The coat of arms of Kiribati

Kiribati

Kiribati , officially the Republic of Kiribati, is an island nation located in the central tropical Pacific Ocean. The permanent population exceeds just over 100,000 , and is composed of 32 atolls and one raised coral island, dispersed over 3.5 million square kilometres, straddling the...

shows a yellow frigatebird

Frigatebird

The frigatebirds are a family, Fregatidae, of seabirds. There are five species in the single genus Fregata. They are also sometimes called Man of War birds or Pirate birds. Since they are related to the pelicans, the term "frigate pelican" is also a name applied to them...

 over a rising sun on a red background among white and blue stripes (symbol of the Pacific) and the 3 groups of stripes represent (Gilbert

Gilbert Islands

The Gilbert Islands are a chain of sixteen atolls and coral islands in the Pacific Ocean. They are the main part of Republic of Kiribati and include Tarawa, the site of the country's capital and residence of almost half of the population.-Geography:The atolls and islands of the Gilbert Islands...

, Phoenix

Phoenix Islands

The Phoenix Islands are a group of eight atolls and two submerged coral reefs, lying in the central Pacific Ocean east of the Gilbert Islands and west of the Line Islands. They are a part of the Republic of Kiribati. During the late 1930s they became the site of the last attempted colonial...

 and Line Islands

Line Islands

The Line Islands, Teraina Islands or Equatorial Islands, is a chain of eleven atolls and low coral islands in the central Pacific Ocean, south of the Hawaiian Islands, that stretches for 2,350 km in a northwest-southeast direction, making it one of the longest islands chains of the world...

). The 17 rays of the sun represent the 16 Gilbert Islands and Banaba (former Ocean Island). On the ribbon under the shield is the Gilbertese motto Te Mauri Te Raoi Ao Te Tabomoa (Health, Peace, and Prosperity).

The coat of arms was proposed on 1 May 1937 to the then British Gilbert and Ellice Islands

Gilbert and Ellice Islands

The Gilbert and Ellice Islands were a British protectorate from 1892 and colony from 1916 until 1 January 1976, when the islands were divided into two different colonies which became independent nations shortly after...

 and was made the official coat of arms of Kiribati in 1979 with the new motto.

The same motif is seen on the flag of Kiribati

Flag of Kiribati

The flag of Kiribati: the upper half is red with a gold frigatebird flying over a gold rising sun , and the lower half is blue with three horizontal wavy white stripes to represent the ocean and the 3 groups...

.