What does the Idaho state flag symbolize?

The flag shows the state seal, which represents Idaho's mining, farming and timber industries and its wildlife, with a miner and a woman standing for equality, liberty and justice. The motto Esto Perpetua means "Let it be perpetual."

Who designed the Idaho state seal?

Emma Edwards Green designed the seal in the 1890s. She is the only woman credited with designing a U.S. state seal.

What is the only two-sided state flag?

Oregon has the only state flag with a different design on each side. Idaho's flag shows its seal on the front only, like most others.

What does the writing on the Idaho flag say?

The red band under the seal reads STATE OF IDAHO. The banner at the top of the seal carries the state motto, Esto Perpetua.

Why are flags at half-staff in Idaho?

Flags are lowered when the governor or the president orders it to honor someone who has died or to mark a day of remembrance. Check official announcements for the reason on a given day.

Idaho Flag: Meaning, Seal & History of the State Flag

The Idaho flag places the Great Seal of the State of Idaho on a field of dark blue, with the name of the state in gold letters on a red and gold band below. The seal was designed in the 1890s by Emma Edwards Green, the only woman to design a U.S. state seal.

What the Idaho state flag looks like

The Idaho state flag has a solid dark blue field with the full-color state seal in the center. A red and gold band with the words STATE OF IDAHO in gold block letters sits under the seal, and the official description calls for a gold fringe around the edges. The official proportions are 26:33, which are unique among flags, so the flag is only slightly wider than it is tall.

The seal is a detailed scene. At its center is a shield showing a river, a pine tree, and a farmer plowing a field. Standing on either side of the shield are a miner on the left and a woman on the right who represents liberty, justice and equality. Above the shield is the head of an elk, below it are a sheaf of grain and two cornucopias, and the state flower, the wild syringa, and ripened wheat grow beside the woman. A banner on the seal carries the Latin motto Esto perpetua, which means "Let it be perpetual."

Idaho flag meaning and symbolism

Each part of the seal stands for an aspect of the state. The miner represents the chief industry of the state at the time of statehood, and the farmer in the shield and the sheaf of grain point to agriculture. The pine tree represents the timber industry, and the mountains and river stand for the state's natural resources. The woman in the seal represents justice, and together with the miner she is read as standing for equality, liberty and justice.

The elk head refers to the state's wildlife, which its game law protects, the cornucopias refer to horticulture, and the wheat stands for farming. The motto Esto Perpetua expresses the hope that the state will last. The blue field is a common choice on U.S. state flags and has no separate official meaning.

History of the Idaho flag

The first seal of Idaho was created for the Idaho Territory in 1863. After statehood in 1890, the first state Great Seal was designed in the 1890s by Emma Edwards Green, the only woman to design a U.S. state seal. It was slightly redrawn in 1957.

Idaho's state flag, a blue banner with the seal and a red band reading State of Idaho, was adopted on March 12, 1907, and the state code sets out its details. The flag in use today keeps this basic look: the seal on blue, with the name below.

You can compare Idaho's flag with its neighbors on our U.S. state flags page. Oregon, next door, is the only state whose flag looks different on each side.

Interesting facts about the Idaho flag

Like many state flags, it is a seal on a blue field.
Emma Edwards Green is the only woman to have designed a U.S. state seal.
The official proportions of the flag, 26:33, are unique among flags, although many reproductions use more common ratios like 2:3.