New nation, new flag, new anthem and more

A new nation needs a new flag and a new national anthem. So allow me to present them for y'all's education:

The flag of the Republic of South Sudan, previously used as the flag of SPLM/A. it is very similar to the flag of Kenya, which is to show the strong ties between the nations. It is a white-fimbriated horizontal tricolour of black, red, and green with a blue triangle at the hoist charged with a five-pointed gold star. The black is said to represent the South Sudanese people (Sudan means "land of the black"), the white stripes symbolises peace, the green is for the fertility of the land, the red stripe the blood shed for freedom and the blue triangle symbolises the Nile. The golden star shows the unity of the states of South Sudan.

The new national anthem is officially called "South Sudan Oyee!" - a phrase that could be translated as "Hurrah for South Sudan". The lyrics is as follows:

Oh God,

We praise and glorify You

for Your grace on South Sudan,

Land of great abundance

uphold us united in peace and harmony.

Oh motherland,

we rise raising flag with the guiding star

and sing songs of freedom with joy,

for justice, liberty and prosperity

shall forever more reign.

Oh great patriots,

let us stand up in silence and respect,

saluting our martyrs whose blood

cemented our national foundation,

we vow to protect our Nation

Oh God, bless South Sudan.

The official version with music and song can be found here, or at least could be found when I wrote this. Or just look at the embedded YouTube video below:

And lastly, you can't have a new nation without a coat of arms. And while I'm admittedly is biased towards the Norwegian lion rampant on a red shield, brandishing the Axe of St Olaf... well, the one approved by the South Sudanese Government isn't bad looking at all:

An African fish eagle looking towards it right shoulders with outstretched wings, standing against a traditional shield and crossed spears, and holding a scroll in it's claws with the name of the new nation. The eagle symbolises strength  resilience and vision while the shield and spears represents protection of the new nation.

So there you go - three interesting factoids about the worlds youngest independent state.