia was, of course, used in Croatia. This flag also had horizontal red, white and blue stripes, with a red star with gold edging placed in the centre.
The coat of arms in the centre of the Croatian flag is actually made of a chequered shield with five individual coats of arms of various provinces and towns above it - provinces from which Croatia emerged and formed. They are - from left to right - a crescent and star (the oldest known coat of arms for Croatia); two red stripes on blue (the coat of arms of Dubrovnik, which exists from when it was the Republic of Ragusa); three golden lion heads (the coat of arms of Dalmatia); a golden goat (the coat of arms of Istria); and a gold star above a black marten, a weasel-like animal (the coat of arms of Slavonia).
The famous chequered part (which has lent itself to a number of Croatian sports outfits - the Croatian football team's kit is certainly unique!) is thought to originate from as early as the 10th century when it was a symbol of the Croatian kings of that time.
The Croatian Anthem The national anthem
of Croatia is "Ljepa nasa domovino" which translates as "Our Beautiful Homeland". The anthem orginates from the 19th century, and was also used as the anthem of Croatia when it was part of Yugoslavia. It became the official anthem of the country of Croatia upon independence in 1991.
