Flag: El Salvador Emoji
U+1F1F8 U+1F1FB:el_salvador:About Flag: El Salvador 🇸🇻
Flag: El Salvador () is part of the Flags group in Unicode. Added in Unicode E0.6. Type on GitHub and Slack to use it. On Discord it's . Click copy above to grab it, paste it anywhere.
Works in iMessage, WhatsApp, Discord, Slack, Instagram, Twitter, Gmail, and every app that supports Unicode.
Meaning varies across cultures, see cultural notes below.
Scroll down for the full story: meaning, trends, combos, and more.
How it looks
What does it mean?
The flag of El Salvador. A horizontal cobalt-white-cobalt triband with a dense, circular coat of arms centered on the white band. The coat of arms is one of the most detailed of any national flag: a triangle (equality) containing five volcanoes (one for each original member of the 1823 Federal Republic of Central America) rising from two oceans, with a Phrygian cap on a staff (liberty), a rainbow (peace), and the date '15 DE SEPTIEMBRE DE 1821' (Central American independence). Around the triangle runs a laurel wreath of 14 sprigs, one for each of El Salvador's 14 departments, the national motto 'DIOS UNION LIBERTAD' (God, Union, Liberty), and the country name 'REPUBLICA DE EL SALVADOR EN LA AMERICA CENTRAL.'
The emoji sequences regional indicators S and V ( + ). Platforms with flag support render the Bandera Magna; fallbacks show the letters SV. Shipped with Emoji 1.0 in 2015 alongside the rest of the country flag set.
On social, 🇸🇻 is driven harder by its diaspora than almost any other flag emoji. About a quarter of El Salvador's population, around 2.4 million people, lives in the United States, sending remittances that equal roughly 24% of GDP. El Salvador formally calls its overseas community the 'Hermano Lejano' (Distant Brother), and the government runs a dedicated Vice Ministry for Salvadorans Abroad. The 🇸🇻🇺🇸 pair is one of the most common two-flag combinations on Central American Twitter.
Adopted September 17, 1912 during the presidency of Manuel Enrique Araujo, explicitly replacing a US-style striped flag that had been in use since 1865 (during a period of pro-American sentiment). The 1912 redesign returned to the 1823 UPCA blue-white palette as a statement against American interventions in Latin America.
🇸🇻's social footprint is dominated by the US diaspora. Usage peaks and themes shift dramatically between domestic and diaspora accounts.
The US diaspora is the engine. Around 2.4 million Salvadorans live in the US, with large communities in LA (Pico-Union, Westlake, Van Nuys), the DC metro area (Mount Pleasant, Langley Park), Houston, New York, and Long Island. The Salvadoran-American subculture dominates East Coast Latino food scenes: pupuserías in Maryland, Virginia, and Brooklyn are bigger than most Salvadoran cities' restaurants. 🇸🇻🇺🇸 in a profile bio is one of the most common two-flag combos in US Central American social media.
Food is the biggest cultural-usage driver. Pupusas are El Salvador's national dish and the most TikTok-friendly Central American food by a mile. Pupusería tours, cheese-pull money shots, and 'making pupusas with my abuela' content all carry 🇸🇻. The second Sunday of November is Día Nacional de la Pupusa, a government-declared holiday since 2005.
Surf tourism has rebranded El Salvador's image through the 2020s. Surf City (El Tunco, El Sunzal, El Zonte) hosted the 2021 and 2023 ISA World Surfing Games, and post-pandemic the country became one of Latin America's fastest-growing surf-tourism destinations. The 🇸🇻🏄 pair anchors an entire Instagram travel sub-genre.
Bitcoin is the polarizing chapter. El Salvador became the first country to make Bitcoin legal tender in September 2021 under President Nayib Bukele, built 'Bitcoin City' plans, and launched aggressive international marketing. The experiment was rolled back in January 2025 as a condition of a $1.4B IMF loan. 🇸🇻₿ was one of crypto Twitter's most-used combos for three and a half years.
Politics cut hard both ways. Bukele is wildly popular domestically (consistently 85%+ approval) thanks to the gang crackdown that emptied the streets of MS-13 and Barrio 18. Internationally he's accused of authoritarianism and human-rights violations. Diaspora accounts split sharply: pro-Bukele crypto influencers and security-focused commentators vs. exile-journalist and solidarity accounts.
Holidays. Fiestas Agostinas (August 1-6, the Día del Divino Salvador del Mundo feast) is the biggest domestic cultural 🇸🇻 window. Independence Day September 15 follows Central American-wide patterns.
The flag of El Salvador, the Bandera Magna. Horizontal cobalt-white-cobalt triband with a dense circular coat of arms on the center band. Used for Salvadoran identity, the massive US diaspora (especially in LA and DC), pupusa content, surf tourism in Surf City, and political news during the Bukele era.
🇸🇻 in Central America
The El Salvador emoji palette
El Salvador at a glance
- 🏙️Capital: San Salvador (13.69°N, 89.22°W)
- 👥Population: ~6.34 million (2025)
- 🗺️Area: 21,041 km² (smallest mainland Central American country)
- 💵Currency: US dollar (adopted 2001); Bitcoin was legal tender 2021-2025
- 🗣️Languages: Spanish (primary), Nahuat (recognized indigenous)
- 📞Calling code: +503
- ⏰Time zone: CST (UTC-6), no DST
- 🌐Internet TLD: .sv
Right now in San Salvador
Emoji combos
🇸🇻 vs Central American flags (Google Trends, 2020 to 2026)
Salvadoran foods and landmarks
Foods that show up next to 🇸🇻
Landmarks that anchor travel content
Origin story
El Salvador's current flag is the third major design in the country's post-independence history, and the story includes a deliberate political u-turn.
The 1823 UPCA origin. The first blue-white-blue version was created in 1822 by Manuel José Arce's wife and sister, explicitly modeling it on Manuel Belgrano's Argentine flag. When the Federal Republic of Central America adopted a near-identical banner in 1823, El Salvador used it throughout the federation period (1823-1841).
The US-style interlude, 1865 to 1912. During a period of pro-American sentiment, El Salvador redesigned the flag with nine stripes and stars representing the country's departments, deliberately echoing the US flag. It stayed in use for nearly half a century.
The 1912 redesign. President Manuel Enrique Araujo, concerned about growing US interventionism in Central America and the Caribbean (the Banana Wars era had just begun), commissioned a return to the 1823 palette. The new design was adopted September 17, 1912, specifically framed as a rejection of 'Yankee' influence and a reaffirmation of Central American identity.
The Federation of Central America, 1921 to 1922. For a brief 14-month period, El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras re-formed the Federal Republic of Central America and El Salvador's 1912 flag was temporarily replaced by a federation banner. The federation dissolved in January 1922 and the 1912 design returned.
The 1972 codification. The modern specifications, including the 189:335 ratio, exact coat-of-arms geometry, and the three legal variants (Bandera Magna, Bandera Nacional, and Bandera de Guerra), date to the 1972 Law of National Symbols.
Symbolism. The five volcanoes stand for the five original members of the Federal Republic (Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica), not for five Salvadoran volcanoes. The two oceans beneath them are the Pacific and the Caribbean (even though El Salvador itself borders only the Pacific). The Phrygian cap on a staff is the classic American-independence liberty symbol inherited from the French Revolution. The rainbow represents peace. The 14 laurel sprigs around the emblem are one per Salvadoran department.
The Bandera Magna, close up
Ratio 189:335 · Adopted 1912
Around the world
Inside El Salvador
Domestic 🇸🇻 usage is dominated by Fiestas Agostinas (August 1-6) for the Divine Savior of the World patron feast, and by Independence Day September 15. The Bukele era (2019 onward) has seen the president personally drive flag-waving in a way previous administrations did not: his social accounts use 🇸🇻 constantly and he publicly encourages Salvadorans to fly the flag daily. Gang crackdown security posts often pair 🇸🇻 with Bukele administration graphics.
Salvadoran-American diaspora
The LA community (Pico-Union, Westlake) and the DC-area community (Mount Pleasant and Langley Park) are the two centers of gravity. The Salvadoran Independence Day festival in Columbia Heights DC is one of the largest Central American diaspora events on the East Coast. Houston, Long Island, and Northern Virginia round out the top US clusters. The 🇸🇻 on a bio carries a different weight than for a resident Salvadoran: it often signals 'I or my parents came in the 1980s civil war era, and I'm claiming that heritage.'
Hermano Lejano and remittance economy
Remittances make up ~24% of El Salvador's GDP, almost entirely from the US. The 'Hermano Lejano' (Distant Brother) concept describes this relationship officially. The Vice Ministry for Salvadorans Abroad coordinates legal counseling, property-investment promotion, and voter outreach to the diaspora. 🇸🇻 posts from the US tagged around Mother's Day (May 10) often include 'mandando saludos a mi mama' (sending greetings to my mom) along with the flag.
Bukele era supporters vs critics
Bukele's wild domestic popularity (sustained 80-90%+ approval through most of his first and second terms) has reshaped 🇸🇻 usage. Pro-Bukele crypto influencers and security-focused accounts use 🇸🇻 as a pro-government marker; exile journalists and CISPES-linked solidarity groups use 🇸🇻 with very different framing. The flag itself is neutral; the context around it has polarized.
The 1980-1992 Salvadoran Civil War pushed roughly a million refugees to the United States, many settling in Los Angeles, Washington DC, and Houston. Family reunification migration through the 1990s and 2000s added to the community. Today around 2.4 million Salvadorans live in the US, with remittances equaling roughly 24% of El Salvador's GDP. El Salvador officially calls the diaspora 'Hermano Lejano' (Distant Brother).
El Salvador made Bitcoin legal tender in September 2021, the first country to do so. Bukele announced Bitcoin City (a geothermally-powered new city), the government bought Bitcoin for treasury reserves, and crypto Twitter adopted 🇸🇻 enthusiastically. In January 2025, as a condition of a $1.4B IMF loan, Bitcoin acceptance was made voluntary for private businesses. The legal-tender status effectively ended, though the government retains its strategic Bitcoin holdings.
🇸🇻 seasonality by month (Google Trends, 2021 to 2026)
Say it in Salvadoran Spanish
When 🇸🇻 spikes: El Salvador's calendar
- 💐May 10: Mother's Day: Major commercial holiday. Diaspora calls home to abuelita pile up; 🇸🇻🇺🇸 mom-tribute posts fill feeds.
- ⛪August 1-6: Fiestas Agostinas: The Divine Savior of the World patron feast. San Salvador's biggest cultural week. Bajada procession of the Transfigured Christ.
- 🎉September 15: Independence Day: Shared with four Central American neighbors. School parades in San Salvador, diaspora festivals in Columbia Heights DC and MacArthur Park LA.
- 🕯️November 2: Día de los Difuntos: All Souls' Day. Cemetery visits, reflective flag posts.
- 🫓Second Sunday of November: Día Nacional de la Pupusa: National dish day, declared 2005. Pupuserías from DC to LA run promotions; cheese-pull videos flood TikTok.
Often confused with
🇳🇮 Nicaragua is the closest twin. Both are horizontal cobalt-white-cobalt tribands with a triangular-based coat of arms featuring five volcanoes, a Phrygian cap, and a rainbow. The easiest tell: El Salvador's coat of arms is surrounded by a laurel wreath of 14 sprigs; Nicaragua's has no wreath. Nicaragua also uses a visible purple in its rainbow, the only national flag to do so.
🇳🇮 Nicaragua is the closest twin. Both are horizontal cobalt-white-cobalt tribands with a triangular-based coat of arms featuring five volcanoes, a Phrygian cap, and a rainbow. The easiest tell: El Salvador's coat of arms is surrounded by a laurel wreath of 14 sprigs; Nicaragua's has no wreath. Nicaragua also uses a visible purple in its rainbow, the only national flag to do so.
🇭🇳 Honduras uses the same blue-white-blue horizontal triband but trades the dense coat of arms for five simple turquoise stars in an X pattern on the center band. Honduras's blue is turquoise; El Salvador's is cobalt. Plus Honduras's flag is a longer 1:2 ratio.
🇭🇳 Honduras uses the same blue-white-blue horizontal triband but trades the dense coat of arms for five simple turquoise stars in an X pattern on the center band. Honduras's blue is turquoise; El Salvador's is cobalt. Plus Honduras's flag is a longer 1:2 ratio.
🇬🇹 Guatemala shares the palette but runs vertical instead of horizontal. Only vertical flag in the 1823 UPCA family. Guatemala's coat of arms features a resplendent quetzal and crossed rifles rather than volcanoes.
🇬🇹 Guatemala shares the palette but runs vertical instead of horizontal. Only vertical flag in the 1823 UPCA family. Guatemala's coat of arms features a resplendent quetzal and crossed rifles rather than volcanoes.
🇦🇷 Argentina is the grandparent design. Manuel Belgrano's 1812 celeste-white-celeste triband inspired the 1823 UPCA flag that eventually became El Salvador's. Argentina uses lighter celeste (sky blue) vs El Salvador's darker cobalt, and Argentina's Sol de Mayo is a human-faced sun rather than a geometric coat of arms.
🇦🇷 Argentina is the grandparent design. Manuel Belgrano's 1812 celeste-white-celeste triband inspired the 1823 UPCA flag that eventually became El Salvador's. Argentina uses lighter celeste (sky blue) vs El Salvador's darker cobalt, and Argentina's Sol de Mayo is a human-faced sun rather than a geometric coat of arms.
Both descend from the 1823 Federal Republic of Central America banner, which was modeled on Argentina's flag. Both countries kept the cobalt-white-cobalt palette and built coats of arms around a triangle containing five volcanoes. El Salvador's is surrounded by a laurel wreath of 14 sprigs; Nicaragua's has no wreath. Nicaragua's rainbow uses a visible purple band; El Salvador's doesn't.
The 1823 Central American blue-white family
The only vertical one. Maya blue hoist and fly, white middle, and a coat of arms with a resplendent quetzal and crossed rifles. Vertical orientation is the instant tell.
Fun facts
- •Around 2.4 million Salvadorans live in the US, roughly 27% of the global Salvadoran population. The LA metro has the largest concentration, with the DC metro the second-largest.
- •Remittances equal ~24% of El Salvador's GDP, one of the highest ratios in the world. Roughly 90% comes from Salvadorans in the US.
- •The 2021 Bitcoin Law made El Salvador the first country to accept Bitcoin as legal tender. The policy was rolled back in January 2025 for an IMF loan.
- •Pupusas were declared El Salvador's national dish in April 2005, with the second Sunday of November becoming Día Nacional de la Pupusa. Salvadoran-American pupuserías in the DC and LA metros are bigger operations than most pupuserías in El Salvador itself.
- •El Salvador's Joya de Cerén is called the 'Central American Pompeii.' The UNESCO-listed Maya village was buried under ash around 600 AD when nearby Loma Caldera erupted, preserving it perfectly.
- •The eruption of Lago de Ilopango around 536 AD triggered a worldwide climate event documented in tree rings and historical records from Byzantium to China. The crater is now a popular lake just east of San Salvador.
- •El Salvador is one of the few Latin American countries to have deployed troops to the Iraq War (2003-2009), sending ten rotations of the Cuscatlán Battalion to Najaf.
- •The 🇸🇻 emoji was among the original country flag emoji shipped with Emoji 1.0 in 2015.
Trivia
- Flag of El Salvador - Wikipedia (wikipedia.org)
- Flag: El Salvador Emoji - Emojipedia (emojipedia.org)
- Bitcoin in El Salvador - Wikipedia (wikipedia.org)
- Pupusa - Wikipedia (wikipedia.org)
- Beyond Remittances - Migration Policy Institute (migrationpolicy.org)
- Salvadoran-origin Latinos in the US - Pew Research (pewresearch.org)
- El Salvador Remittances as % of GDP - World Bank (worldbank.org)
- Joya de Cerén - UNESCO (unesco.org)
- Salvadoran Civil War - Wikipedia (wikipedia.org)
- Diaspora Protests Bukele's Presidency - CISPES (cispes.org)
- Diaspora Needs to Wake Up from Bukele's Propaganda - Global Voices (globalvoices.org)
- El Salvador Holidays 2026 - timeanddate.com (timeanddate.com)
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