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Barbate (Municipality, Andalusia, Spain)

Flag and coat of arms of Barbate - Images by Valentin Poposki, 31 January 2026

Presentation of Barbate
Symbols of Barbate
- Former unofficial flag with coat of arms
Submunicipal entities
- Zahara de los Atunes

See also:

Presentation of Barbate

The municipality of Barbate (22,921 inhabitants in 2013; 14,336 ha; municipal website) is located 65 km south-east of Cádiz.
Established on 11 March 1938, as Barbate de Franco, by secession from Vejer de la Frontera, the municipality was renamed Barbate by Decree No. 25, adopted on 25 February 1998 by the Government of Andalusia and published on 7 March 1998 in the official gazette of Andalusia, No. 26 (text). The change in the name was validated by the Government of the Province of Cádiz and by the Royal Academy of Cordóba.

Klaus-Michael Schneider & Ivan Sache, 30 November 2009

Symbols of Barbate

The flag was approved by the General Directorate of Local Administration on 14.01.2019.
Description: "Red cloth divided into thirds by a blue stripe, with cobalt blue sea waves and white borders."

These are the colors of the Barbate coat of arms, with the waves representing the Atlantic Ocean and the Barbate River itself. These colors are the same as those used in the current municipal coat of arms and are often associated with the town's collective consciousness (they are used in the colors of most sports teams directly linked to the town). The chosen name, "Red Blood. Blue Blood," represents the spirit of Barbate: a blend of red hemoglobin and the blue sea. Luis Rossi designed the flag.

Valentin Poposki , 31 January 2026

Former unofficial flag with coat of arms

Flag of Barbate, as seen on 7 November 2009 in front of a shop - Image by Klaus-Michael Schneider, 30 November 2009

The (unofficial) flag of Barbate is white with the coat of arms in its centre.

The coat of arms of Barbate was adopted on 14 September 1981 by the Municipal Council. Designed by José Antonio Delgado y Orellana, the coat of arms is described as follows:

Coat of arms: Per fess [fimbriated or], 1. Gules a mount or ensigned by a cross of the same [brown on the images] charged with a star azure and surrounded in chief in two stars or [brown on the images]. 2. Azure two tunas argent per fess. The shield surmounted by a Duke's coronet.The upper field shows the modified emblem of the Carmelites, featuring Mt. Carmel and the stars referring to Our Lady of Mount Carmel. The tunas recall the almadraba fisheries, shown on Phoenician coins (see Adra).

The first coat of arms of Barbate was granted on 11 March 1950 as "Per fess, 1. Azure a mountain or ensigned by a cross of the same charged with a star azure and surrounded in chief in two stars or, 2. Gules per bend a dragon olf or langued gules at each end surrounded by two Corinthian columns argent and the writing 'PLUS' and 'ULTRA' in letters sable. A bordure or inscribed with the writing 'FRANCISCO FRANCO FUNDADOR DE BARBATE' [Francico Franco, founder of Barbate] in letters sable. The shield surmounted by a Duke's coronet with pearls."

The lower field of the arms represents the personal arms of Francisco Franco.
The Royal Academy of History suggested on 19 November 1965 to adopt new arms, "Per pale, 1. Argent two cauldrons checky or and gules per pale, 2. Argent two tunas azure per fess". The first field represents the arms of the Guzmán, while the second field represents the arms of the Dukes of Medina Sidonia, also Counts of Niebla. Never officially adopted, those arms were never used.
[José Antonio Delgado y Orellana. Heráldica Municipal de la Provincia de Cádiz (1969)]

Klaus-Michael Schneider & Ivan Sache, 30 November 2009

Submunicipal entities

Zahara de los Atunes

Flag and coat of arms of Zahara de los Atunes - Images by Valentin Poposki, 31 January 2026

Zahara de los Atunes is autonomous local entity within the Municipality of Barbate. Its coat of arms was adopted by the local Junta Vecinal on 12.12.2011, no record for the flag.
Source: Simbolos de Cádiz website.

Coat of arms:

Description: On a gold field, the fortress Casa-Chancade Zahara de los Atunes and a palm tree in the center. Over silver and azure waves, and in the center of these, a tuna with a black leg.
Meaning: The fortress, including the palm tree, is a replica of the one currently standing, which has been declared a Site of Cultural Interest. The tuna on the waves represent those still caught in the almadraba tuna traps, which give the town its name. Antonio Jesús Guerrero Capilla designed the coat of arms in 1987.

Flag:

Description: Flag composed of four unequal horizontal stripes. The first, with a width of 1/2 the flag, is blue; the second and fourth are yellow, 1/12 each; and the third is white, with a width of 4/12. The coat of arms is in the center.
Meaning: Blue represents the sky, the sea, and the Cachón River. Yellow represents art, culture, and tuna fishing. White represents houses and the horizon. The flag design is by Jann Vasquez Fernandez.

Valentin Poposki, 31 January 2026