National Symbols of Mauritius

We have been talking about Mauritius for a while now and today we are going to learn about its national symbols which are used during events to represent a country around the world.

Long time ago, in Mauritius, knights and nobles had a coat of arms and this was a special symbol that represented their family, also used to differentiate one knight from another.
                          

Many colonies in Mauritius got its independence in the 20th century and many people believed that they could govern the island. One among them, was Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam, who worked for the people to have a better life and wanted to provide them with education and health facilities. Later on, an election was held and more people voted for independence and on march 12 1968, Mauritius became an independent country. The national flag was then unveiled with the colours Red, Blue, Yellow and Green.

For Mauritius, the national symbols are 'The National flag', 'The coat of Arms', 'The Dodo Bird' and 'Trochetia', the national flower.

1. The Flag:-

●Red colour represents the struggle for freedom. 

●Blue colour represents the Indian Ocean in which Mauritius is located.

●Yellow colour represents the golden.

●Green colour represents the country's vegetation. 

                   

2. 'The Coat of Arms' :-

The Coat of Arms distinguishes itself from that of other countries. It consists of the dodo bird and a deer supporting sugarcane and a shield divided into four sections. These sections are known as quarters.

■ "Stella Clavisque Maris Indici" means the star and key of the Indian ocean. 

■ The first quarter shows a sailing ship that refers to the European sailors travelling in the Indian Ocean. Many ships from Europe came to trade in Mauritius. 

■ The second quarter of the Coat of Arms is the palm trees which shows that Mauritius is a tropical island.

■The third and fourth quarter of the Coat of Arms shows 'a key and a star'.(The 'key' indicates the important of Mauritius in the Indian ocean and the 'star' shows Mauritius as a star in the Indian ocean).

■ Sugarcane, dodo and deer on the Coat of Arms shows that the Dutch came to the island. Sugarcane are shown on both sides of the Coat of the Arms because its a part of Mauritius economy. 

3. 'The National flower':-

On the 12th march 1992, the flowers Trochetia Boutoniana ( Boucle d'oreille) was declared the National flower when Mauritius became a republic. The flower was named after a French Botanist Louis Bouton, it is also an endemic flower in Mauritius. Its colour is orange-red and it flowers in the winter season (June-October).
            

4. 'The Dodo Bird'

Mauritius island was the habitat of the now-extinct flightless Dodo bird which were hunted down by the sailors and first settlers. It is now called the 'Raphus Cucullatus' by the scientists. In the presence of their predators, the Dodo birds grew big in size and their wings became small which then they lost their ability to fly and made them as an easy prey. By using advanced study on its bones, it has been concluded that these birds were swift on foot. In fact, this now-extinct bird is the perfect example of the evolutionary success.