A large ethnic group in southern Africa, numbering about 7 million (1987) and living mainly in Botswana, Lesotho, and South Africa. The Sotho are predominantly farmers, living in small village groups. They speak a variety of closely related languages belonging to the Bantu branch of the Niger-Congo family. With English, Sotho is the official language of Lesotho.
Red and white are the traditional colours of South East Asia. The blue canton recalls the British Empire and represents unity. Yellow is the colour of the Sultans of Malaysia. Effective date: 16 September 1963.