The flag of Tanzania has a similarity with the rest of the nations in Africa: adaptation from the Pan-African colors. The Tanzanian flag uses five diagonal shapes – the topmost stripe is colored by green, an equal-sized diagonal stripe blue at the bottom and a black diagonal stripe at the centermost part, separated by two narrow strips of yellow which likewise served as a division from the green and blue colors.
The explanation behind the colors of the Tanzanian flag has marked connection with its geography, people, wealth and aspirations. The green color represents agriculture, rich vegetation and the fertility of the Tanzanian soil. The blue color indicates the numerous rivers and lakes traversing the Tanzanian land and the vastness of the Indian Ocean situated at the eastern part of Tanzania.
Likewise, the black color at its center symbolizes the people of African descent and the land they toiled for centuries. The yellow narrow stripes on both sides of the black stripe show the rich mineral wealth of Tanzania. As for the construction details of the flag the measure of the stripes are as follows: black is more than a 1/4 out of the size of the flag, the width of the two yellow bands is a third of each side.
As history will tell, the country of Tanzania is a consolidation of Zanzibar and Tanganyika. Like the new state of Tanzania, its flag is likewise a mixture of both features. As can be gleaned from the flag, the upper green area was taken from the former flag of Tanganyika while the blue lower portion was obtained from the old Zanzibar flag. Plus, the two diagonals were reconfigured to bestow upon them equivalent status.
The notes of G. Pasch in 1981 would show details about how the yellow stripe at the bottom portion would have been changed to a white band. But no evidence of the change ever surfaced. Up until today, the flag of Tanzania remained the same since its adoption in 1964.
Flag of Tanzania – Tanzanian Flags History, Meaning, Image & Symbol