Ethiopia land of our fathers
the land where our God wants to be
like bees to a hive swiftly gather
God children are gathered to thee.
With our red, gold and green floating for us
and our Emperor to shield us from wrong
with our hope and our future before us
we hail and we chant and we sing
God bless our Negus, Negus I
who keeps Ethiopia free
to advance with truth and right, truth and right
to advance with love and light, love and light.
With righteousness pleading
we hail to our God and King.
Humanity pleading - one God for us all
Ethiopia the tyrants are falling
who once smote thee ´pon thy knee.
Thy children are heartically calling
from over the distant seas.
Jahoviah - the great one has heard us.
He has come to protect us from wrong.
He has sent his holy angel to guide us
and to protect us in this time
God bless our Negus, Negus I
who keeps Ethiopia free....
to advance with truth and right, truth and right
to advance with love and light, love and light.
With righteousness pleading
we hail to our God and King.
Humanity pleading - one God for us all
Flag History | The blue symbolizes peace and the pentagram represents the unity of the nations, nationalities and peoples of Ethiopia. The origial symbolism of the colors denoted the Christian virtues. In the present official symbolism, the green represents fertility, labor and development; the yellow, hope justice and equality, and the red, sacrifice and heroism in the cause of freedom and equality. |
Flag Date of Adoption | 6 February 1996 |
Flag Symbolism | three equal horizontal bands of green (top), yellow, and red with a yellow pentagram and single yellow rays emanating from the angles between the points on a light blue disk centered on the three bands; Ethiopia is the oldest independent country in Africa, and the three main colors of her flag were so often adopted by other African countries upon independence that they became known as the pan-African colors |