History of the Honduras Flag: Central American Federation to the Five-Star Design

Honduras’s blue-white-blue flag tradition descends from the banners used by the United Provinces and later Federal Republic of Central America in the nineteenth century. The horizontal layout survived the dissolution of the federation and became a lasting symbol of regional identity.

On February 16, 1866, during the presidency of José María Medina, Legislative Decree No. 7 established a Honduran national flag with three horizontal bands and five stars in the white center stripe.

The five stars preserved the idea of fraternity and possible reunion among the five former Central American federation states.

Decree No. 29 of January 18, 1949 revised the earlier law to improve uniformity. It specified three equal horizontal bands, five five-pointed stars arranged with four forming a rectangle and one in the center, and a flag whose length is twice its total height.

The reform also used the term azul turquesa for the outer bands and stars, although later public use and interpretation created a long-running debate over the exact shade.

The national flag remains a blue-white-blue horizontal tricolor with five blue stars in the center. The stars continue to symbolize the five former members of the Central American federation and the historical ideal of regional unity.