Esperanto symbols
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Esperanto symbols, primarily the Esperanto flag, have seen much consistency over the time of Esperanto's existence (namely in the consistent usage of the colour green), though a few variations in exact flag patterning and symbology exist.
The main flag of Esperanto, featuring the Verda Stelo ('Green Star'), was adopted in 1905 for use as a symbol of mutual recognition among
History
Verda Stelo
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Since the earliest days of Esperanto, the colour green has been used as a symbol of mutual recognition, and it appears prominently in all Esperanto symbols.[1] In a letter to The British Esperantist in 1911, L. L. Zamenhof, the creator of Esperanto, wrote: "It seems to me, that my attention was drawn to the color green by Mr. Richard H. Geoghegan and from that time I began to publish all of my works with green covers . . . Looking at one of my pamphlets that I had entirely by chance printed with a green cover, he pointed out that this was the color of his homeland, Ireland; at that time it came to me, that we could certainly look at that color as a symbol of HOPE. About the five-pointed star, it seems to me, that at first Mr. de Beaufront had it imprinted on his grammar [of Esperanto]. I liked that and I adopted it as a symbol. Afterward by association of ideas, the star appeared with a green color."[2]
The Verda Stelo was first proposed in an 1892 article in
Other proposed flags and symbols
In 1905, delegates to the first conference of Esperantists at Boulogne-sur-Mer, unanimously approved a version differing from the modern only by the superimposition of an "E" over the green star. Other variants include that for Christian Esperantists, with a white Christian cross superimposed upon the green star, and that for Leftists, with the color of the field changed from green to red.[3]
Some Esperanto speakers[
Design of the Verda Stelo
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The Esperanto flag is composed of a green background with a white square (canton) in the upper lefthand corner, which in turn contains a green star. The green field symbolizes hope,[5] the white symbolizes peace and neutrality[citation needed], and the five-pointed star represents the five continents (Europe, America, Asia, Oceania, Africa).[5]
By recommendation of the board of the Universal Esperanto Association, the flag should have the following proportions: The ratio of the width of the flag to the height of the flag to a side of the white square should be 3 to 2 to 1. The ratio of a side of the white square to the radius of a circle enclosing the star should be 10 to 3.5.
In popular culture
Most Esperantists continue to hold the verda stelo dear as a symbol of international or supranational solidarity (with the jubilea simbolo jokingly called la melono ('the melon') by some), though many also regard the preference of one symbol over another as a purely personal choice. At most Esperanto congresses, all three main symbols[
On December 15, 2009, the Verda Stelo flew on the
Influence
One hypothesis about the
See also
- Esperanto jubilee symbol – 1983 symbol for Esperanto
- Finvenkismo– Esperanto as the universal secondary language
References
- . Retrieved 13 March 2023.
Green being the colour adopted by the international Esperanto community, usually in the form of either a green star, or a green flag with a white star
- ^ "La Deveno de la Verda Stelo". The British Esperantist (86): 34. February 1912.
- ^ "Esperanto Flag".
- ISBN 9783030842307.)
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: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link - ^ .
- . Retrieved 13 March 2023.
Many Esperantists display a habit of wearing t-shirts portraying Zamenhof and declaring knowledge of Esperanto
- ^ "150th Birthday of LL Zamenhof". Google. Retrieved 2020-08-30.
- ^ "Pri la stelo". www.angelfire.com (in Esperanto). Retrieved 2020-08-30.