South Africa Flags – South African Flag, Bunting & Hand Flags

The South African flag: six colours, one Y

The South Africa flag is the only national flag with six colours and no seal or writing: a green horizontal Y, edged in white, runs from the hoist to the fly, with a black triangle at the hoist edged in gold, red above the Y and blue below. It was designed by the State Herald, Frederick Brownell, in a matter of weeks and first flown on 27 April 1994, the day of the first democratic election; meant as an interim flag, it was kept in the 1996 constitution. The Y is read as the coming together of different paths into one, and the colours take in the black, green and gold of the liberation movements and the red, white and blue of the older Boer and British flags, though no official meaning has ever been assigned. Our South Africa flag prints all six colours through the woven polyester in the correct 2:3 proportion so the Y and the gold edging read correctly from both sides.

We also stock the pre-1994 South Africa flag, the orange-white-blue of 1928 to 1994, for historical displays and collectors.

The Springboks, the Proteas and Freedom Day

For South Africans in the UK the flag is first of all a rugby flag: the Springboks’ autumn tests at Twickenham and Murrayfield, the Rugby World Cup, the URC with the Bulls, Stormers, Sharks and Lions playing Welsh, Irish and Scottish sides every winter, and the Lions tour. Cricket follows, with the Proteas at Lord’s and the Oval, then Bafana Bafana at AFCON, the Olympic swimmers and sprinters, and the Comrades and Two Oceans expats who run London in green and gold. Freedom Day on 27 April and Heritage Day on 24 September, the national braai day, are the fixed dates, and the South African pubs, biltong shops and Wimbledon’s expat community keep a flag flying all year.

Which size South African flag?

The 5ft x 3ft South African flag is the one for a pub front, a braai-garden pole or a fan-zone wall. Choose the 3ft x 2ft South African size for a shop window, a bedroom or a smaller pole; for a rugby-club flagpole, a stadium stand or a stage, the big 8ft x 5ft; and 20x12in for a car or a Springbok supporter’s hand pole. Every South African size hangs from a header sewn with brass eyelets; switch to rope-and-toggle or clip fittings on the DuraFlag grade.

Flagtex or DuraFlag?

Flagtex, the printed woven-polyester grade, is priced so you can buy several for a test match or a braai. For a flag kept up all year outside a South African pub, a school or a company office, DuraFlag uses a denser knitted polyester, hems sewn twice over and a reinforced header. Get the order in by 2pm and it leaves that day, in time for the weekend’s match; the six-colour flag is stocked in and dispatched from our Stoke-on-Trent warehouse.

South Africa bunting

A rugby-club bar, a Heritage Day braai, a Freedom Day hall or a school’s Africa week can be dressed with South Africa bunting, the six-colour flag repeated on rectangle or triangle pennants. Lengths run 3m, 5m, 9m and 20m, weatherproof polyester on a strong sewn tape. Pair it with New Zealand and Australia bunting for a Rugby Championship or Lions tour display.

Hand flags and table flags

Rugby, cricket and Heathrow arrivals are where South Africa hand flags come out, on wooden sticks at 9x6in and 18x12in. A biltong-shop counter, travel agent or classroom suits the 6x4in South Africa table flag on its base; a company reception or conference table suits the satin table flag on chrome, and a pre-1994 table flag is stocked for historical sets. Zimbabwe, Namibia, Botswana and their neighbours are found under world flags.

South African flag FAQs

Popular in this collection

• South Africa Flag, six colours, 3x2–8x5ftfrom £6.99
• South Africa Buntingfrom £9.98
• South Africa Hand Flagsfrom £5.99
• South Africa Table Flag with Basefrom £1.98
• South Africa Pre-1994 Flagfrom £6.99
• New Zealand Flagssister hub