Flag of Cape Verde interpretations of the Pantone standards. Before independence from Portugal, Cape Verde did not have an official flag, and the Portuguese national flag was used. In the late 1960s, a flag for the Portuguese overseas province of Cape Verde was proposed, consisting of the flag of Portugal with the shield from the provincial arms added to the lower fly. However, this flag was never adopted. The original national flag of Cape Verde was introduced on independence in 1975, and was based on the flag of the Partido Africano para a Independência da Guiné e Cabo Verde (PAIGC). It used the common
Culture of Cape Verde for "Morna", a form of folk music usually sung in the Cape Verdean Creole, accompanied by clarinet, violin, guitar and cavaquinho. The islands also feature native genres such as "funaná", "batuque", "coladeira", and "mazurka". Cesária Évora is perhaps the best internationally known practitioner of morna. One of Cape Verde's most famous stars, on her passing, one Cape Verdean restaurateur stated that she was "more important than our flag". Theatre in Cape Verde was mainly religious (biblical scenes translated into popular theatre) until the end of the 19th century, when cultural societies appeared. Modern theatre arose around independence (1975), and received