The flag of Honduras was created on February 16, 1866, during the presidency of José MarÃÂa Medina. It is based on the flag of the former United Provinces of Central America, which in turn was based on the flag of the United Provinces of the RÃÂo de la Plata, the first Argentine nation-state. According to its founding decree, the flag consists of three horizontal stripes of equal size: turquoise blue on the outside and white in the center. Five turquoise stars are located in the center of the white stripe.
In 1823, Honduras joined the United Provinces of Central America and adopted its flag. It continued using a plain blue and white triband after the union dissolved in 1838. On 7 March 1866 five blue stars were placed on the flag to represent the five original provinces: El Salvador, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Honduras, and Guatemala.
In practice, the flag has traditionally been made in different shades of blue, especially dark shades. In 2020, the National Autonomous University of Honduras established an internal color to represent the flag, defining it as its web color. The phrase "five pale blue stars" comes from the chorus of the Honduran National Anthem, written by Augusto C. Coello (lyrics) and composed by Carlos Hartling (music). This line describes the five stars located on the central white stripe of the national flag, traditionally associated with a light blue or sky blue, despite historical variations in the official shade.
Ships of the Honduran Navy fly a naval ensign which has the coat of arms of Honduras above an inverted arch of five small stars and a pendant.
The origins of the Honduran flag date back to United Provinces of Central America, which Honduras was part of. It was the first country in Central America to use a blue-white-blue triband, which in turn was based on the flag of Argentina.
Flag used since independence, and finally abolished in 1949. The flag has been defined as flag of the UPOCA without emblem.
On 16 February 1866, President José MarÃÂa Medina modified the coat of arms and flag, adding 5 stars representing the 5 original united provinces. The most popular arrangement of blue stars was similar to the arrangement of the dots on a die, but there were also alternative arrangements. Versions other than the current one disappeared by the 1930s.
Although there wasn't any mention regarding the exact shade of blue to be used, by the early 20th century, the most common version (including the one used by military forces) used navy blue.
Between 1896 and 1898 Honduras was part of a union known as Greater Republic of Central America, while retaining its own flag, though some flagmakers began to render the five stars as gold, the same as the GRCA flag. This design was never declared official.
On 26 January 1949, President Juan Manuel Gálvez amended the 1866 decree, confirming the position of the stars. The decree also defined the shade of blue used on the stripes and stars as turquoise. However, the flag continued to be produced using navy blue for 73 years.
In 2020, the National Autonomous University of Honduras published its guidelines regarding the shades of blue used on the flag, due to the "absence" of an official position about the topic. Following the intention of the 1949 decree, the guidelines established a lighter shade of blue for the Honduran flag "until its colors are defined and regulated by legislative decree".
On 4 January 2022, the Honduran Armed Forces announced a change from this month on their monograms, uniforms and logo to represent the national flag in turquoise. The announcement came shortly after President Xiomara Castro also announced the use of the flag in that shade of blue.
On 27 January 2026, the National Congress of Honduras reverted to using the previous navy blue flag, as part of a campaign promise by the National Party of Honduras to reverse the change to turquoise blue that occurred in 2022. The Presidency switched to using the previous colours on the same day as the Congress, included in this change was the presidential sash.