Subnational flags of Cabo Verde (original) (raw)
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Last modified: 2025-11-15 by antónio martins
Keywords: estandarte | konsedju | idja | dja | law |
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See also:
- Municipal flags:
- Clickable map of Cabo Verde
- Mail dispatch signal flags systems in Cabo Verde (incl. flags for islands):
- Cabo Verde
External links:
- Coats of arms of Cape Verdean Municipalities, in Wikimedia Commons
reported by António Martins, 31 Mar 2016
Subdivisions of Cabo Verde
Cape Verde is divided in 22 municipalities.
António Martins, 05 Apr 2006
Two groups of islands compose the country: Barlavento (Windward) and Sotavento (Leeward).
Jorge Candeias, 29 Nov 2005
Those groups are composed of respectively 6 and 4 islands.
António Martins, 31 Mar 2016
Official codes forisland groups, islands, municipalities, and communes, and colonial municipalities
Island group  |
Island |
Municipality  |
Commune  |
||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| name | capital | (colonial ) |
|||
| B: Barlavento ⤵ | 1: Santo Antão | 11: Ribeira Grande | Pontado Sol | RGV VilaMariaPia | 111: Nossa Senhora do Rosário 112: Nossa Senhora do Livramento 113: Santo Crucifixo 114: São Pedro Apóstolo |
| 12: Paul | Vila das Pombas PAU | 121: Santo António das Pombas | |||
| 13: Porto Novo PTN | 131: São João Baptista 132: Santo André | ||||
| 2: São Vicente | 21: São Vicente | Mindelo | Mindelo SVI | 211: Nossa Senhora da Luz | |
| Santa Luzia | SNI RibeiraBrava | ||||
| 3: São Nicolau | 31: Ribeira Brava | 311: Nossa Senhora da Lapa 312: Nossa Senhora do Rosário | |||
| 32: Tarrafal de São Nicolau | 321: São Francisco de Assis | ||||
| 4: Sal | 41: Sal | Espargos | SALSantaMaria | 411: Nossa Senhora das Dores | |
| 5: Boa Vista | 51: Boa Vista | Sal Rei BVI | 511: São João Baptista 512: Santa Isabel | ||
| Island group |
Island |
Municipality |
Commune |
||
| name | capital | (colonial ) |
|||
| S: Sotavento ⤶ | 6: Maio | 61: Maio | MaioMIO | 611: Nossa Senhora da Luz | |
| 7: Santiago | 71: Tarrafal | Tarrafal | TarrafalTRR | 711: Santo Amaro Abade | |
| 76: São Miguel | Calheta | 761: São Miguel Arcanjo | |||
| 72: Santa Catarina | Assomada | Assomada SCA | 721: Santa Catarina | ||
| 77: São Salvador do Mundo | Picos | 771: São Salvador do Mundo | |||
| 73: Santa Cruz | Pedra Badejo | XCV PedraBadejo |
731: Santiago Maior | ||
| 78: São Lourenço dos Órgãos | João Teves | 781: São Lourenço dos Órgãos | |||
| 74: Praia | PraiaPRA | 741: Nossa Senhora da Graça | |||
| 75: São Domingos | 751: Nossa Senhora da Luz 752: São Nicolau Tolentino | ||||
| 79: Ribeira Grande de Santiago | 791: Santíssimo Nome de Jesus 792: São João Baptista | ||||
| 8: Fogo | 81: Mosteiros | FOG SãoFilipe | 811: Nossa Senhora da Ajuda | ||
| 82: São Filipe | 821: São Lourenço 821: Nossa Senhora da Conceição | ||||
| 83: Santa Catarina do Fogo | Cova Figueira | 831: Santa Catarina | |||
| 9: Brava | 91: Brava | Nova Sintra BRV | 911: São João Baptista 912: Nossa Senhora do Monte | ||
| Island group |
Island |
Municipality |
Commune |
||
| name | capital | (colonial ) |
Municipal flags of Cabo Verde
This photo shows a national teacher’s meeting is held in the Mosteiros town hall, in a room decorated with small hanging triangular flags in different colors and each showing a (different) logo. Could these be the flags of the 22 municipalities Cape Verde is divided in?
António Martins, 05 Apr 2006
The online coverage of the 2016 municipal electionsby the national television R.T.C. showed municipal emblems for all municipalities except Brava, Paul, Ribeira Grande de Santo Antão, and Santa Cruz — which are symbolized by the national emblem.
António Martins, 21 Dec 2016
Concerning the emblems of municipal flags, a few more are known to us than flags they are used on, for the same reasons of (paradoxally) less visibility of the latter. Likewise, we do know that flags for all of them exist, as the legal frame is the same for both kinds of symbols.
António Martins, 31 Mar 2016
So far have only accidental evidence of most of these emblems and some of the flags: They do exist and are in use, but we still need the general and specific laws and regulations.
António Martins, 08 Jul 2017
The article [c9v07] (about one specific municipal flag) refers to the national law that governs subnational emblems, «_Decreto-Regulamentar nº 8/2000, de 28 de Agosto, publicado no B.O. nº 25-26 I Série_», and quotes it obliquely concerning some interesting aspects, such as the need for the emblem to express simply, and yet powerfully, the uniqueness of each municipality within its island and the whole of the country. It specifies that, since it’s going to be used on a flag, such emblem should be adequately readable at a distance of at least 30 m, condemning an excessive «proliferation of small-sized graphic elements »that« would unavoidably weaken the aesthetic composition and the strength of expression sought from such a symbol». It is not clear, however, how much these guidelines come from this general law on local symbols, or from the conditions previously set by one specific municipality concerning the design of its own emblem, or from the designer’s own thought.
António Martins, 31 Mar 2016
Cape Verde seems to be following basically Portuguese practice in municipal flags with a few changes: a style of municipal emblem that sets it apart from European heraldry (and good for them, because the emblems they are using are quite attractive, unlike most Portuguese coats of arms), and the possibility of having different backgrounds in the banner and the flag.
Jorge Candeias, 10 Mar 2007
Some municipal flags in Cabo Verde come in two forms (in what seems to be one more cumbersome burden from Portuguesecolonialism), differently designed: One design for a regular flag, used for hoisting, where the municipal emblem shows on a plain color background, and another for rigid display flags (table flaglets, wall penants, parade guidons), which has instead a quartered background.
António Martins, 31 Mar 2016
Design of the emblems
All emblems known to us share some features: They are all round, depicting non heraldic elements inside a disc, have a scroll with the name of the municipality in varying colors below the disc, are surrounded on the upper part of the disc by 10 yellow five-pointed upright regular stars, and, on a apical gap of the said said arc of stars, include a chain with a varying number of links. The links and the stars (standing for the islands) are also present in the national emblem.
António Martins, 07 Sep 2009
Common elements seem to be:
- the round shape of the shield (so named as these emblems seem to be decreed to be heraldic in nature in the relevant legislation),
- the presence below the shield of a scroll bearing the toponym, of variable shape and colors,
- a chain segment above the shield, made of three, four, or five green chain links (standing for the importance/rank of the municipality?),
- and the 10 golden stars of the national flag, set in two arcs.
These two last elements are also shared by other emblems of official governmental entities, such as the police (both the current P.N. and the previous POP), ultimately inspired in the national emblem itself.
António Martins, 31 Mar 2016
Chain links
The color green in the chain links, though, albeit surely canting for the country name, seems to be found only in municipal emblems.
António Martins, 31 Mar 2016
I’m pretty sure that four links means city status for the municipal seat — an elegant transposition of the Portuguese system of visible towers in a mural crown.
António Martins, 25 Apr 2017
_Chains in CV municipal emblems: colors and number of links Round markers indicate special cases — q.v.._
| color | V | B | R | W | N |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 links | 74 | ||||
| 4 links | 13 21 72 76 78 79 83 91 | 32 | |||
| 3 links | 31 41 51 61 71 73 77 81 | 12 | 75 | 81 | 11 |
Banner version
This is a design for rigid display flags (table flaglets, wall penants, parade guidons), which has a quartered background in contrasting colors, one of them shared with the hoisting flag.
António Martins, 31 Mar 2016
The flag shape estandarteis used in small rigid hanging form. It is known to be shaped as a square or as an irregular pentagon, with one (vertical) symmetry axis, proportioned as a square with an right triangle extending from the bottom (edge line coordinates: (1;1), (1;3), (3;3), (4;2) and (3;1), closed). This seems to be the shape of Capeverdean municipal banners, differing from the respective flags (bandeiras) also by that the former have quartered backgrounds and the latter have them plain.
António Martins, 17 Sep 2007 and 07 Sep 2009
Background colors and patterns
Caboverdean municipal flag backgrounds are known to be plain, quartered, horizontal bicolor, gyronny, and rayonny.
António Martins, 25 Apr 2017
Background colors of CV municipal flags:Round markers indicate the banner variant;non-grey markers indicate minor additional color (3rd, if bicolor, or 2nd, if plain).
| W | B | R | Y | M | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| (plain) | 12 51 74 75 76 77 79 91 | 41 71 | 82 | 13 | 72 |
| B | 11 21 32 41 61 71 73 | — | 83 | ||
| V | 31 78 | 81 81 |
Flag use
Town hall hoisting
On these three onlinephotos of the Mosteiros town hall two of the three flag poles erected are bare, only the national flag being hoisted.
António Martins, 05 Apr 2006
According to the National T.V., the first ever use of both the national flag and the T.S.N. municipal flag on an official building was in 2015.02.09 (see photo), at the newly unveiled municipal office in Praia Branca town.
António Martins, 21 Dec 2016
Colonial era
Some, not all, Portuguese overseas municipalities received arms and flag in the period 1940-1974, after all metropolitan municipalities got one. In Cape Verde Overseas Province all extant municipalities were granted a flag and a coat of arms in 1951-1955 (some confirmed/altered, other brand new); one municipality, created in the 1970s, remained seemingly flagless.
António Martins, 15 Jan 2003 and Nov 2025
Island flags?
The relationship between the 10 islands and the 22 municipalities varies:
- One municipality (São Vicente) covers two islands (plus a few islets, not counted to the 10),
- four islands are divided in several municipalities,
- and four other islands comprise a single municipality
— only the latter could be termed island flagsin any capacity.
António Martins, 01 Apr 2017
There were island flags in Cabo Verde, in the late 19th century: Not tokens of local government of any sort, but rather signal flags, used ashore in post offices.
António Martins, 06 Jul 2017
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