Coat of arms of Trinidad and Tobago
Coat of arms of Trinidad and Tobago
The coat of arms was created in 1962 by a committee to symbolize the people of Trinidad and Tobago. It was designed by Carlisle Chang and George Bailey, with other contributors helping to shape the final emblem.
Design and symbols
- Armiger: Republic of Trinidad and Tobago.
- Crest: A palm tree standing in front of a ship’s wheel.
- Shield: The shield uses the nation’s colors (black, red, and white) and features two hummingbirds at the top and a gold steelpan with its two sticks at the bottom.
- Supporters: A scarlet ibis on the left and a cocrico on the right, both in their natural colors.
- Compartment: Two islands rising from the sea.
- Motto: “Together we aspire, together we achieve.”
- Use: The arms appear on the national currency, passports, ID cards, birth and death certificates, driver’s licenses, and government signs.
Historical note
- The 1962 design included three gold ships to represent Christopher Columbus’s ships, a feature later replaced by the steelpan in the 2025 revision.
2025 revision
- In August 2024, Prime Minister Keith Rowley announced plans to remove Columbus’s ships from the coat of arms and replace them with the steelpan, the national musical instrument, as part of removing colonial vestiges.
- A bill moved through Parliament in January 2025, and the new design was unveiled January 19, 2025, by designer Gillian Bishop.
- The new design came into official use on February 25, 2025. It retains the palm tree crest, hummingbirds, and island imagery while replacing the ships with the steelpan.
This page was last edited on 29 January 2026, at 10:11 (CET).