The Random Sun

At the supermarket, stuck for ideas, I asked the woman at the register to give me a random word.  She said "Soleil."  Sun.  The Sun and political imagery came to mind:  Obama's rising sun logo.  The Japanese flag.  The Sun King.

Then I Googled "national flags with the sun".  I knew The Philippines and Argentina would pop up, but I wasn't familiar with Namibia's flag until today.  When I saw it  (adopted, 1990), I was surprised, because the sun in the upper left Canton is a 12-pointed version stylized almost exactly like that of the Taiwanese flag, which I'd seen when looking into the brief life of the Chinese fascist "Blueshirts."  Dig:

The colors are different.  The Taiwanese rays are longer and completely unattached, but the angles at the base of each isosceles ray of the Namibia flag touch slightly.

At first glance they are almost identical.  Both have 12 rays and are set against a blue field.  Curious that they are stylized in such a similar fashion.

I won't recap the 10+ years of sun imagery and metaphor we've discussed here on LoS, but it seems worth discussing the similarities between these two flags. 

According to the Namibia government website:

The sun symbolises life and energy. The golden colour of the sun represents the warmth and the colour of the plains of the Namib Desert.

The blue symbolises the sky, the Atlantic Ocean, Namibia’s marine resources and the importance of rain and water.

Red represents the Namibian people, their heroism and their determination to build a future of equal opportunity for all.

White refers to peace and unity.

The green symbolises the country’s vegetation and agricultural resources.

No reason why there are 12 rays.

On Taiwan's flag....The twelve rays of the white Sun symbolize the twelve months and the twelve traditional shichen (時辰; shíchén), a traditional unit of time which corresponds to two modern hours. Sun Yat-sen added the "Red Earth" to the flag to signify the blood of the revolutionaries who sacrificed themselves in order to overthrow the Qing Dynasty and create the ROC. Together, the three colours of the flag correspond to the Three Principles of the People: Blue represents nationalism and liberty; White represents democracy and equality; and Red represents the people's livelihood and fraternity.

The explanation for the colors, although not exactly the same, is very similar.  I hadn't really noted that Taiwan's flag is red, white, and blue.  Common flag colors:. USA, France, Russia, the Netherlands, Cuba, Chile, the UK....

Other national flags feature the sun: Argentina and Uruguay, the Philippines....here's a complete list.  

We've looked at some flags with single stars and some with constellations.  I don't think we've looked at any with the moon.  I suppose most of these would be the crescent moon of Islam, although South Carolina is an obvious exception 

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Coming up next, or in short order, anyway.  Sun, stars, constellations, and soon, the moon....