What do the colors of the Rainbow Pride Flag mean? A history on how the flag came to be

Since its creation in 1978, the Rainbow Pride Flag has become a universal symbol for the LGBTQ community. It represents the pride and hope of LGBTQ people and reflects the diversity within the community.

While the flag's image is well-recognized, its history may not be as well-known. In fact, did you know that the current Rainbow Flag is an updated design of the original?

Here is the history of how the Rainbow Pride Flag came to be and the meaning behind its colors.

What do the colors of the Rainbow Pride Flag mean?

Together, the Pride Flag's six rainbow colors symbolize hope, and each also has its own meaning:

• Red: Life

• Orange: Healing

• Yellow: Sunlight

• Green: Nature

• Blue: Peace or serenity

• Purple: Spirit

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The history of the Gilbert Baker Pride Flag 

In the 1970s, Harvey Milk, the first openly gay elected official in California, challenged activist Gilbert Baker to design a symbol of hope for the gay community.

"Harvey Milk was a friend of mine, an important gay leader in San Francisco in the ’70s, and he carried a really important message about how important it was to be visible," said Baker in an interview with the Museum of Modern Art in 2015. "A flag really fit that mission, because that’s a way of proclaiming your visibility, or saying, 'This is who I am!'"

The original rainbow Pride Flag had eight stripes, each with their own meaning:

• Hot pink: Sex

• Red: Life

• Orange: Healing

• Yellow: Sunlight

• Green: Nature

• Turquoise: Magic and art

• Indigo: Serenity

• Purple: Spirit

Before the Rainbow Flag, the pink triangle was used as a symbol for the LGBTQ community. During the Holocaust, Nazis identified gay people in concentration camps by making them wear pink triangles. While the symbol has since been reclaimed by LGBTQ people, the community sought to create new representation.

"We needed something beautiful, something from us," said Baker in the MoMA interview. "The rainbow is so perfect because it really fits our diversity in terms of race, gender, ages, all of those things."

The original Pride Flag was flown for the first time at the San Francisco Gay Freedom Day Parade celebration on June 25, 1978.

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How did the Rainbow Pride Flag come to be?

After the assassination of Harvey Milk in 1978, demand for the Rainbow Pride Flag grew.

The original flags were made by hand, and as they started to be mass-produced, the hot pink stripe was removed due to manufacturing difficulties. The Paramount Flag Company began to make the pride flag, but hot pink fabric was not readily available. So, it was taken out of the design, leaving seven stripes: red, orange, yellow, green, turquoise, indigo and purple.

In 1979, the turquoise stripe was removed. Baker changed the flag to an even number of stripes. Parade organizers wanted the rainbow to be able to split in half to evenly line the street along parade routes. Also during this time, the indigo stripe was changed to royal blue.

The removal of the hot pink and turquoise stripes led to the six-stripe version of the Rainbow Pride Flag we know today, comprised of red, orange, yellow, green, blue and purple.

For over 40 years, the Rainbow lag has represented the LGBTQ community and is one of the most well-known pride flags.

More Pride Flags explained

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Rainbow Pride Flag: The history of the LGBTQ flag and community symbol