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City of Albuquerque
Proportion	10:17 (unofficial)
Adopted	1968
Design	A red field containing a yellow Zia sun symbol with the number "1706" in the middle circle, the word "Albuquerque" in yellow italics just below that, and a yellow thunderbird in the canton
Designed by	Dr. Richard P. Vann

The flag of Albuquerque is the official municipal flag of the city of Albuquerque, New Mexico. The design is a red field with yellow elements (a Zia sun symbol with the number "1706" in the middle, the word "Albuquerque" in italics just below the sun symbol, and a flying thunderbird in the canton).

Multiple pushes have been made to redesign the flag, even getting some city council members to suggest an open contest and public vote. No change has been made despite these efforts.^[2]^[3]

Design and symbolism

The Albuquerque flag reverses the colors of the New Mexico flag, with yellow elements on a red field. The central element on both flags is the Zia sun symbol, which represents the spiritual importance of the sun and the sacred number four in the culture of the Zia people. The rays of the Zia symbol represent the four cardinal directions, four seasons, four times of the day, and four stages of life.^[1] The center of the Zia symbol bears the year of the city's founding, 1706, and the name "Albuquerque" is printed underneath in a Spanish gothic script. In the upper hoist is a stylized bird symbol, consisting of a streamlined bomb superimposed over and perpendicular to a crescent moon, "acknowledging Albuquerque's contributions to the nuclear-and-space age."^[4]^[5]

History

The idea of creating a city flag was first discussed by the Albuquerque Chamber of Commerce in 1967.^[6] Later that same year, the city received a flag from Sasebo, its sister city in Japan, ahead of a planned visit by a delegation from Sasebo to Albuquerque.^[7] The Chamber of Commerce wanted a flag to present in return and announced a contest to design one running from December 1967 to March 1968.^[8] The winning entry was designed by Richard P. Vann, a local optometrist.^[4] The new flag was flown for the first time on June 21, 1968, after which it was presented to the deputy mayor of Sasebo.^[9]^[10]

Another copy of the flag was presented to the city of Albuquerque on January 13, 1969, by the Camp Fire Girls organization under the direction of Joyce Miller.^[11] This flag was reported to be 5 feet (1.5 m) by 8 feet (2.4 m) and was placed in the City Commission chamber. Other handmade copies of the flag were also distributed by the Camp Fire Girls.^[12] A June 1969 article stated that "Mrs. Miller has made all of the Albuquerque flags now in existence".^[13] Use of the flag became more widespread after the Zonta Club donated 140 flags for use on public buildings around the city in November 1969 and 108 more flags for Albuquerque Public Schools in 1970.^[14]^[15] The organization distributed a further batch of 200 flags in 1985 to replace the earlier ones.^[5] In 1984, astronaut Mike Mullane took an Albuquerque flag into space aboard the Space Shuttle Discovery during its first mission, and then presented it to the city upon his return.^[16]

The flag placed 25th out of 150 American city flag designs in a 2004 North American Vexillological Association survey.^[17]

References

^ ^a ^b Purcell, John M.; Croft, James A.; Monahan, Rich. American City Flags (PDF). North American Vexillological Association. pp. 7–8. Retrieved 26 April 2020.
^ Da, Royale (June 15, 2015). "Albuquerque native wants to redesign city's flag". KOAT-TV. Retrieved 26 April 2020.
^ McKee, Chris (June 29, 2018). "New push to redesign city of Albuquerque's flag". KRQE. Retrieved 26 April 2020.
^ ^a ^b "Best flag design". Albuquerque Journal. April 16, 1968. Retrieved January 21, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
^ ^a ^b "Zonta Club Is Continuing City Flag Project". Albuquerque Journal. December 8, 1985. Retrieved January 21, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Shouldn't Albq Have A Flag?". Albuquerque Tribune. June 29, 1967. Retrieved January 21, 2021 – via Newspaper Archive.
^ "Sister City Unit Maps Plans to Host Visitors". Albuquerque Journal. November 3, 1967. Retrieved January 21, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "City Flag Contest Will Open Dec. 1". Albuquerque Journal. November 12, 1967. Retrieved January 21, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "New City Flag To Fly Today". Albuquerque Journal. June 21, 1968. Retrieved January 21, 2021.
^ Blythe, Sam (June 22, 1968). "Sasebo Group Arrives". Albuquerque Journal. Retrieved January 21, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Camp Fire Girls Present Flag". Albuquerque Journal. January 14, 1969. Retrieved January 21, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Albuquerque Flag, Made by Campfire Girls, on Display". Albuquerque Tribune. February 27, 1969. Retrieved January 21, 2021 – via Newspaper Archive.
^ "Group Focusing On Patriotism". Albuquerque Journal. June 22, 1969. Retrieved January 21, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Zonta Members Donating Flags for City Buildings". Albuquerque Journal. October 25, 1969. Retrieved January 21, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "APS Gets Flags From Zonta Club". Albuquerque Journal. March 20, 1970. Retrieved January 21, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Albuquerque To Welcome Col. Mullane". Albuquerque Journal. October 18, 1984. Retrieved January 21, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "2004 American City Flags Survey" (PDF). North American Vexillological Association. Archived from the original (PDF) on 9 August 2017. Retrieved 26 April 2020.