Georgia Celebrates National Flag Day

The National Flag Day is celebrated in Georgia on January 14. The State Council of Heraldry calls upon the citizens of Georgia to raise or set the national flag in their homes, windows, balconies, fences, roofs and cars in order to praise and respect the primary symbol of the statehood and independence of Georgia as well as national and personal freedom.

The representatives of the State Council of Heraldry claim it is wrong to identify the flag with government establishments, political parties, protests and manifestations. “The national flag is the main symbol of dignity for each citizen and each family. It is also a symbol of national unity, the historical pathway of the nation, its spirit and striving for the future”, reads the statement of the Council.

The national flag day is celebrated annually.

There are few written sources available exploring the history of the flag of Georgia. However, it is supposed the current look of ‘Gorgasliani-Davitiani’ flag comes from 1320, when King George V the Brilliant (1314-1346) received ‘the keys of Jerusalem’. From this time, the five-mark composition symbolizing Jesus and the heralds (in different varieties, including 5 cross images) has been presented as a symbol of Georgia, which is proved by many visual sources – Pietro Vesconte’s (1318), Angelino Dulcert’s (1339), Domenico and Francesco Pizzigano’s (1367), Gabriel Vallseca’s (1439) and other marine maps (portulans). 

During Soviet times, the Georgian flag appeared thus:

The flag below was adopted in 1918 and kept for the three years of Georgia's independence from the Russian Empire. It was re-adopted in the early 1990s, during the presidency of Zviad Gamsakhurdia.

Yet a majority of Georgians, including the Catholicos-Patriarch of the Georgian Orthodox Church, supported the restoration of the medieval flag following the collapse of the Soviet Union. In 1999 the Parliament of Georgia passed a bill to change the flag. However, it was not endorsed by then-President Eduard Shevardnadze and was thus adopted in the early 2000s by the main opposition party, the United National Movement, led by Mikheil Saakashvili in opposition to Shevardnadze's rule, and became associated with the Rose Revolution.

The flag was officially adopted by Parliament on 14 January 2004. President Saakashvili formally endorsed it via Presidential Decree No. 31 signed on 25 January, following his election as President. 14 January is annually marked as a Flag Day in Georgia.

By Ketevan Kvaratskheliya

Image source: royal-flags.co.uk