Like many of the Western states, Colorado has an easily recognizable design for its flag. The red C stands not only for the name of the state but also for the state flower (columbine) and the state nickname ("Centennial State"). The latter was chosen because Colorado became a state in 1876, when the country was celebrating the centennial of its independence. The red, white, and blue of the U.S. flag appear in the Colorado flag, as do the blue, yellow, and white of the columbine. The red C recalls the Spanish word colorado ("red"), the origin of the state name. The area's extensive deposits of gold and silver--which brought many early settlers to the territory and which still are actively mined--are reflected in the yellow and white of the flag. The original flag design, by Andrew Carlisle Johnson, was approved in 1911; the flag took its present form with the law effective March 31, 1964.

Colorado Official name: State of Colorado. State nickname: the Centennial State Total area: 104,100 sq mi, 269,618 sq km. Population (2000): 4,301,261. Population by race, origin (1997): white non-Hispanic 79.0%; white Hispanic 13.4%; black (including Hispanic) 4.4%; American Indian/Eskimo/Aleut 0.9%; Asian/Pacific Islander 2.3%. Natural increase rate per 1,000 population (1995): 7.8 (U.S. avg. 6.0). Gross domestic (state) product (1996): U.S.$116,200,000,000 (U.S.$30,450 per capita). Land use (1992): federal land 36.2%; non-federal land 63.8%, of which forest 5.7%, cropland 13.5%, pasture 1.9%, rangeland 35.6%, urban and built-up areas 2.6%, other 4.5%. Exports by state (1997): U.S.$5,120,000,000; percent of national total 0.83%.

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