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Flag

Gustavo Gómez Meja, a historian and journalist from Colombia who presided over the History Academy of Santander in the 1960s, designed the flag. Due to his outstanding contributions to numerous city projects, this individual was popular in Bucaramanga. He also distinguished himself as a historian by writing numerous chronicles about this region of Colombia. Because of this, he was given the great distinction of designing the Santander province’s capital’s flag. Despite the fact that the city in general was founded on December 22, 1622, it took until the 20th century for the municipality to adopt a flag. Since January 4, 1958, it has served as Bucaramanga’s official symbol and has been shown at all official occasions. Its form and color remain unchanged since it was first created. The purpose of making this flag was to have a physical representation of Bucaramanga’s territory. The native population and the people who live in this municipality should be able to identify with this symbol. A yellow stripe is placed in the middle of two green stripes to form the flag. A red circle surrounds the blue disc in the center, and a large white four-pointed star is located directly in the center of the blue circle. The following text appears around the red color’s edge: “Under the blue of its sky and defended by the generous blood of its children, Bucaramanga is open to the four horizons of the Homeland”.

1. Green stripes: The addition of the green stripes was done to symbolize faith and the hope of a prosperous future for the city. Bucaramanga has faced many challenges during the course of its history. There was a revolution between the city’s two resident classes, artisans and merchants, at the close of the 18th century. A terrible and horrific massacre occurred during this event, which resulted in numerous fatalities and a small number of arrests. A few years later, the economic crisis that had its roots in the Thousand Days War hit Bucaramanga. In the Battle of Palonegro, liberal forces came dangerously close to seizing control of this region, but finally failed. After these catastrophic events Bucaramanga began a process of recovery and entrepreneurship for the city to become a developed area. For these reasons, it was decided to use the green color, which has symbolized hope throughout history. The idea was that these green stripes represent that it is always possible for Bucaramanga to go ahead when it is going through adverse moments.
2. Yellow stripe: With the wide yellow stripe, it sought to symbolize the tremendous riches of this city. Due to Bucaramanga’s fertile land, the city has traditionally benefited greatly from the agroindustry. Thousands of jobs have been created in this field. It has developed into a significant industry over time. Due to the prominence of agriculture, cattle, and poultry production in this city, they decided to identify themselves by mentioning the wealth they have contributed to the municipality. This is the reason why the color yellow, which represents abundance and good fortune, was chosen to represent Bucaramanga.
3. Red border: The red border around the blue circle was placed to never forget the blood shed by the ancestors who achieved the independence of Santander. During the War of Independence against the Spanish Crown there were many battles and soldiers killed. The red color represents the sacrifices made by the combatants and also represents the heroes who died to achieve the freedom of the province of Santander, which involves this city as it is its capital.
4. Blue Circle: This circle is blue to symbolize the bright cerulean sky of Bucaramanga.
5. Four-pointed star: This star represents “the four horizons of the Fatherland”; that is, the four cardinal points.
6. Inscription: The inscription reads as follows: “Under the blue of its sky and defended by the generous blood of its children, Bucaramanga is open to the four horizons of the Homeland.” This inscription perfectly illustrates the meaning of the colors and the star on the flag. It indicates that this city is always available to serve its homeland, just as it has always done.