Flags of the world

03.09.202203.09.2022 admin 0 Comments

Flags of the world

Flags of the World

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The official FOTW flag was designed by Mark Sensen. Click on the flag to view its history and meaning. This waving flag was drawn by Pascal Gross.

We express our immense gratitude and support to doctors, nurses and other workers in health care and other services who are protecting our society.
Flag developed by the Heraldica Slovenica.

FOTW pages in Focus

The flag of Honduras was revised in January 2022 at the inaugration of President Xiomas Castro. The flag now uses a turquoise blue.

The 2023 NAVA Meeting will be held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on 6-8 October, 2023. Link: NAVA 57

FOTW Random Page Generator

(Selects a random page for you to explore)

Sorry, this mirror site does not support this feature yet

Useful and Interesting Flag Links

(Part of the FOTW website)

FOTW Vexillological References:

(Part of the FOTW website)

Other Flag Related Sites:

(Not part of the FOTW website)

FOTW (Flags of the World) is a site originally established by Giuseppe Bottasini and others devoted to the study of vexillology in 1994. Since then the site has been constantly fed with news and images posted to the FOTW mailing list and with other contributions from interested readers and visitors. Flags of the World is produced and maintained by an Editorial Staff of unpaid volunteers and the contents of these pages are offered freely to the Internet community. Accessing this site implies an acceptance of the following: disclaimers and copyright rules. See also our page about the history of FOTW.

Welcome area

Welcome to Flags of the World

(Including National, State, Municipal, Organizational, and Historical Flags and Ensigns and more…)

Flags of the World (FOTW), founded in 1994, is the Internet’s largest site devoted to vexillology (the study of flags). Here you can read more than 80,000 pages about flags and view more than 175,000 images of flags of countries, organizations, states, territories, districts and cities, both past and present.

Searching for Flags on this Website

There are many ways to find flags on this website. Choosing “Index by Country” will take you straight to the country’s page, once there you will find pathways to the national, state, municipal, military, historical, and cultural flags and ensigns of the country. Choosing “Index by Subject” will do the same, but in a more limited manner. Choosing “Search Site by a Topic or Subject” will search the whole FOTW website looking for pages that have information that matches your search criteria. This last method will gather the most information for you. For those more graphic in nature, you can use the “clickable map” method to find your flag. In case you don’t know the origin of a flag you can try using off-site identifiers such as Ed Mooney’s The Flag Wizard or Ivan Sarajčić’s The Flag Identifier.

Site Indexed by Country

(Select the beginning letter by clicking the letter or corresponding signal flag)

Источник

Flags of the World

Menu bar title

The official FOTW flag was designed by Mark Sensen. Click on the flag to view its history and meaning. This waving flag was drawn by Pascal Gross.

We express our immense gratitude and support to doctors, nurses and other workers in health care and other services who are protecting our society.
Flag developed by the Heraldica Slovenica.

FOTW pages in Focus

The flag of Honduras was revised in January 2022 at the inaugration of President Xiomas Castro. The flag now uses a turquoise blue.

The 2023 NAVA Meeting will be held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on 6-8 October, 2023. Link: NAVA 57

FOTW Random Page Generator

(Selects a random page for you to explore)

Sorry, this mirror site does not support this feature yet

Useful and Interesting Flag Links

(Part of the FOTW website)

FOTW Vexillological References:

(Part of the FOTW website)

Other Flag Related Sites:

(Not part of the FOTW website)

Welcome area

Welcome to Flags of the World

(Including National, State, Municipal, Organizational, and Historical Flags and Ensigns and more…)

Searching for Flags on this Website

Site Indexed by Country

(Select the beginning letter by clicking the letter or corresponding signal flag)

Источник

Flags of the world

On Countryflags.com you will find all flags of the world clearly displayed. You can sort the countries alphabetically by country name but also by population and size of the country. Country flags can be clearly displayed per continent. There is a description of each country, including the colours used and the original ratio of the flag. It is also indicated when a country flag was adopted for the first time, when the current flag was used and when the last change to the current flag took place. On Countryflags.com you can find a large collection of images of all flags of the world. Choose from vector files, images, backgrounds or our extensive collection of icons from each country. The images are of high quality.

In addition to information about the flags of the world, you will also find information about all countries. With each flag, a map is shown of the country with the location of the country in the world. Here you will find general information about the countries such as population, area, population density, capital, official language, government, currency and time zone. At each flag of the country, you can see what the neighbouring countries are and what the national flags of the neighbouring countries are.

Источник

All the flags of the world

At Countryflags.com you can find all country flags displayed clearly. You can sort the flags alphabetically by name of the country, but also by population and size of the country. Countries can also be clearly displayed by continent. Each flag has a description and it is also indicated which colours are used and what the original proportion of the flag is. It is also stated when a country adopted a flag for the first time, when the current flag was first used and when the last modification was made to the current flag. At Countryflags.com you can find a large collection of images of all the flags of the world. Choose from vector files, images, backgrounds or our extensive collection of icons of each country. The images are of high quality.

In addition to the information about the flags of the world you will also find information about all countries. With each flag a map is displayed of the country with the location of the country in the world. Here you will find general information about the countries, such as the population, size, population density, capital, official language, government, currency and time zone. With each flag you can view the neighbouring countries and you can also see what the national flags of the neighbouring countries look like.

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Welcome to All Flags World

The biggest database of flags on the web

We identified for you more than 270 flags of the world. Countries, organizations, cities, regions, you will find on this site the flag you’re looking for and download it in different definitions (S, M, L, XL) for your personal use.

But that’s not all!

We built this site as a great source of information about flags.

On this site you will learn history, design, symbolism, even fights at the origin of the creation of the flag of a state or a city. From its religious origins to its independence symbolic, you’ll know everything about the people who have made the history of the flag. Separatist leaders, supporters of human rights, or otherwise settlers, colours and symbols of flags are often indicative of the mood of the country or the region at that time.

Many of them pay tribute, through their colours, for these men and women who built or liberated the country. Many refer to religious communities and antagonisms present on the land. Other highlight their ideals of freedom or dark periods of their history.

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Flags of the world

Please help support this site by making a small donation:

Welcome to the World Flag Database, the first stop for accurate flags of the world, including national flags, ensigns, military flags and head-of-state flags, with beautiful illustrations. Loved by teachers, parents, students and diplomats alike.

NEW VERSION IN BETA!
A new version of this website has been in development for some considerable time and it is now ready for a public beta. This means that all the functionality is there but there may be some small problems or errors. The new version features larger images and downloadable PDFs of each flag. Please have a look and send any feedback to the email given on the contacts page. Click here to jump to the new site.

Just to get you started, below is a list of all the organizations, countries, territories and sub-national regions covered by the database that start with «A». Countries and territories are shown in bold. Sub-national regions have their country shown below them. Note that where an overseas territory is considered a part of its parent country it is marked as a sub-national (eg. French Guiana).

You can use the alphabetical buttons in the navigation to show the other letter indices, or use the previous and next buttons in the navigation panel. There is also a full index that shows all the countries, sub-nationals and organizations covered by the database.

Click on one of the entries to see basic information, larger images of the flag and other flags of that country or organization. On some pages you will find sub-section buttons below the flags that will take you to even more flags!

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Extensive List of Similar Flags from Around the World

While watching the Olympic Parade of Nations, it had happened more than once when I thought “phew, didn’t I saw that flag just a few minutes ago?”. Though I later realised it’s a different country, but it had often left me confused, and I bet the same happened to you too. So to avoid further confusions in the future, here’s the complete list of the similar or look-alike flags from around the world – and trust me, there are a lot more flags that have close resemblance than I thought there would be. So here it goes!

Chad, Romania, Andorra, and Moldova

Belgium and Germany

Bahrain and Qatar

Thailand and Costa Rica

Cuba and Puerto Rico

Uruguay and Greece

Argentina, El Salvador, Nicaragua, and Honduras

Syria, Egypt, Iraq, and Yemen

Flags of all four countries consist of Pan-Arab tricolour of red, white, and black bands. The distinguishable difference is that the Syrian flag features two five-pointed green stars; Egyptian flag bears Egypt’s national emblem the Eagle of Saladin; Iraqi flag bears the text “God is great” in Arabic; while Yemeni flag has none of it.

Jordan, Palestine, Sahrawi, Sudan, United Arab Emirates, and Kuwait

Kenya and South Sudan

South Africa and Vanuatu

Indonesia, Monaco, Singapore, and Poland

Latvia, Austria, Lebanon, and Pre-1995 Belarus

Peru and Canada

Italy and Mexico

Ivory Coast and Ireland

Haiti and Liechtenstein

Cameroon, Senegal, Mali, and Guinea

Ghana and Bolivia

Netherlands, Luxembourg, Paraguay, and Croatia

Russia, Slovenia, Slovakia, and Serbia

India and Niger

Hungary, Tajikistan, and Iran

Norway, Iceland, Aland Islands, Faroe Islands, Sweden, Finland, and Denmark

England, Guernsey, and Georgia

Vietnam, Morocco, Somalia, and Micronesia

Samoa, Taiwan, and China

Turkey and Tunisia

Cyprus, Kosovo, Antarctica, and United Nations

Colombia, Ecuador, and Venezuela

Bhutan, Wales, and Malta

United Kingdom and Basque Country

Australia and New Zealand

Both flags are based on the British Blue Ensign (blue field with a Union Jack in the canton, or top inner corner) and feature a stylized version of the Southern Cross constellation. However, they differ in several ways: the design of the constellation (five white seven-pointed stars for Australia, four red-and-white five-pointed stars for New Zealand); the addition of a sixth, larger, “commonwealth” star on the Australian flag; and shade differences in the blues and reds.

Ascension, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Cook Islands, Falkland Islands, St. Helena, Pitcairn Islands, Tristan da Cunha, Turks and Caicos Islands, and Montserrat

Bermuda, Fiji, and Niue

Switzerland, Red Cross, and Tonga

The flag of Switzerland has a white cross in the centre of a square red field, which is known as the Swiss cross. The symbol the Red Cross represents an inverted Swiss flag as a tribute to Henry Dunant, the Swiss founder of the organisation. Combine the colours and put the cross on canton, and you get the flag of Tonga.

United States of America, Malaysia, and Liberia

Nigeria and Norfolk Island

Tanzania and Saint Kitts and Nevis

Laos and Greenland

If there are any flags that I’ve accidentally missed out, then please comment below and I’ll include it on the listing. Thanks!

Last updated on December 25, 2021 @ 4:48 BST.

Источник

Flags of the World

Menu bar title

The official FOTW flag was designed by Mark Sensen. Click on the flag to view its history and meaning. This waving flag was drawn by Pascal Gross.

We express our immense gratitude and support to doctors, nurses and other workers in health care and other services who are protecting our society.
Flag developed by the Heraldica Slovenica.

FOTW pages in Focus

The flag of Honduras was revised in January 2022 at the inaugration of President Xiomas Castro. The flag now uses a turquoise blue.

The 2023 NAVA Meeting will be held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on 6-8 October, 2023. Link: NAVA 57

FOTW Random Page Generator

(Selects a random page for you to explore)

Sorry, this mirror site does not support this feature yet

Useful and Interesting Flag Links

(Part of the FOTW website)

FOTW Vexillological References:

(Part of the FOTW website)

Other Flag Related Sites:

(Not part of the FOTW website)

Welcome area

Welcome to Flags of the World

(Including National, State, Municipal, Organizational, and Historical Flags and Ensigns and more…)

Searching for Flags on this Website

Site Indexed by Country

(Select the beginning letter by clicking the letter or corresponding signal flag)

Источник

Flags and Anthems of the World

Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article.

Flags are among the most identifiable and recognizable objects in the world. They have been used for thousands of years, initially mainly as military banners. In that context they were—and to some extent remain—insignia of leadership, serving to identify friend or foe and as rallying points. However, flags are now much more common as symbols of countries, states and provinces, and organizations.

The colours and designs selected for national flags usually are not arbitrary but rather stem from the history, culture, or religion of a particular country. Political scientists, historians, sociologists, and others have considered flags to be expressive of cultures at certain times and places. Flags often provoke strong feelings and passions—e.g., pride, patriotism, anger, hate, or nostalgia—and they can be almost synonymous with a country (e.g., the United States), an organization (the United Nations), or a historical period (the swastika flag of Nazi Germany). Worldwide there is great interest in flags, both as symbols and as design objects.

National anthems, like national flags, also often engender a sense of patriotism or can evoke a range of other strong feelings, be they positive or negative. They too often are closely linked to a country’s identity outside its borders, such as the association of “The Star-Spangled Banner” with the United States or “La Marseillaise” with France. The playing of a national anthem frequently accompanies the presentation of the colours or the raising of the flag at a public event (e.g., a sports contest)—perhaps no more famously than during the awarding of medals at the Olympic Games, when the anthem of the gold medal winner’s country is played as the flags of all the finalists’ countries are raised.

Britannica is pleased to present this special feature on the Flags and Anthems of the World, which, in addition to providing links to images of the flags, has links to articles about each country and to the history of each flag, the latter written by Whitney Smith of the Flag Research Center, as well as links to instrumental renditions of national anthems for most countries.

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Visualizing Design: 196 Flags of Countries Around the World

Article/Editing:

Anete Lusina

View the full-size version of this visualization

Visualizing Design: 196 Flags of Countries Around the World

Historically, flags primarily served as means of identification in warfare, but today, national flags are flown to represent a country both on the international stage and domestically.

Every flag incorporates design elements and colors that symbolize certain aspects of each country’s history and identity. And as you’ve likely noticed, many of them fall under similar color conventions or patterns, with the exception of a few rare outliers.

This visualization by Giulia De Amicis shows flags of 196 countries recognized by international standards, grouped according to the main design characteristics—color and pattern.

It includes 193 United Nations Member States, two permanent non-member observer states—Vatican City and Palestine, and Taiwan, a self-ruled democracy and an ex-member of the UN.

Flags of Countries: Common Shapes and Aspect Ratio

Most countries have flags in a quadrilateral shape—a four-sided polygon with four edges and four corners—mainly with a 2:3 or 1:2 aspect ratio.

In contrast, the flag of Nepal stands out with its unique layout. It consists of two triangular shapes with a white moon on the top and a white sun on the bottom section.

The unusual flag’s design has at times caused difficulties for large-scale reproduction.

In the 2016 Summer Olympics, for example, the Nepalese flag was placed on a white rectangular cloth shaped the same as other flags.

What are the Most Popular Colors in Flags?

By far, the most popular color used in national flags is red, with 20% of listed countries featuring it in their flag design. In vexillology—the study of flags—it is believed that red is a symbol of power, bravery, revolution, and vibrancy, as well as war in reference to past bloodshed.

Green comes as the second most used flag color with 15% of countries incorporating it, followed by black (14%), purple (12%), white (11.5%), light blue (11%), and blue (9.5%). Yellow was the least popular with just 7% of countries using it in their national flags.

Certain regions share a distinct mix of colors that neighboring countries have adopted. For example, red, white, green, and black are seen in several Arab nation flags. Similarly, green, red, and yellow combinations are often symbolic of Pan-African countries.

Patterns and Symbolism Behind Flag Designs

A simple tricolor design, in either a vertical and horizontal orientation, is the most frequent pattern with 68 countries displaying it on their flags. Stars follow with 40 country flags, while 29 flags had either a seal or stripes.

But there are many other flag designs to consider, such as the geometrical designs used by Cuba and South Africa, crosses like the Union Jack of the UK, and circles like those of Japan and South Korea. And not every flag fits one single design category, such as Pakistan’s white and green flag with a crescent and star, or the many flags that include a Union Jack within their design.

Symbolism ascribed to flag design can range from abstract to more literal explanations. The meaning of flag designs can change over time, too, often influenced by major political shifts.

For example, the red flag of the People’s Republic of China has one prominent yellow star, which used to stand for the Chinese Communist Party, while the smaller stars were previously associated with the four social classes making up the society. Today, the large star represents China itself, while the smaller stars stand for the country’s many national minorities.

In a similar manner, other nations have made changes to their flag designs to reflect major political changes, or people have ascribed their own revised meanings to the elements depicted in their country’s flag.

Which nation’s flag catches your eye? Are there any other flags that are memorable or unique but not featured on this list?

This article was published as a part of Visual Capitalist’s Creator Program, which features data-driven visuals from some of our favorite Creators around the world.

Visualizing Which Countries Drink the Most Beer

Which countries drink the most beer? China ranks number one due to its sheer size, and the Czech Republic comes out on top, per capita.

Visualizing Which Countries Drink the Most Beer

Humans have been drinking beer for thousands of years—and since it’s still one of the most popular beverages worldwide, it seems we haven’t gotten sick of it yet. The latest available data shows that beer consumption exceeded 177 million kiloliters around the world in 2020.

Beer consumption occurs all over the world, but the amount varies greatly depending on the location. So, which countries drink the most beer?

This graphic uses data from Kirin Holdings to compare global beer consumption by country. Kirin is a Japanese company that has been tracking beer consumption around the world since 1975.

Which Countries Drink the Most Beer?

When it comes to total beer consumption, China ranks number one.

In 2020, the country’s consumption reached 36 million kiloliters—that’s enough beer to fill more than 14,000 Olympic-sized pools. The country accounts for a whopping one-fifth of total beer consumption worldwide. Archaeological evidence also suggests that China has a beer producing history that goes back thousands of years.

Here’s a look at the top 25 countries for beer consumption, and their global market share:

Ranking 2020	Country	Total Consumption (thousand kl)	Global Market Share
1	🇨🇳 China	36,088	20.30%
2	🇺🇸 United States of America	24,105	13.60%
3	🇧🇷 Brazil	13,847	7.80%
4	🇷🇺 Russia	8,646	4.90%
5	🇲🇽 Mexico	8,287	4.70%
6	🇩🇪 Germany	7,746	4.40%
7	🇯🇵 Japan	4,416	2.50%
8	🇬🇧 United Kingdom	4,088	2.30%
9	🇻🇳 Vietnam	3,845	2.20%
10	🇪🇸 Spain	3,815	2.10%
11	🇵🇱 Poland	3,633	2.00%
12	🇿🇦 South Africa	3,284	1.90%
13	🇨🇴 Colombia	2,246	1.30%
14	🇫🇷 France	1,984	1.10%
15	🇨🇦 Canada	1,979	1.10%
16	🇨🇿 Czech Republic	1,946	1.10%
17	🇰🇷 South Korea	1,936	1.10%
18	🇮🇹 Italy	1,886	1.10%
19	🇺🇦 Ukraine	1,881	1.10%
20	🇷🇴 Romania	1,828	1.00%
21	🇦🇺 Australia	1,825	1.00%
22	🇦🇷 Argentina	1,797	1.00%
23	🇮🇳 India	1,686	0.90%
24	🇹🇭 Thailand	1,680	0.90%
25	🇵🇭 Philippines	1,462	0.80%
Rest of the World	31,563	17.78%

China is the most populous country in the world, accounting for about 18% of the global population. Of course, a large population doesn’t necessarily translate to high beer consumption at the individual level. For instance, India, which has the second highest population in the world, ranks 23rd on the list for beer consumption, and only accounts for 1% of what foamy liquid gets guzzled down each year.

The U.S. comes second on the list, with more than 24 million kiloliters of beer consumed throughout the country in 2020. Americans don’t just drink a lot of beer—they brew a lot of beer, too. The U.S. is the second-largest beer producer worldwide (after China).

Beer Consumption Per Capita

Things look a bit different when you look at beer consumption per capita, rather than total beer consumption. The Czech Republic comes in first when it comes to beer consumption per capita.

In 2020, the average Czech drank more than 181 liters of beer.

The Czech Republic is well-known for inexpensive beer. Some travel sites even claim that, in certain parts of the country, beer can be cheaper than bottled water.

International Beer Day

While consumption levels vary across the world, beer is an integral part of many countries’ cultures. In fact, the beverage is so popular, that it’s been given its own day. International Beer Day is celebrated on the first Friday of every August in over 200 cities across the globe.

Cheers, and happy sipping!

Business

Visualized: The Top 25 U.S. Newspapers by Daily Circulation

Extra, extra read all about it—these 25 popular U.S. newspapers are trending downwards in their daily print circulation year-over-year.

Visualized: The Top 25 U.S. Newspapers by Daily Circulation

Most people today—more than 8 in 10 Americans—get their news via digital devices, doing their reading on apps, listening to podcasts, or scrolling through social media feeds.

It’s no surprise then that over the last year, only one U.S. newspaper of the top 25 most popular in the country saw positive growth in their daily print circulations.

Based on data from Press Gazette, this visual stacks up the amount of daily newspapers different U.S. publications dole out and how that’s changed year-over-year.

Extra, Extra – Read All About It

The most widely circulated physical newspaper is the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) by a long shot—sending out almost 700,000 copies a day. But it is important to note that this number is an 11% decrease since 2021.

Here’s a closer look at the data.

Rank	Newspaper	Average Daily Print Circulation	Year-Over-Year Change
#1	Wall Street Journal	697,493	−11%
#2	New York Times	329,781	−9%
#3	USA Today	159,233	−13%
#4	Washington Post	159,040	−12%
#5	New York Post	146,649	−2%
#6	Los Angeles Times	142,382	−14%
#7	Chicago Tribune	106,156	−16%
#8	Star Tribune	103,808	−9%
#9	Tampa Bay Times	102,266	−26%
#10	Newsday	97,182	−12%
#11	Seattle Times	86,406	−10%
#12	Honolulu Star-Advertiser	79,096	−5%
#13	Arizona Republic	70,216	−10%
#14	Boston Globe	68,806	−11%
#15	Dallas Morning News	65,369	−10%
#16	Houston Chronicle	65,084	−17%
#17	Philadelphia Inquirer	61,180	−20%
#18	San Francisco Chronicle	60,098	−12%
#19	Denver Post	57,265	−13%
#20	Chicago Sun-Times	57,222	−7%
#21	The Buffalo News	56,005	−15%
#22	Daily News	55,653	−18%
#23	Villages Daily Sun	49,183	3%
#24	St. Louis Post-Dispatch	48,246	−11%
#25	Milwaukee Journal Sentinel	47,832	−13%

These papers, although experiencing negative growth when it comes to print, are still extremely popular and widely-read publications digitally—not only in the U.S., but worldwide. For example, the New York Times reported having reached 9 million subscribers globally earlier this year.

The one paper with increased print circulation was The Villages Daily Sun, which operates out of a retirement community in Florida. Elderly people tend to be the most avid readers of print papers. Another Florida newspaper, the Tampa Bay Times, was the worst performer at -26%.

In total, 2,500 U.S. newspapers have shut down since 2005. One-third of American newspapers are expected to be shuttered by 2025. This particularly impacts small communities and leaves many across America in ‘news deserts.’

Print vs. Digital Newspapers

Regardless of print’s downturn, digital subscriptions remain much higher for most of these papers. As one example, The Washington Post has over 3 million online subscribers, compared to their 159,000 print readers.

To put things in perspective, around 24 million print papers now circulate throughout the U.S. on any given day. But looking back at the industry’s peak in the 1980s, almost 64 million were distributed on any given weekday.

And digital is not done growing. Newsroom hires have been ramping up for “digital-native” news sites—publications that started online and never had a print version. On the flipside, employment at traditional papers has more than halved since 2008.

Problems with Media

American news media can be extremely divisive. Many newsrooms across the country play into fear, sensationalism, and partisan politics.

Digital news only makes this worse, utilizing algorithms designed to keep a person’s eyes on the page longer, pushing stories with narratives a person shows interest in, and often taking them down a rabbit hole of fringe information—sometimes towards the extremes.

Additionally, the business of journalism is an increasingly less lucrative industry. Most revenue comes from digital ads running on news sites—so rather than selling the news to consumers, it’s the time and attention of consumers that is being sold to advertisers. Furthermore, some of the best quality content is locked up behind subscription-based paywalls.

Print may actually be one way to avoid some of the more obvious issues, particularly because there’s no way to track the data on which stories you read. But all publications still have inherent bias, of course, and it’s clear that print papers are not bouncing back any time soon.

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Flags of the World in 2022

Pictures by Country

Pictures of Flags of the World by Country

The purpose of this site is to provide flags of the world pictures. We’ve included information about the flag for each country, along with images. If you know the name of the country’s flag that you’re looking for, you can find it by clicking on the menu to the left. All world flag pictures and country flag images on this site are organized alphabetically.

Vexillology – About Flags of the World

The study of flags has a fancy name: vexillology. If you have ever wanted to know why there is a nutmeg on the flag of Grenada, why there are 50 stars on the American flag, or why the Nepalese flag has such a weird shape, you are interested in vexillology. Many times, school projects require students to study or learn about flags of different countries, and the study of flags is a great way to learn more about world cultures.

The world is full of countries: there are around 200 countries in the world as of this writing, each with their own unique national flag. The number of countries changes every now and then as world governments change, but every time a new country declares independence, there will no doubt be a national flag as a unifying symbol. Flags perform many duties at once; symbolizing a country’s place in the world, their national heritage, their fight for independence, any many other features of a country’s history and symbolism. Another great resource to look at world flags is available at the World Flag Database, with images and assorted information about the flags of the world.

What Is a Flag?

This may seem like a simple question with a simple answer, but just like the nations that flags represent, the definition and history of flags is complex.

A flag is any piece of fabric, wood, or metal with a unique design that represents a country on the world stage. All but one of the world’s current flags are rectangular in shape, and they’re used as symbols of a country’s power, its presence, and even as decoration or as a device used to send signals in battle. The word flag can also be used as a verb, as in the phrase “flag down” – meaning to signal or wave to someone.

Flags have a long history. The world’s first flags were simple military tools that armies used to send information across large battlefields in the times before radio or other long range communications. These days, it is rare for a flag to be used in battle as a signaling device. Today’s flags are more like symbols or points of pride than military tools. One place where flags are still used for communication is at sea. Flags are used at sea to signal various things: the national heritage of a ship at sea, communication between passing ships, and as warning symbols for dangerous ocean conditions. The word used to describe communication via flags is semaphore, and while semaphore is not as popular now, in today’s world of cell phones and radio communication, semaphore is still important in situations where other communication is impossible.

National flags are essentially patriotic symbols for national governments, and flags tend to have multiple interpretations, depending on who you ask. Many of today’s world flags have to do with a country’s military history, like the American flag’s thirteen strips that represent the thirteen colonies that rebelled against British rule to form the United States of America. Flags are common in advertising, to identify a product as being produced in a specific country, or for general decoration. When world leaders speak to the global press, it is common to see some form of their flag displayed, both to identify their country of origin and as a point of pride.

Why Flags Matter across the World

Flags are a huge part of a country’s legacy. New world governments without flags are unheard of; it seems a new nation must come up with a flag to represent their status in the world. Flags are important symbols for a government to fly over their land or on vessels at sea. Flags have even been used in outer space, such as the famous planting of the American flag during the first lunar landing. Flags in some form have been used for at least three thousand years. The earliest known flag was flown in ancient Egypt, when wood and metal symbols were used to represent that country’s heritage and values.

Our database of flags, much like the World Atlas list of flags, includes the flags for every country that currently has its own flag. We have images and information about flags from all corners of the globe. Included is information about the country itself, the design of the flag, the meanings behind the different aspects of the flag, the official adoption date of each flag, and anything else you could ever need to know about a national flag. Studying flags is the perfect in-road to the study of different world cultures, since flags represent not just the country as a whole but something about its history and legacy.

The study of flags is a crucial part of the study of the history of politics around the world. Students of history, government, and culture study flags to gain some insight into a country’s past. Flags have been used over the years as military tools, signaling methods, and political and social symbols of a country’s power and heritage. If you want to know more about a country, study its flag. Those colors, symbols, stripes, shapes, and other symbols have plenty to teach us about world heritage.

This article is an introduction to the Pictures of Flags by Country Website. This sits provides you with relevant information about the flags of the world, according to our most recent research.

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Flags of the World

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The official FOTW flag was designed by Mark Sensen. Click on the flag to view its history and meaning. This waving flag was drawn by Pascal Gross.

We express our immense gratitude and support to doctors, nurses and other workers in health care and other services who are protecting our society.
Flag developed by the Heraldica Slovenica.

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Flags Of The World Images

Ukraine flag collection

Set of ukrainian flags with brushstrokes

Flat ukrainian flag

Ukraine flag with brushstrokes

Man with ukrainian flag independence concept

Realistic russian flag

Ukraine map with national flag colors

Realistic ukrania flag

Woman with national flags of ukraine on her cheeks

Man with national flags of ukraine on his cheeks

Ramadan flag mockup

Brexit referendum with uk and eu flags

Realistic vector icon no war concept ukrainian flag in shape of heart heart holding hand isol

Ukraine map design with flag and light background vector

Yemen ukraine saint kitts and nevis tanzania flags

Crying woman with national flag of ukraine on her cheek

Hand putting blue and yellow hearts in jar. stay with ukraine flat vector illustration. protection, support, unity, nation, freedom, peace, independence, togetherness concept

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Flags From Around the World

The oldest national flag still in use today is the Dannebrog of Denmark, dating back more than 700 years. But, even before that, flags and banners have been important symbols of identity and values. Flags were used for things like military organization and identifying ships. The designs of the flags (heraldic elements and colors) were meant to further convey the ideals or history of the group the flag represented. Today, every nation on Earth has its own representative flag, and Infoplease can help you identify them all. Read on for images of every flag in the world and of each U.S. state.

National Flags

Although many of the world’s nations are very old, many of their governments are fairly new. As a result, most of the world’s flags were adopted recently. For example, despite their relative ubiquity, the Union Jack and the French tricolour are only about 200 years old. And, even after their first adoption, flags can undergo substantial redesigns or adjustments. Infoplease offers you the most recent versions of each country’s flag.

U.S. Flags

The Stars-and-Stripes is one of the most recognizable flags around the world, and it’s absolutely everywhere within the country. The individual states all also have flags, though they might not get the daily pledges and their own holiday. Read on for images of each of the state flags, as well as some history on the national flag.

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World Flags

Interesting Facts for Kids about the Flags of the World

Why are there so many different world flags? What are the most common symbols on flags? What does the colours on the flags mean? So many questions. we will show you the answers here.

Well, first let’s see why people started using flags.

In earlier centuries certain groups of people decorated spears and other utensils that showed their tribe’s or community’s cultural symbols. Later people also used ribbons, leather or silk decorations on the spears to distinguish their group from another group.

The early explorers and colonialists always put crosses or sculptures up when they landed on land unknown to them until that time. Later they used flags to proclaim their presence or show sovereignty.

And still today, countries redesign their flags whether after gaining independence or confidence in displaying their native symbols again on flags.

In 2017, Mauretania redesigned their flag to include red colour stripes to symbolise the fight of their people defending their territory.

Why do countries have flags?

Flags show that we belong to a community, organisation or nation and that we share the same beliefs and goals and follow the same set of rules and regulations.

Flags are national symbols. Every country flies a specific flag as their national symbol.

The first flags were flown in the 18th century to tell others that one:

Here are two examples:

When Neil Armstrong landed on the moon as the first person in the world in 1969, he erected an American flag on the moon. Above you can see a picture of this historic event.

Sir Edmund Hillary and Sherpa Tenzing Norgay were the first men to climb and reach the top of the world’s highest mountain Mount Everest in May 1953.

Sir Edmund Hillary put up the British ‘Union Jack’ at the mountain top when they reached the summit. However, this was done not because he was British but because the expedition was financed and organised in Britain.

Hillary from New Zealand and Norgay from Nepal did not claim the mountain for their countries, but put up the flag of the United Kingdom instead.

Other important flags to know

What’s in a Flag?
Universal Symbols in World Flags

Now which symbols are most used in flags?

All cultures use certain symbols which are meaningful to them. Some symbols are universal, that is they have the same meaning all over the world. Among these are:

вЂў Sun: The circle of the sun symbolizes unity and energy.

Japan is often referred to as the «land of the rising sun» and uses the sun in its national flag. The sun is displayed as a circle.

Another country using this powerful symbol is Argentina.

вЂў Moon : The moon is usually displayed in crescent shape to distinguish it from the symbol of the sun. In combination with a star, the moon represents divinity and especially the Islam.

Tunisia has got three powerful symbols in its national flag: the red crescent moon and one red star rest in a white circle representing the sun, which you will see in the picture to the right. Other countries using this symbol: Turkey, Singapore.

вЂў Stars: Constellations of stars often represent energy, especially when depicting the night sky or star constellation.

The flag of the USA is called «Stars and Stripes». Other countries depicting stars in their national flags are: Australia, Comoros, New Zealand, Brazil.

вЂў Cross: In ancient times the cross only symbolized the different points of the compass, in the 4th century however the cross was also taken as the symbol of faith.

вЂў Triangle: The three points of a triangle represent the Trinity (Father, Son and Holy Spirit) in Christianity. The triangle often also symbolizes strenght and power.

Countries using this symbol: Bahamas, Cuba, Eritrea, Sudan, American Samoa and others

вЂў Square: The four even lengths of the square symbolize balance and equal opposites.

The Swiss flag is the only square flag in the world. Did you know that the flag of the international humanitarian organization ‘Red Cross’ uses the reverse flag? It has got a red cross on white background.

World Flags:
Symbols, Shapes and Colours

World Flags show different sets of color and symbols, like the sun or the moon, some cultural symbols, like the national bird or flower and sometimes even have got some writing in it, like the green flag of Saudi Arabia (see in the image).

You can distinguish country flags by colors and symbols and some countries even use other shapes than the usual rectangular shape for their national flags.

Did you know that the flag of Nepal, which is pictured on the right, is the only one world flag which is not rectangular or square shaped?

There are also many other symbols used in world flags. Canada uses a maple leave in its flag which shows that the country is caring for its nature and environment. The maple tree is Canada’s national tree.

Use of Colours in Flags

As you can see above, red and white are dominant colors in most of the worldвЂ™s flags.

Most flags contain primary colours, which are red, blue, green and some countries also use yellow or secondary colors. Gold is also used in many flags as the colour is associated with the sun and is considered as colour of kings as well.

Most flags use more than two colours. Among the multicolour flags are:

Colours can have different meanings in different cultures.

We hope you have enjoyed reading about world flags and bookmark our website. Have fun exploring our wonderful world:-)

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Flags of the world

Flags of the World is an Encapsulated Postscript (EPS) collection of over 325 full-color international flags representing countries and states throughout the world. Flags of the World also contains over 175 additional flags, including International Organizations, Ethnic, International Alphabet, Numeral and Repeater flags, US Historical and Old Flags, Warning Flags and more!

Each flag is full color and drawn to the highest detail to insure superior reproduction quality at large or small sizes. To enable the designer to verify the level of quality of the flag artwork, you can check the level of detail on an example such as the complex Andorra flag opened in Adobe Illustrator.

Macintosh and Windows files are provided in EPS format. Download and try out a free sample EPS flag:
Sample Downloads—> Windows ZIP format • Mac OS X DMG format

To view the entire Flags of the World collection, select the appropriate category below:

The collection represents both State flags and Civil flags. State flags are flown over government buildings, indicated in this collection by the number 1 suffixed to the country name. Civil flags are flown by private citizens, indicated in this manual by the suffix 2.

Additional Flags including US, Historical, Naval, Ethnic, Organization Flags in PDF

The entire Flags of the World CD-ROM collection is available for purchase online, either by:

USA & Canada: 1-800-800-8560; outside USA + Canada: +1 804-443-9000;

The flag of Moldova

Every effort has been made to ensure that Flags of the World contains the very latest changes of national borders and flags, old flags and historic flags are also included in a separate folder or directory.

Flags of the World EPS Vector Collection for Graphics and Media
©2020 Digital Wisdom, Inc.
Box 11 Tappahannock Virginia 22560-0011 USA
800-800-8560 Intl: +1-804-443-9000

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Flags of the World

Menu bar title

The official FOTW flag was designed by Mark Sensen. Click on the flag to view its history and meaning. This waving flag was drawn by Pascal Gross.

We express our immense gratitude and support to doctors, nurses and other workers in health care and other services who are protecting our society.
Flag developed by the Heraldica Slovenica.

FOTW pages in Focus

The flag of Honduras was revised in January 2022 at the inaugration of President Xiomas Castro. The flag now uses a turquoise blue.

The 2023 NAVA Meeting will be held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on 6-8 October, 2023. Link: NAVA 57

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World Flags

World flags have an incredible amount of importance and symbolism to people all over the globe. They can be flown as a sign of peace and war, or hung as a sign of ceremonial importance, or defaced as a sign of hatred and violence; people have rallied behind flags as a symbol of unity or dissidence alike. Flags have the ability to stir great emotions in all kinds of people, and on a local scale they can represent different groups or organizations. Flags demonstrate ideology and history, and their creation tells about a country or organization’s background and beliefs.

Historically, flags were first flown in battle to let troops know specific information while they were on the field. They were often used to show troop location or organization, and many times they displayed a family coat of arms or house symbol. Countries soon began to adopt flags as well, essentially derived from coat of arms or other religious symbols, but they were usually only used during war. By the beginning of the 17th century ships began to fly their country’s flag peacefully to help identify the vessel, but it was not for several hundred years that flags became to be used casually during times of peace. Many European flags were derived from medieval wartime symbols.

Many countries specifically detail their flag in their constitution or at some point in a piece of legislation, and often times changing the flag requires an act of congress if the country is democratic. Drastic changes often reflect a regime change or shift in national perspective, such as when Serbia decided to omit a star found on the Yugoslavian flag representing communism or when Germany changed their flag after the end of World War II.

One popular flag that is rich with history and symbolism is the Union Jack, the flag of Great Britain. This flag was adopted at the beginning of the 17th century to symbolize the union of Scotland, Ireland, and Britain. Indeed, the flags of all three countries lie within the Union Jack itself, which combines the cross and the saltire as well as their individual colors to form its unique appearance.

The American flag, also one of the most recognizable flags in the world, was officially adopted in 1777. After the American Revolutionary War citizens began to fly the flag casually during times of peace, which not only increased its demand but also led to its adoption as a general representation of America. After, other countries soon adopted this relaxed stance of displaying their flags too, although this would eventually be used as a propaganda tool for countries trying to nationalize their entire population under a similar goal. From a vexillological standpoint, the American flag is also laden with symbolism. The stripes represent the original colonies while the stars represent the current states, and the colors were carefully chosen to indicate freedom, liberty, and the cost of these ideals.

Many world flags share unique characteristics, specifically with regard to shape and color. With the exception of Nepal, all flags are rectangular, although the exact sizes may differ. Many flags also share colors, with red being the most popular, followed by white, green, blue, and yellow, respectively. The flags of Chad and Romania, for example, are both blue, yellow, and red, but the tint of the blue is slightly different. Indonesia and Monaco share flag colors of red and white and have a similar design, but the flag dimensions are not identical. The flags of the Netherlands and Luxembourg are also virtually identical. Some flags are mirror images of each other, such as with Italy and Hungary. Although many flags share similar designs and colors, they are usually adopted under unique circumstances and their colors and shape may have specific meaning to that individual country.

These similarities in flags are often indicative of a shared history or heritage as well. For example, Colombia, Ecuador, and Venezuela all share a flag derived from the Gran Colombian flag, which was adopted after they gained their independence from Spain. Flags adopted by countries that gained their independence from Great Britain often share similarities as well, such as New Zealand and Australia. Nordic countries like Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Finland, and Iceland all share the Nordic cross on their flags. Middle Eastern countries like Jordan, Palestine, and Kuwait share the flag of the Arabic Revolt.

The symbolism behind each unique flag varies, even in flags with similar layouts. Many have religious connotations, such as the cross for Christians, the crescent for Islamic states, or the Star of David for the Jewish state of Israel. The colors are often linked to their heritage; red often means blood was shed for freedom and liberty, while white usually means purity and peace. The green-yellow-red combinations in African nations symbolize their own personal unity, while this might have different meanings for other flags in other countries. Other erroneous symbols are also important to that country, such as the maple leaf on the Canadian flag or the eagle clutching the snake on the Mexican flag.

Oftentimes major events shape the image of national flags. Germany adopted their flag after WWII to contrast starkly with the Nazi flag; after the Revolutionary War, the US adopted a flag that represented the original thirteen colonies; the Brazilian flag symbolizes what the stars looked like the exact moment the Brazilian monarchy was dethroned. For other countries the flag represents the tenants their country holds most dearly, such as the yin-yang and purity, hope, and peace on the South Korean flag, which contrasts with their northern neighbor’s flag.

World flags have incredible importance to countries and to the people that inhabit them. They are a way to unify people under a common symbol, although sometimes this effect has been abused. Nevertheless, flags are extremely important, not just for countries, because they are a way to represent a group of people under a common theme, ideology, or belief system.

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Flags of the World

All national flags

If you hover over a flag, a hint with the country name will be shown. By clicking on a flag you’ll be moved to the detailed information about the country.

State flags

The national flag is one of the national symbols along with the state coat of arms, anthem, and motto. It is the most prominent symbol that is used more often than the others. This is connected with the aspect of visualization, distinguishableness and the simplicity of its production.

The word «flag» is derived from the Dutch «vlag». The word means a panel of regular geometric shape (mostly rectangular, less often – square or triangle). The cloth is specially decorated with one or more colors. Since the flag is simple and the colors it is decorated with are limited in number, the similarities are inevitable. Even at the state level one can find identical flags (for example, Monaco and Indonesia), because of what the two sides are still arguing, providing evidence of «who was the first.»

Test of knowledge of the flags of the world

The site not only presents the flags of all the countries, but also gives an opportunity to test your knowledge with the Test on flags. You can choose from three difficulties: low, medium and high.

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Flags of the World

Menu bar title

The official FOTW flag was designed by Mark Sensen. Click on the flag to view its history and meaning. This waving flag was drawn by Pascal Gross.

We express our immense gratitude and support to doctors, nurses and other workers in health care and other services who are protecting our society.
Flag developed by the Heraldica Slovenica.

FOTW pages in Focus

The flag of Honduras was revised in January 2022 at the inaugration of President Xiomas Castro. The flag now uses a turquoise blue.

The 2023 NAVA Meeting will be held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on 6-8 October, 2023. Link: NAVA 57

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Flags of the World

Menu bar title

The official FOTW flag was designed by Mark Sensen. Click on the flag to view its history and meaning. This waving flag was drawn by Pascal Gross.

We express our immense gratitude and support to doctors, nurses and other workers in health care and other services who are protecting our society.
Flag developed by the Heraldica Slovenica.

FOTW pages in Focus

The flag of Honduras was revised in January 2022 at the inaugration of President Xiomas Castro. The flag now uses a turquoise blue.

The 2023 NAVA Meeting will be held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on 6-8 October, 2023. Link: NAVA 57

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(Select the beginning letter by clicking the letter or corresponding signal flag)

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Flag	Country
	Afghanistan
	Albania
	Algeria
	Andorra
	Angola
	Antigua and Barbuda
	Argentina
	Armenia
	Australia
	Austria
	Azerbaijan
	Bahamas
	Bahrain
	Bangladesh
	Barbados
	Belarus
	Belgium
	Belize
	Benin
	Bhutan
	Bolivia
	Bosnia and Herzegovina
	Botswana
	Brazil
	Brunei
	Bulgaria
	Burkina Faso
	Burundi
	Cambodia
	Cameroon
	Canada
	Cape Verde
	Central African Republic
	Chad
	Chile
	China
	Colombia
	Comoros
	Costa Rica
	Croatia
	Cuba
	Cyprus
	Czech Republic
	Democratic Republic of Congo
	Denmark
	Djibouti
	Dominica
	Dominican Republic
	East Timor
	Ecuador
	Egypt
	El Salvador
	Equatorial Guinea
	Eritrea
	Estonia
	Eswatini
	Ethiopia
	Fiji
	Finland
	France
	Gabon
	Gambia
	Georgia
	Germany
	Ghana
	Greece
	Grenada
	Guatemala
	Guinea
	Guinea-Bissau
	Guyana
	Haiti
	Honduras
	Hungary
	Iceland
	India
	Indonesia
	Iran
	Iraq
	Ireland
	Israel
	Italy
	Ivory Coast
	Jamaica
	Japan
	Jordan
	Kazakhstan
	Kenya
	Kiribati
	Korea, North
	Korea, South
	Kosovo
	Kuwait
	Kyrgyzstan
	Laos
	Latvia
	Lebanon
	Lesotho
	Liberia
	Libya
	Liechtenstein
	Lithuania
	Luxembourg
	Madagascar
	Malawi
	Malaysia
	Maldives
	Mali
	Malta
	Marshall Islands
	Mauritania
	Mauritius
	Mexico
	Micronesia
	Moldova
	Monaco
	Mongolia
	Montenegro
	Morocco
	Mozambique
	Myanmar
	Namibia
	Nauru
	Nepal
	Netherlands
	New Zealand
	Nicaragua
	Niger
	Nigeria
	North Macedonia
	Norway
	Oman
	Pakistan
	Palau
	Palestine
	Panama
	Papua New Guinea
	Paraguay
	Peru
	Philippines
	Poland
	Portugal
	Qatar
	Republic of the Congo
	Romania
	Russia
	Rwanda
	Saint Kitts and Nevis
	Saint Lucia
	Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
	Samoa
	San Marino
	São Tomé and Príncipe
	Saudi Arabia
	Senegal
	Serbia
	Seychelles
	Sierra Leone
	Singapore
	Slovakia
	Slovenia
	Solomon Islands
	Somalia
	South Africa
	South Sudan
	Spain
	Sri Lanka
	Sudan
	Suriname
	Sweden
	Switzerland
	Syria
	Taiwan
	Tajikistan
	Tanzania
	Thailand
	Togo
	Tonga
	Trinidad and Tobago
	Tunisia
	Turkey
	Turkmenistan
	Tuvalu
	Uganda
	Ukraine
	United Arab Emirates
	United Kingdom
	United States
	Uruguay
	Uzbekistan
	Vanuatu
	Vatican City
	Venezuela
	Vietnam
	Yemen
	Zambia
	Zimbabwe

Source (2022) : United Nations (list of UN member states and permanent observers plus Kosovo and Taiwan)

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Flags of the world

Wars leading to World War I

Three smaller wars led up to World War I. They were the Austro-Prussian War (1866), the Franco-Prussian War (1870-1871), and the Russo-Japanese War (1904-1905). The first two allowed Prussia to become the dominant German State, and eventually form the Second Reich (Empire). The Russo-Japanese War resulted in the world discovering the growing power of Japan in Asia and the weakness of Imperial Russia.

The Austro-Prussian War or Seven Weeks War 1866

The Austro-Prussian War or Seven Weeks War was a short war fought between June and August of 1866, between Prussia (allied with Italy), and Austria (allied with Bavaria, Wьrttemberg, Saxony, Hanover, Baden, and several other smaller German states). Prussian Chancellor Otto von Bismarck had deliberately provoked the war, over the objections of his king, as a step toward the unification of Germany under Prussian dominance. The war resulted in a strong Prussian-led North German Confederation.

Kingdom of Prussia

With an efficient military machine Prussia (allied with Italy) overran the German states allied with Austria and crushed the Austrians at the Battle of Sadovб. The Seven Weeks War paved the way for the establishment of the German Empire in 1871 and the formation of the Austro-Hungarian Empire in 1867.

The origin of the Austrian colors dates back to the Battle of Acre in 1191. According to legend Duke Leopold V fought so hard that his battle-bloodied tunic only remained white where it was covered by his wide belt. Losing his standard during the battle, Leopold supposedly raised his tunic as a rallying point, and the red/white design subsequently became the national colors of Austria. The Crest of Hungary would later be added to the Austrian Flag.

Austrian Naval Ensign

The Austrian Empire (known as the Austro-Hungarian Empire or the Dual Monarchy after the constitutional reforms of 1867) was never a major sea power, although since the eighteenth century it had maintained a small, but efficient navy that used this ensign on its warships.

Austrian Merchant Ensign

Austrian Merchant Ensign 1730-1915

The most commonly seen flag of Austria was the Austrian Merchant Ensign, introduced around 1730. This is the «national» flag most commonly used later in Imperial German propaganda posters and illustrations to represent both Austria, and the Austro-Hungarian Empire. It actually was also the most internationally recognized Austro-Hungarian flag up until the Dual Monarchy was dissolved at the end of World War I. Although, the merchant flag was «officially» replaced in 1869, it remained in common use up until 1915.

The Austrian Merchant Ensign evolved from the traditional Black-yellow Landesfarben (land colors) of the Habsburg-Lorraine Dynasty. Because of this Austria-Hungary was often referred to as the «black-yellow monarchy.»

The Franco-Prussian War 1871

A major event in German history was the defeat of France in the Franco-Prussian War in 1871, making Germany a world power. It was during this war that, in 1870, Prussian Prime Minister Otto von Bismarck orchestrated the unification of the German states.

The nephew of Napoleon I, Louis Napoleon, was elected President of the Second French Republic in 1848. In 1851, he overthrew the Republic and became Napoleon III, Emperor of the Second French Empire. The Franco-Prussian War brought an end to the 29 years of the Second Empire. Since the first French Revolution the tri-colors has been the only official French Flag.

The German Empire was established under Prussian leadership with Bismarck as Chancellor. Wilhelm II, the last of the Hohenzollern dynasty, became Emperor of Germany (Kaiser) in 1888 and ruled until Germany’s defeat in World War I.

To learn more about the personal flags and standards of the German Emperors of the Second Reich ( Click Here )

The Russo-Japanese War 1904-1905

The Russo-Japanese War began in February of 1904, when the Japanese launched a surprise attack on Russian naval vessels at Port Arthur in China. This war marked the first time an Asian power defeated a European power in modern times, and established Japan as a major force in world affairs.

The flags of Japanese Royalty incorporate the Imperial arms, namely the sixteen petal chrysanthemum. Aside from its golden color, the flags utilize the national colors of red and white.

Admiral Heiachiro Togo hoisted the Z flag aboard his flagship Mikasa immediately before engaging Admiral Rozhestvensky’s Russian fleet at Tsushima Straits on May 27, 1905. The meaning of the signal meant, in substance, «The fate of Imperial Japan hangs on this one battle; all hands will exert themselves and do their best.» The Z flag was also used by the Japanese Fleet that attacked Pearl Harbor in 1941.

This is an international signal flag, not just Japanese.

Japanese National Flag

Japanese National Flag 1870-present

The chrysanthemum of the Imperial Flag was replaced by the famous red sun symbol on the national flag and the red field turned to white. The Japanese national colors are red and white. It is said that at the time of the Mongol Invasions of Japan (1274 and 1281) the priest Nichiren presented a similar sun flag to the shogun. The shogun adopted the flag for all his ships in the early 1600s. In 1870 the Meiji government officially designated it for use on Japanese merchant and naval ships.

The Russian Imperial Flag 1699-1917

The golden flag with black Romanov coat of arms holding 4 scrolls was used between 1699 and 1917 as the personal flag of the Russian Czar. This flag symbolized the union of the Czar and his people.

This flag with the light blue Cross of St. Andrew on a field of white was called «The Flag of Russia.» It served as the Russian naval ensign for the Imperial Russian fleet.

This flag with its simple Saint Andrews Cross design has a long and interesting history and re-appeared both as the Russian Liberation Flag (ROA) during World War II and once again is being used as the Russian Naval Ensign.

| Earlier Wars | Flags of the Central Powers | Flags of the Allies |

Imperial Tricolor Flag

Imperial German Tricolor 1892-1918

The black-white-red striped German imperial flag was adopted by the North German Confederation in 1867, as a combination of the black-white of Prussia and the red-white of Brandenburg. In 1871 it was adopted as merchant flag for the German Empire, and in 1892 declared to be the national flag of the Second Reich and continued in use until 1918. It was briefly reintroduced later just prior to World War II between 1933 and 1935, and used jointly with the Nazi swastika flag, then banned as «reactionary.»

To learn more about the personal flags and standards of the German Emperors of the Second Reich ( Click Here )

Imperial War Ensign 1813

This naval war ensign was used from 1867 to 1892 by both the German Confederation and the Second Reich at sea. It had a white field, a black and white cross, and a small black-white-red flag with a black Iron Cross in the canton.

The Iron Cross was a Prussian order first established by King Frederick William III in 1813 for military valor or patriotic service in the 1813-15 war against Napoleon. It was revived in 1871 for the Franco-Prussian war and in 1914 for the First World War. It was also revived as a German order in 1939 by Hitler.

Imperial War Ensign 1892

This was the German War Flag used from 1892 to 1903. It was changed when the Germany army began to use this flag as a war flag on land. After Wilhelm II succeeded to the Second Reich throne in 1888, this flag, with its redesigned Prussian eagle and Imperial arms overlaid in the middle on a white disc, came into used until the flags last change in 1903.

Imperial War Ensign 1903

This was the German War Flag used from 1903 to the end of World War I in 1918. The Kaiser Wilhelm II ordered the design changed in 1902 because he felt it looked too similar to the British White Ensign under certain lighting conditions.

Germany declared war on France in July of 1914 and Russia in August of 1917, coming to the aid of Austria-Hungary.

Inland Waters War Ensign
(Top Mast Flag of SMS Preussen)

Inland Waterways Service Ensign

Imperial Inland Waterways Ensign 1892-1918

This pennant-like naval ensign had several variants with different initials added to either side of the anchor emblem, but they all acted as an Inland Waterways Service Ensign. These dove-tailed flags were also called the «Kingdom of Prussia War and Civil Ensigns» or simply «Royal Ships Ensigns.» The eagle used on them was based on the shield design used on the old national flag of the Kingdom of Prussia and was also used on the Imperial German War Ensign.

Although these swallow-tailed ensigns were not ever used on the open seas after 1888, they continued to be used on internal German waters until 1918 as Custom Services and Fishery Service flags. The retangular-shaped Imperial War Ensign with Imperial Coat-of-Arms (as shown directly above) was the only flag used at sea after 1888 until 1919.

An exception to this inland waterways restriction was between the two World Wars when the Inland Waterways War Ensign was used as a top mast flag by the Weimar Republic Battleship «Prussia» (Preussen).

Further variant designs of the Inland Waterways Flags can be found at:
( Flags of Imperial Germany (Second Reich) 1871-1918 )

Imperial Naval Ensign

This was the jack used by all Imperial German warships between 1903 and 1919 and later briefly reintroduced between 1933 and 1935. It was replaced by the swastika type in 1935.

A jack is a flag that looks like the union or canton of a national war ensign (see Imperial War Ensigns above). On warships, the jack is flown from a flag pole (jack-staff) located on the vessel’s front end (bow) when at anchor or in port.

Austro-Hungarian Empire Flag

Austro-Hungarian National Compromise Flag 1869-1918

This was the joint Austro-Hungarian flag brought in sometime after the 1867 compromise which gave Hungary home rule. The version more familiar was the joint naval ensign which has crowned shields for Austria and Hungary on it.

On June 28, 1914, the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, by a «Young Bosnia» assassination team trained in Serbia led to a declaration of war on Serbia by Austria-Hungary. The successful assassination attempt was masterminded by Gavrilo Princip, a Bosnian Serb and member of the terrorist group.

Austro-Hungarian War Ensign

The Austro-Hungarian Naval or War Ensign 1869-1918

This version of the Austro-Hungarian war ensign showed the coat of arms for Hungary and Austria. The hundred and fifty year old Austrian naval ensign was adapted to the new times with the addition of the second coat of arms to represent the Hungarian half of the Monarchy and the green portion of the bottom stripe. The Austrian coat of arms was crowned with the imperial crown and the Hungary coat of arms was topped with the crown of St. Stephen.

Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia in July of 1914 starting the chain of events that started World War I.

Ottoman Turkish Empire

The Flag of the Ottoman Empire

Red has been prominent in Turkish flags for 700 years. The star and crescent are Muslim symbols, but also have a long pre-Islamic past in Asia Minor. The basic form of the national flag was apparently established in 1793 under Sultan Selim III, when the green flags used by the navy were changed to a red field with a white crescent and multipronged star on it.

At the beginning of World War I Italy refused to follow her Triple Alliance partners into war and the eventually the Ottoman Turks declared themselves to be members of the central Powers and took Italy’s place.

French Republic Flag 1789-present

Since the first French Revolution the “tricolor” has been the only official French flag. The colors are basically those of the City of Paris (red and blue) dating from the day of the storming of the Bastille, mixed with the Royal white.

Although it may not be true that in 1789 the Marquis de Lafayette was responsible for inventing the red, white and blue flag, the combinations of Revolutionary and Royal emblems were common at the time. The red and blue of Paris were the livery colors of the city coat of arms and naturally used by the militia.

The original tri-colored flag was created in 1790, but with the colors reversed from what they are today, i.e. with red at the hoist, and revised in 1794 to their modern order.

Russian State Flag (type 1)

Russian State Flag (type 2)

Russian State Flag (type 3)

The Imperial Russian Flag 1699-1917

The golden flag with black Romanov coat of arms holding 4 scrolls was used between 1699 and 1917 as the personal flag of the Russian Czar. This flag symbolized the union of the Czar and his people.

The Imperial State Flags 1883-1914

In 1883, the white-blue-red tricolor (type 1), previously the merchant ensign, became the State Flag of Russia, along with a little used (type 2) black-golden-white tricolor flag. Both were replaced in 1914 by a white-blue-red tricolor (type 3) with a canton of the imperial arms. It replaced both the black-orange-white tricolor and the plain white-blue-red tricolor. The new state flag itself disappeared three years later in 1917 when the monarchy was abolished.

The Russian Republic National Flag (type 1) 1917
The Russian Federation National Flag 1997-present

In 1917, the plain white-blue-red tricolor (type 1) became the Russian Republic’s de facto national flag. However, it was never officially adopted as such, and the short-lived Kerensky government never had time to make it official. Today, after the break-up of the Soviet Union, the white-blue-red striped flag (type 1) has once again become the official Flag of the Russian Federation.

The Imperial State Flag (type 2) 1883-1914

In 1883, the black-golden-white tricolor flag (type 2) in the Romanv family colors, also became the State Flag of Russia, but saw little use.

Russian National Flag (type 3) 1914-1917

The Russian Imperial National State Flag (type 3) is the Russian National flag most used between 1914 and 1917. At that time, in an attempt to link national patriotism and the imperial family, Tsar Nicholas II decreed that a gold square canton be added to the national flag (type 1). On it was the black imperial eagle (in rather simplified form, e.g. no shield on the wings), but still with the central St George shield on its chest. This remained in use until Nicholas’ abdication and the declaration of a Russian Republic. Curiously, it continued to fly in Washington D.C. for another 15 years. The United States refused to recognise the Soviet Government, until the beginning of the Roosevelt administration in 1933. Until then, this flag continued to fly over the Russian Embassy in Washington D.C.

Combines the Cross of Saint Andrew (Scotland) with the Cross of Saint George (England) and the Cross of Saint Patrick (Northern Ireland).

British Naval Ensign

The White Ensign became the sole ensign of the Royal Navy in 1864. Nelson used the White Ensign at Trafalgar, it replaced the traditional Red Ensign which became the merchant ensign.

Kingdom of Italy National Flag

The green, white, and red tricolor flag had the Savoy coat of arms on the center white stripe. The coat of arms dated back to the Republic of Noli which used a white cross on a red flag. (Genoa’s more famous coat of arms used a red cross on a white field, which was adopted by the Crusaders and England.)

Kingdom of Italy Naval Ensign

The Royal Italian Navy was born on March 17, 1861, with the merging of the Royal Sardinian Navy, the Neapolitan Army of the Sea and the Navy of the Grand Duchy of Tuscany. The Pontifical Navy would be added in 1871. At the date of its creation, the «Regia Marina» adopted this flag for all warships and merchant ships. This was the flag used by all Royal Italian warships between 1861-1946. While the national flag/civil ensign had the Savoy arms, uncrowned, the naval ensign (Bandiera da Guerra) was different because it had a crown over the arms.

48 Star United States Flag

United States of America Flag 1912-1959

In 1912, two stars were added to the United States flag, representing Arizona and New Mexico, bringing the total number of stars to 48. American fighting men would fight under this flag in World War I in 1917 and 1918.

48 Star United States Jack

World War I United States Naval Jack

A jack is a flag that looks like the union or canton of a national flag. For ships of the United States Navy, it is a blue flag containing a star for each state. On warships, the jack is flown from a flag pole (jack-staff) located on the vessel’s front end (bow) when at anchor or in port. American fighting ships would display this jack in World War I, World War II, and the Korean War.

General Goybet´s Field Flag

Goybet´s Second Field Flag

Second Field Flag (variant)

The American «Red Hand» Division Flag

When American Black volunteers arrived in France they were separated into special «Black» Regiments during World War I. French General Mariano Goybet commanded the French 157th division which consisted of the French 333rd infantry regiment and the American 371st and 372 regiments.

The first flag that was used by the 157th was the field flag General Goybet. As a General officer he was authorized a personal field flag which would be Red, White, and Red. This flag is mistakenly shown sometimes with a blue stripe near the hoist, similar to the national flag. When the first stories appeared about the now famous Fighting «Red Hand» Division, the flag was called a French flag, which it is, but a French General’s field flag, not the National flag of France. In the case of General Goybet and his unit, he added the red hand to the white field to remember the soldiers that had died and to remind the remaining soldiers that there was a blood debt owed, a vengeance if you will, to the Germans for the death of those soldier.

In 1918, the 371st Infantry, a part of the 92nd Division was attached to the 157th to bring the unit to full strength and to fulfill a promise made to France from the long ago debt of the Revolutionary War. Because of this, the General’s flag was changed again, this time adding two small American flags (one on each side) to the red stripes closest to the staff, symbolizing the addition of the American unit to the command. Historically, the 372nd was one of the oldest African-American units in the country dating back to the Civil War with a lineage including the Monumental City Guards and the First Separate Company.

Though out the World War I these two African-American regiments fought bravely and were awarded the Croix de Guerre, and several of their men received both the French Legion of Honor and the American Distinguished Service Cross. Freddie Stowers of the 371st was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor, our nation’s highest military award for bravery.

Whipple 48-Star Flag

The American History Flag 1917

In 1910, Wayne Whipple proposed a meaningful design should be used for the star pattern of the flag. His idea was that the central 13 stars should represent the original states as on the great seal, then to surround them with a ring of 25 stars representing the states that joined the Union in the first 100 years, and then finally have a ring of ten stars representing the states that joined in the second hundred years. He, at first, called his design a «history» flag and he challenged students who read his book to come up with their own ideas for a meaningful star arrangement.

It is claimed that Whipple’s flag design was widely publicized throughout the nation, and approved by President William Howard Taft (very doubtful), but documentation for these claims have not yet emerged. His flag was produced, however, by the Dettra Flag Company who called it the «Peace Flag» to celebrate the end of World War I in 1917.

Suffrage Protest Flag
(first seen in 1902)

Women’s Suffrage Flag
(first flown in 1917)

19th Amendment Victory Flag
(passed in 1920)

National Women’s Party (NWP) c1917-1997

Another struggle raged during this period of time, the woman’s struggle to get the right to vote in the United States. In 1902, what would become the Women’s Suffrage movement created their own version of the Stars and Stripes with only four stars (The American flag had 45 stars at this time) to represent the only four states that allowed women to vote at the time. The flag flew at the podium of the First International Women’s Suffrage Conference in 1902. Women from 10 nations attended in Washington, D.C. to plan an international effort for suffrage. Clara Barton is among the distinguished speakers.

A gold-white-purple horizontal tricolor became the flag of the American suffrage movement. In 1913, Alice Paul and Lucy Burns had founded the «Congressional Union for Woman Suffrage», but in 1917 it was renamed The National Woman’s Party (NWP). They became the first political group to picket the White House. Their action was viewed as unpatriotic when World War I began in 1917, and they were assaulted, beaten, arrested, and imprisoned. Finally, President Wilson changed his position to support women’s suffrage, but, by the time the 19th Amendment was passed in 1920, over a 165 «Suffragettes» had served prison sentences.

As the 19th amendment made its way through the approval process, the NWP sewed a star on their «ratification banner» after each state ratified the amendment. They needed 36. The amendment failed in many states and it came down to the State of Tennessee. On August 18, 1920, the legislature was deadlocked, but suddenly a 24-year old man named Harry Burn changed his vote in a role call. That morning he had received a letter from his mother in which she urged him to do the right thing and vote for suffrage; he did. He was actually chased from the room and had to hide. Upon the news that the struggle was over, Alice Paul unfurled their victory banner and hung it from the balcony at National Woman’s Party headquarters in Washington D.C.

British Sufferage Union 1903

Women’s Social and Political Union (WSPU) c1903-1917

In the United Kingdom, green, white and purple were the «colours» of the «Women’s Social and Political Union,» led by Emmeline Pankhurst. The WSPU was considered a very militant organization for its time and campaigned for Women’s suffrage in the United Kingdom. It was the first group whose members were known as «suffragettes.»

During World War I, the WSPU faded from public attention and was disbanded in 1917. It wasn’t until 1928 that universal suffrage for all adults over 21 years of age was achieved in the United Kingdom. The colors of the British Suffragettes’ flag was green, white, and violet.

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Flags of the World

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The official FOTW flag was designed by Mark Sensen. Click on the flag to view its history and meaning. This waving flag was drawn by Pascal Gross.

We express our immense gratitude and support to doctors, nurses and other workers in health care and other services who are protecting our society.
Flag developed by the Heraldica Slovenica.

FOTW pages in Focus

The flag of Honduras was revised in January 2022 at the inaugration of President Xiomas Castro. The flag now uses a turquoise blue.

The 2023 NAVA Meeting will be held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on 6-8 October, 2023. Link: NAVA 57

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Welcome to Flags of the World

(Including National, State, Municipal, Organizational, and Historical Flags and Ensigns and more…)

Searching for Flags on this Website

Site Indexed by Country

(Select the beginning letter by clicking the letter or corresponding signal flag)

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___ National Flags of Europe

The National Flags of the European States.

The national flag is a symbol or emblem of a country, and therefor it represents a country.
Each country in the world has its own combination of colors, shapes and symbols, but conventionally almost all national flags are rectangular.

European Union is an economic and political union of 27 member states which are located primarily in Europe (Member states are marked with an asterisk *).

Four countries are member states of the free trade organisation European Free Trade Association (EFTA) (Member states are marked with a cross +).

On this page there are the flags of all sovereign nations of Europe.

Exceptions:
Gibraltar, a British overseas territory on the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula with a border to Spain.
Faroe Islands are a self-governing country under the sovereignty of the Kingdom of Denmark.
Greenland is an autonomous country within the Kingdom of Denmark.

Only parts of the Russian Federation are within Europe.
Only a small part of Turkey is in Europe, the majority in Western Asia.
Cyprus, the third-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea lies geographically in Western Asia.

Click on the flag to see a larger image and a flag description, click on the country name to see a country’s profile.

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Promote that every nation assumes responsibility for our world.

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Flags of the World (website)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Abbreviation

FOTW

Formation

1993 [1]

Type

Noncommercial

Purpose

Vexillological

Headquarters

Nominally Wolfville, Nova Scotia, Canada [1]

Rob Raeside, Editorial Director
Jan Mertens, Apprentice-Listmaster

Affiliations

International Federation of Vexillological Associations

Flags of the World (abbreviated FOTW or FotW) is an Internet-based vexillological association and resource. [4] Its principal project is the Internet’s largest website devoted to vexillology, containing comprehensive information about various flags, [1] and an associated mailing list. The mailing list began as a discussion group in about September 1993, while the website was founded by Giuseppe Bottasini in late 1994, and Rob Raeside took over as director in 1998. [5] Flags of the World became the 56th member of the FIAV in 2001. [1]

Flags of the World describes itself as «. an Internet group, the sole purpose of which is the advancement of the pursuit of vexillology, that is the creation and development of a body of knowledge about flags and flag usage of all types». [6]

Both the website and the mailing list operate in the English language, [1] though there are members from around the world and as such information from many languages is translated and included. The mailing list is monitored by the FOTW Listmaster, while work on the website is coordinated by the FOTW Editorial Director.

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10 Fantastic Facts About Flags of the World

Last Updated: April 16, 2021

Reading Time:
10 Minutes

Did you know that purple is the rarest color used in all flags? There are only two countries in the world that use this color.

You may not think that there is much to know about flags, other than they are used to identify countries. But they can be a lot more complex and interesting than we might think.

It is easy to look at a flag and appreciate its colors, shapes and patterns, but do you ever wonder why flags are made a certain way?

Here are 10 fantastic facts about the flags of the world that will leave you wanting to know more.

Nepal has the only flag in the world that doesn’t have 4 sides.

Did you know that the flag of Nepal is not a square or rectangle? This makes it the only flag in the world that is not quadrilateral.

The flag consists of two triangular shapes, often referred to as a pennon or pennant.

These are stacked on top of each other to form the flag. It was officially made the flag of Nepal in 1962.

The flag has a crimson red background which represents bravery and a blue band outlining the flag which symbolizes peace.

There are two symbols, one in each triangle, of a sun and moon crescent.

There are only two square shaped flags in the world.

That’s right; out of the 193 sovereign flags of the world 190 are rectangular, only three are different.

One of three is the flag of Nepal as mentioned above with its triangular shapes, but the other two are that of Switzerland and the Vatican City.

Firstly not everyone would think that Vatican City is its own country, but it is in fact the smallest recognized country in the world.

The flag that is used for the Vatican City was adopted on June 7, 1929.

It is one of two square-shaped flags of the world and is half yellow or gold and half white.

On the white segment situated on the right-hand side of the flag, there is the Vatican crest.

The second square flag of the world is the flag of Switzerland, which is often confused with the medical flag used by the Red Cross.

It is a red square with a white cross in the middle. This flag has been used by Switzerland since 1889.

The flag stands for freedom and honor, the white cross represents Christianity and the red background symbolizes the blood lost to uphold their faith.

Symbols used on flags normally have a specific meaning.

There are many universal symbols that are used across flags.

Not every flag has one but the ones that do will normally show any of the following; sun, moon, stars, cross, triangles, and squares.

Some of these symbols have important meanings to each country.

To give an example, Japan is known as the “Land of the rising sun”, and therefore they have a circular shape in the middle of their flag which represents the sun.

The Star and Moon Crescent

As a symbol on flags, it was first used by the Ottoman Empire, but it is now used by many Islamic countries, such as Azerbaijan, Turkey, Tunisia, and Malaysia.

The star and moon crescent is a recognized symbol that represents Islam; so many countries that follow this religion tend to use this on their flag.

The Cross

This appears on many flags and often links back to religion, to represent Christianity.

This can be seen on the flag for England, Georgia (Country), Norway, Sweden, and Denmark.

There is also the Nordic Cross, which is found on all Scandinavian flags, which also represents Christianity.

There are other symbols used to represent Christianity, but the cross is the most commonly used.

Animals

Some countries will use their national bird on their flags to reflect the countries heritage, like the flag of Ecuador which has a bird of the Andes called a Condor.

Other countries will use fierce animals such as lions to represent courage and strength.

There are also countries that use fictional animals too, like the flag of Wales, which has a dragon on it, and the flag of Albania which has a double-headed eagle on it.

The colors used for flags often ties into the history of the country.

Most of the flags of the world use similar colors, those often being the primary colors, red, blue, and yellow, but there are some unique ones too.

Here are some meanings of what the most frequently used colors can represent in flags.

Red can be associated with bad things, and that is often what it represents in flags.

Portugal uses red to represent the blood lost in battle to keep their country, whilst Morocco uses red to represent the bravery and strength of the people of the country.

They both suggest that the people have suffered throughout history so this is important for them to display on their flag.

Some of you may think that blue would represent the sky or the ocean on flags.

This can sometimes be the case but the use of blue can also have a deeper meaning and symbolize freedom and peace.

Yellow or Gold

For many years yellow or gold has been used to represent wealth and energy as this can be related to the sun.

Green

In most flags, green represents the rich nature of a country or its agriculture, although it can also be used to symbolize hope and youthfulness.

Black

This isn’t as commonly used, but when it is, it can be used to symbolize ethnic heritage, the defeat of enemies, or the determination of a country. It can also be used to symbolize death and mourning.

Purple is the rarest color to be used on a flag.

The most uncommon color that can be found on a flag is purple. It is only used on two flags of the world!

Purple often represents royalty or richness, so it might be surprising that it isn’t used on more flags today.

It can be found on the flag for Nicaragua and the flag of Dominica.

A reason why these are the only two countries that use the color is that purple dye, throughout history has always been expensive and difficult to get hold of.

Therefore other colors are more favorable.

Both flags were not made until the late 1900s, meaning that access to dyes would have been a lot easier than hundreds of years ago when the majority of other flags were designed.

This meant that both countries could use the color for a smaller cost and less work.

The flag of Belize has the most colors of any flag in the world.

There are lots of flags with complex designs that involve lots of colors and it could be argued that there are so many colorful flags that it is difficult to say exactly which is most colorful.

However, the flag of Belize has 12 colors in total, making it the flag with the most colors.

The flag is blue, with a white circle in the middle which contains a crest, and there are red bands across the top and bottom of the flag.

The crest in the center depicts two humans holding tools, either side of a coat of arms.

There is a tree in the background, a floral design, and a banner with text. The flag was adopted on September 21, 1981.

Denmark has the oldest flag in the world.

Flags have been used for hundreds of years but are always changing as countries develop.

However, the most consistently used country flag in the world is the flag of Denmark.

The red background with a single white stripe through the middle horizontally was first used in 1625 and is still the same today.

The design itself however was created in 1219. In Denmark, it is known as the Dannebrog, which translates to “Danish Cloth”.

South Sudan has the newest flag in the world.

The newest flag in the world is the flag of South Sudan. It was adopted on July 9, 2010.

It was made after the end of their second civil war; however, the flag was designed in 2005 but was not made official until South Sudan gained independence in 2011.

The flag is made up of green, red, black, blue, and a yellow star symbol. The flag has three horizontal stripes, a blue triangle on the left-hand side with a yellow star in the middle.

For South Sudan, the red represents the bloodshed for their country to gain independence, the green represents nature and the countries natural wealth from the land and the black represents the people.

The blue is a symbol of the Nile River and the yellow star that sits in it represents unity.

There are white stripes between each color and these represent peace.

There are three different types of flag groups.

You may think that every flag is unique to its country, and generally, they are but there are some consistent patterns and colors that we can see within linking countries.

As we mentioned before countries that are Islamic will often use the Star and Moon Crescent to represent their religious beliefs but there are many more links like these throughout the world.

There are 3 main categories that are used to group countries that use the same colors in their flags.

Pan-Slavic Colors

These are the country flags that use red, white, and blue and are situated in Eastern Europe.

They once were united by the Soviet Union, but since gaining independence they have created their own flags using the same colors.

These countries include Croatia, Czechia, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia, and Slovenia.

Pan-African Colors

The country flags in this category use only red, yellow, and green and are all African based.

The countries in this category are Benin, Cameroon, Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Ghana, Guinea, Guyana, Mali, Mozambique, Senegal, Togo, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.

Pan-Arab Colors

This category is made up of flags that use only white, red, green, and black in their flags.

Typically these countries are based in the Middle East and they are Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Sudan, Syria, United Arab Emirates, and Western Sahara.

There are 4 flags in the world that feature firearms.

You may look at flags and think they represent the history of a country through color choice, symbols, and shapes.

But there are some flags that use firearms to symbolize the war or fights they have been through before finding peace.

Many will have items such as axes, arrows, cannons, swords, daggers, shields, spears, etc. in their emblems or crests, but only 4 have firearms.

Mozambique

The flag of Mozambique depicts an AK-47 crossed with a farming mattock on top of a book.

Mozambique’s flag was adopted on May 1, 1983, and the use of the rifle stands for the country’s defense and vigilance.

Guatemala

The flag of Guatemala depicts two crossed rifles behind a scroll, which for them represents their willingness to defend themselves as a country.

Guatemala’s flag was adopted in 1871.

Haiti

The representation of firearms on the flag of Haiti is much different from Mozambique and Guatemala.

Rather than the riffles being crossed, they are presented as a trophy on top of a green hill.

This symbolizes their independence and they have used this flag since February 26, 1986.

Bolivia

Finally, there is Bolivia, which subtly has two crossed firearms in the background of the coat of arms.

It shows muskets crossed, which similar to Guatemala, represents the countries willingness to defend itself.

The flag was originally adopted in 1851

As you can see there are so many parts that make up a flag, the choice of color to represent the history of the country, the use of crests, coat of arms or emblems and even the shape.

So now you have more understanding of the flags of the world, why not look at the history of your flag and where it came from!

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Flags of the world collection

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Flags of the world

The Hungarian Soviet Republic Flag 1919

The Kingdom of Hungary Flag 1919-1944

In Hungary a dictatorship under Admiral Horthy seized power in 1919 and ruled until overthrown by the Germans. The Third Reich took over Hungary in 1944 and imposed a pro-Nazi regime.

USSR Flag

The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics Flag (USSR) 1923-1990

The Communist Party replaced the Imperial Russian flag with the Soviet flag with hammer, sickle and star, but it was not created in 1918! It was adopted in 1923.

The hammer and sickle represented the Russian peasants (the sickle) and the Russian workers (the hammer) who together formed the Soviet Russian state. The red field was said to represent the blood that was spilt by workers the world over in the fight for their emancipation, and was directly inherited from the red banner flown in the Paris Commune during the French Revolution. The single yellow star represented life and immense energy of the sun. The star was empty because it was said to contain the blood of the workers’ struggle; and the five points of the star symbolized the then-known five continents where the revolution would spread.

The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics Naval Ensign 1924-1935

This naval ensign was introducted by the Communist government with the establishment of the USSR in 1924 and used by all Russian Warships until 1935. Because of its similarity to the Japanese Rising Sun Naval Ensign it was changed in 1935.

The Weimar Republic Flag 1919-1933

Black, red and gold in three equal horizontal stripes are the colors of the flag of the Federal Republic of Germany. The colors date to the emperors of the Middle Ages. They reappeared in the war against Napoleon when a corps of army volunteers drawn from all the German principalities adopted black uniforms with red braid and gold buttons.

Subsequently, student organizations, dedicated to the unification of Germany, used the colors on their banners. In the first attempt to create a democratic and unified Germany, leaders of the 1848 Revolution adopted the tricolor flag in the National Assembly or Frankfurt Parliament.

The flag was not actually used until 1918 when the German National Assembly of the democratic Weimar Republic adopted it officially. When Hitler came to power in 1933 he abolished the tricolor flag. In 1950, the flag was reintroduced by the German Parliament as the official symbol for the Federal Republic of Germany and is still used today.

Weimar State Flag

The Weimar Republic State Flag 1921-1933

This design was used as the German flag by such organizations as the German postal service and other non-military official authorities and organizations, although occasionally they would also use the simple tricolor as well. The black-red-gold is historically associated with «liberal» nationalism in Germany.

This flag was also called as the Dienstflagge der übrigen Reichsbehörden zu Lande (Service flag on land). This flag was abolished on April 22, 1933, by Adolf Hitler’s government.

The Weimar Republic War Flag 1919-1921

This was the Reichskriegsflagge adopted in 1919. It was never used, although samples were produced, because the old Imperial War Ensign of 1888 remained in use throughout this time period.

The new unused design was based on the previous imperial war ensign, replacing the eagle and the black-white-red canton with a black-red-gold canton.

Since the leadership of the German Navy did not accept the new republican Reichskriegsflagge adopted in 1919 and refused to hoist the new version and insisted upon using the old Imperial War Flag of the German Empire, on January 1, 1922, this entirely new design replaced the War Flag of the German Empire.

It was in use between the years 1922-1935. It was replaced by the swastika type in 1935.

Weimar Service Flag

The Weimar Republic Service Flag 1921-1933

This was the flag normally used by all German Government Ships smaller than a warship at sea between 1921-1933. This flag was also know as the Dienstflagge der übrigen Reichsbehörden zur See (Service flag on sea). It’s use was abolished on March 31, 1933, by Adolf Hitler’s government.

Weimar Navy Jack

The Weimar Republic Naval Jack 1921-1933

This jack (Gösch) was used by German Naval ships until 1933.

On warships, the jack is flown from a flag pole (jack-staff) located on the vessel’s front end (bow) when at anchor or in port.

Weimar War Minister

The Weimar Republic War Minister’s Flag 1921-1933

The was actually the second variant of the War Minister’s flag and adopted in 1921. It only changed the proportion of the flag to 2:3, and made the Iron Cross «thicker». The first version of the Flagge des Reichswehrministers is very similar and not shown.

German Tricolor

The German National Tricolor Flag 1932-1935

The German Imperial Tricolor flag was briefly reintroduced between 1933-1935 and used jointly with the Nazi Swastika Flag, then abolished in 1935 to try and prevent it being used by reactionary groups.

The German War Ensign and Naval Jack 1933-1935

This was the flag used by all German warships between 1933-1935. It was replaced by the swastika type Naval Flag in 1935

On warships, the jack is flown from a flag pole (jack-staff) located on the vessel’s front end (bow) when at anchor or in port. In the case of this flag it was also used as a regular ensign, or flag to be flown while at sea.

German State Flag
(For civilian use on land)

The German State Flag and Ensign 1933-1935

This was the German State flag and ensign used between the years 1933-1935. Although in March of 1933, the swastika flag was introduced as national flag, Paul von Hindenburg was still President of the Reich. Nothing could be done about the existing Weimar Republic Service flags without the agreement of the President. In the end it was agreed to reinstate some of the former Imperial Service flag designs in March and April of 1933.

The Wehrmacht only used this particular State Service flag design from March 14, 1933 until April 21, 1933.

Military Service Flag
(For use at Sea)

The German Service Flag and Ensign 1933-1935

In March and April of 1933, a couple «new/old» Service flags (which used imperial colors) were approved: one for at sea by military ships, and one on land as substitute for the civilian Service Flag which used the Weimar colors.

This flag saw use at sea from March 31, 1933, until replaced by the swastika Service Flag in 1935.

Second Spanish Republic 1931

The Second Spanish Republic 1931-1939

The Second Spanish Republic officially began in 1931 when King Alfonso XIII left the country following elections in which republican candidates won the majority of votes. Five years later, between 1936 and 1939 the Spanish Civil War broke out between the Nationalist (nacionales) forces of Francisco Franco and the Republican (republicanas) govermental forces. Thanks largely to military aid received from Nazi Germany Franco was victorious.

The unusual purple color stripe that replaced the lower traditional red on the Second Repubic flag was based the color used by Castilian Commoners when they fought against Charles V. This flag was flown on coastal fortresses and other military and official buildings during the repubic rule.

Rebel Nationalist Spain 1936

The Rebel Nationalist Flag 1936-1939

The Spanish Civil War (1936-1939) is largely seen as a testing ground for Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany to test their armor tactics and the effectiveness of bombing cities from the air that became the standard in the later war in Europe. The Spanish Civil War started as an attempted coup d’état by a group of Spanish Army generals against the government of the Second Spanish Republic. The resulting civil war devastated Spain and ended with the victory of the rebel forces, and the overthrow of the Republican government.

Fascist Spain 1939-1945

The Spanish State Flag 1939-1945

General Francisco Franco became the undisputed dictator of Spain when he defeated the Republican government in the Spanish Civil War with military help from Adolf Hitler. Franco declared an official end of hostilities on April 1, 1939, and formed what he called the «Spanish State.»

When World War II started Franco kept Spain out of it, and when the Axis Powers were defeated in 1945, Franco remained in power until his death in 1975.

Spanish State Flag 1945-1977

The Spanish State Flag 1945вЂ“1977

In 1945, after the defeat of the Third Reich and their Axis allies, Franco changed the Spanish Coat-of-arms used on the flag to a new and larger design. This new version of the flag continued being used as the Spanish State Flag, even after Franco’s death in 1975, until 1977.

The current modern Spanish State Flag (not shown here) uses a coat-of-arms that dates from 1981.

Flags of the Axis Powers

The NSDAP Party Flag

The German National Flag
(after 1935)

National Socialist German Workers Party (NADAP) 1920-1945
The Third Reich National Flag 1935-1945

Originally, this was the flag of the NSDAP Party, but Hitler made it the National Flag after 1935. Notice that the white circle is centered on the top flag, that would make it a NSDAP Party flag. In fact, all centered-disk versions of the flag used after 1935 were Party flags of the NSDAP.

In September of 1935, the Party flag became the national flag with one slight change concerning the position of the swastika. Henceforth, the regulations demanded the disk and swastika to be «slightly» set off the center towards the flag pole. Since the regulation did not give the offset measurement exactly, some confusion resulted. The reverse side of the national flag was the same as the obverse, i.e. both sides displayed a «right-facing» swastika until 1935.

The Merchant flag, as well as the Naval Ensign, were the same as the National flag, with an off-centered disk with swastika, both sides displayed a «right-facing» swastika. It was used jointly with the black-white-red striped flag. Eventually, the reverse side of the flag was changed to a «through and through» swastika image, although it is not absolutely clear when this change took place.

Nazi Germany’s Battle Flag 1938-1945

With the rise to power of the Nazi Party a new German battle flag was introduced. It replaced the stripes of the German Imperial flag in the canton (upper right hand corner) with a single iron cross, and turned the flag’s white field (background) red, and then replaced the Prussian eagle in the center with the Swastika symbol of the Nazi party. German soldiers marched to carry out the wishes of Adolf Hitler during World War II using this flag.

German Merchant Flag

Third Reich Merchant Flag 1935-1945

This was the official merchant flag and flown by all non-warships the ships of Germany during World War II. The Merchant Flag is identical to the National Flag, with the swastika slightly off-center nearer to the hoist, after 1935.

The Germans started World War II by invading Czechoslovakia in 1938, Norway, Denmark and Poland in 1939, and France in 1940.

National Chancellor Banner

Adolf Hitler’s Personal Banner 1935-1945

This was the personal standard of Adolf Hitler as «Der Fuhrer» (The Leader) and as Chancellor of Nazi Germany. It was designed to be carried in front of military formations on a pole with the standard centered on a pole during ceremonies, much the same as ancient Roman legions carried their eagles.

Kingdom of Italy

The Kingdom of Italy Flag 1848-1946

The Italian Naval Ensign 1848-1946

In order to avoid confusion with the Mexican flag at sea, a shield was added to the center white stripe.

Italian Prime Minister

Mussolini’s Personal Flag 1923-1945

As Italian head of government, Benito Mussolini displayed a distinctive personal flag. This flag was royal blue with a square golden-yellow band around the «fasces» in the center of the flag. Even though the flag was only used by Mussolini, it was officially the flag of the Prime Minister of Fascist Italy.

Italian Socialist Republic

Italian Social Republic War Flag 1943-1945

The Italian flag didn’t change when Mussolini rose to power. However, in 1943 Mussolini announced the new Italian Social Republic, limited to the parts of northern Italy still under German occupation. The national flag was the plain tricolor, while the war flag added to it a black or dark silver eagle grasping a golden fasces.

Imperial Japan

Imperial Japanese National Flag 1870-present

The «rising-sun» flag with 16 rays was used by the Japanese navy during World War II. Because most of the Pacific conflict was fought at sea, the flag easily became the most recognized symbol of Imperial Japan. It is a military service flag and should not be confused with the national flag. Today, it is still used by the Japanese Maritime Self Defense Forces.

The United Kingdom Union Jack 1801-present

The national flag of the United Kingdom combining the Cross of Saint Andrew (representing Scotland) with the Cross of Saint George (representing England) and the Cross of Saint Patrick (representing Northern Ireland), the three parts of the United Kingdom.

The British Naval Ensign 1864-present

The White Ensign became the sole ensign of the Royal Navy in 1864. Nelson used the White Ensign at Trafalgar; it replaced the traditional Red Ensign.

British Red Ensign

Merchant ships always use the Red Ensign (a red field with the Union Jack in the canton).

Occupied France

Vichy French Republic Flag 1940-1944

Since the first French Revolution the вЂњtricoloresвЂќ had been the only official French Flag. However, Northern France, including Paris, fell to Germany in the first 6 months of World War II. In the southern part of France a semi-independent French government survived by negotiating a separate peace treaty with Hilter and established their capital at Vichy, France. The Vichy government survived by supporting Nazi policies and cooperating with the invaders. After the war the supporters of this puppet government were branded traitors by the new French government.

Free French

The occupied part of France and those French citizens and fighters who fled the Nazi conquest, mainly to England, were known as the Free French and were led by General Charles de Gaulle. They fought on the allied side and many risked their lives as resistance fighters in France.

Vice Admiral Г‰mile Muselier, two days after assuming the post of Chief of the Naval and Air Forces of the Free French, created this flag displaying the French colors with a red cross of Lorraine, to recall the perseverance of Joan of Arc, whose symbol it had been.

Free French Ensign

Although this is not technically a World War II flag, this special naval jack is authorized for ships of the French Navy bearing the names of vessels which served in the Free French Navy (FNFL) during World War II. It displays a red Cross of Lorraine, the emblem of Free France, placed on a white diamond resting on a blue and red vertical striped field. I’ve put it here because it just seemed to fit.

USSR

The Soviet Union of Socialist Republics (USSR)

The Russians entered World War II after the Germans attacked in 1940.

The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics Naval Ensign 1935-1992

It was this ensign that the USSR’s navy used during World War II. Soviet naval warships used this ensign between the years 1935 and 1992. With the colapse of the Soviet Union this ensign was replaced by the traditional flag of Russia (consisting of a blue «Cross of Saint Andrews» on a plain white field) first introduced in the time of Peter the Great.

United States of America

The 48-Star United States Flag 1912-1959

In 1912, two stars were added to the United States flag, representing Arizona and New Mexico, bringing the total number of stars to 48. They were arranged in six rows of eight stars each. American fighting men would fight under this flag during four wars: World War I, World War II, the Korean War, and the beginning of the Vietnam War. (In 1959, a star was added for Alaska, and in 1960, a star was added for Hawaii making 50 stars today)

The United States entered World War II in 1941 after the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor.

48 Star United States Jack

World War II United States Naval Jack

Australian National Flag

The Australian flag is composed of three parts: The Union Jack (British flag) in the top left corner, the «Star of Federation» in the bottom left corner, and the Southern Cross, taking up the right half of the flag.

The Union Jack shows that the first colonization by Europeans was by Britain, at first as a penal colony. The Star of Federation is a seven-pointed star representing each of the six states, and having one more point for Australia’s territories. The Southern Cross is a constellation that can be seen from all of Australia’s states and territories.

Australian Merchant Ensign

The Australian Red Ensign was for all vessels registered in Australia. Initially, the Red Ensign was also the only flag private citizens could fly on land, but this was changed by the 1953 Flags Act. The Blue Ensign became the only flag private citizens could fly on land, while the use of the Red Ensign on land was prohibited. This is still true today.

The Australian Naval Ensign

The Australian Naval Ensign 1967

The flag shown here was not actually adopted until 1967. Throughout World War II the Royal Australian Navy, along with their Canadian, South African, New Zealand and Indian colleagues still used the British White Ensign (shown above).

Today this White Ensign is only flown by Australian Navy warships. Private citizens and merchant ships use the Red Ensign.

Nationalist China Flag

Nationalist Naval Jack
(originally Kuomintang Party flag)

The Republic of China Flag 1928

The final member of the «Big Four» of the Allies was China, a land racked with the hatred that only an ongoing and bloody Civil War can cause. The years of ruthless fighting between Mao Tse-tung’s Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and Chiang Kai-shek’s Kuomintang (KMT), as well as the rivalry among regional war lords had left a violent legacy as the parties battled for political control. Even so, the Chinese Nationalist government would prove to be an important ally in the war in the Pacific as they worked with the United States and their allies to defeat Japan in the Pacific. The Allied forces who served in the Chinese campaign never lost sight of their goal to assist the guerrilla forces and the Chinese government struggling to regain their country from the Japanese.

Unfortunately, although the various political factions ostensibly agreed to joined forces to fight the Japanese occupation the old hatreds were never far below the surface. As the Allied victory began to appear to become assured and distrust between the Soviet Union and the United States became more apparent, the Chinese rivalries once more resurfaced and the Civil War reignited. Eventually in 1949 the long Chinese Civil War ended, the Nationalist Chinese retreated to the Island of Taiwan declaring itself to still be the legitimate government of China and the mainland became Communist «Red China».

The Nationalist China flag had been was created in 1906 by Sun Zhongshan (Sun Yat-sen), derived from the flag of his party. When the Republic was established in 1912, the design was adopted as the naval ensign. In 1928, it was also adopted as the national flag, while its canton became the naval jack.

Perry’s Stars and Stripes

Perry’s Flag as displayed
at Japanese WWII Surrender

Commodore Perry’s Flag 1853 and 1946

In July of 1853, Commodore Matthew Perry entered Tokyo Bay with a squadron of then modern warships flying this 31-star flag to secure a treaty with Japan. His success led to formal diplomatic ties, access of ports by American ships, aid for shipwrecked American sailors, commercial trade, and the opening of Japan to other Western nations.

Ninety-two years later, at the request of Perry’s cousin, General Douglas MacArthur, the flag was transported from Annapolis, Maryland, to be on hand for the surrender ceremony of the Japanese ending World War II. The 9,500-mile trip took 120 hours and covered 12 time zones. The courier, who orders required him to keep the wooden box containing the flag in his sight at all times, slept with it, ate with it, and even took it with him in the bathroom. The flag had been on display at the museum at Annapolis where conservators had mounted cotton to its mildew damaged front side to prevent the flag from breaking apart and then mounted it backward to hide the damage. The flag case was mounted on the bulkhead of the Battleship Missouri overlooking the ceremony. After its 120 hour trip, the courier slept for two days missing the 25 minute ceremony.

Notice the irregular star field, a common feature in 19th century flags when there were no design standards. In this case, they apparently just stuffed the extra star into the first column to get 31 stars and the stars are all tilted to the left.

On the hoist line of this flag it stated that it was made at Mare Island in 1944. Retired Chief Walter Dougherty (QMC), explained that the flag was approved by President Roosevelt, and distributed in 1944 to be flown by all Navy units and bases on the day Japan surrendered. GMC Ret. David «Tim» Lake, a World War II vet, served on the Battleship Pennsylvania (BB-38) from 1941 through 1946. Chief Lake remembers this flag being flown when the ship returned to the states after the war. The «Pennsy» was flagship of the Pacific Fleet for much of the war.

«Four Freedoms» Flag

United Nations Honor Flag 1943-1948

The «Four Freedoms flag» or «United Nations Honor Flag,» was influenced by Roosevelt’s Four Freedoms speech, and intended to symbolize the World War II Allies and their goals, as set down in the Atlantic Charter and the Declaration by United Nations. This flag was designed by Brooks Harding in October 1942, and saw some use between 1943 and 1948.

It has sometimes been called the first «United Nations flag,» but was never an official organizational flag of the United Nations.

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hampusborgos/country-flags

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README.md

Accurate country flags

This repository contains accurate renders of all the worlds flags in SVG and PNG format.

We make every effort to maintain the most accurate repository of flags. That is, flags that most closely match what the country or territory’s laws and regulations describe the flags as being.

The source files were taken from Wikimedia Commons and sometimes contributed back (when the country legislation more accurately describes what the flag should look like). The flags are not under copyright protection since flags are in public domain (there may be other restrictions on how the flag can be used though).

Flags are organized by «ISO country-code»

The flags are named by their 2-letter ISO-3166 country code, except for the constituent countries of Great Britain which have 6-letter codes «GB-ENG» etc).

Also included is a JSON file that maps the ISO country code to the name of the country.

You can download this repository. Or you can clone it. You can also view all the flags here.

You can also install this as a NPM module:

In addition to the the SVG «sources» for all flags, we’ve also provided PNG exports of the SVG renderings in 100px, 250px, and 1000px widths. If you’re still using PNGs (SVGs are scalable, after all), and the pre-rendered versions don’t fit your needs, use the following methods to get different widths:

You can run the node script ‘build-pngs’, you must first install the modules svgexport and imagemin-cli :

Replace 1000: with whatever width you want (note the : ), or type :200 to get PNGs with a height of 200px.

Arbitrary Width Manually

If you cannot run the node script above, you can do the same steps manually.

Use a combination of svgexport and imagemin-cli from NPM to get that. imagemin is very important because svgexport produces uncompressed PNGs which are several MB each.

Run the following commands in the svg/ directory to get PNGs of a desired width:

The resultant files will be in the compressed-pngs folder. As before, 1000: is the dimensions to export.

About

SVG and PNG renders of all countries’ flags.

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The Newest Flags in the World

Malawi and Libya both have flags that were recently adopted.

Some countries have flags whose origins are so old that it is difficult to track its date of adoption. However, some countries have flags that were adopted only in recent memory. This could be because a country changed their flag design for political reasons (such as the case of Libya), or because a new country was formed (like the case of South Sudan). Below is an overview of some of the world’s youngest flags.

The World’s 10 Youngest Flags

Mauritania

Flag of Mauritania prior to 2017.

The flag of Mauritania has a green field with a gold crescent and star in the middle and two red stripes, one at the bottom and the other at the top. Mauritania used their original flag was until August 5, 2017, when a referendum was held about whether to replace the flag. About 85% of the voters approved the poll, and this resulted in the introduction of the two red stripes. The stripes represent the blood of the patriots who fought in their independence against the French. Mauritania adopted the new national flag on August 15, 2017.

Current flag of Mauritania.

Malawi

The flag of Malawi from 2010 to 2012.

The original Malawi flag was adopted on July 6, 1964, after the country gained their independence from the British. The flag had three stripes (black, red and green) with the top black strip having a rising sun. The flag was used until July 29, 2010, when the government adopted a new flag. The stripes on the new flag were altered to match the layout of the original Pan-African flag with the green strip at the bottom, the black in the middle, and the red on top. The rising sun was replaced by a full, centered white sun which symbolizes the progress the country has made economically. The flag was perceived illegitimate by many and on May 28, 2012 parliament voted to revert to their original independence flag.

The current flag of Malawi.

South Sudan

South Sudan adopted their flag after the end of their second civil war. The flag is older than the country since it was first used around 2005 and South Sudan gained independence in 2011. The flag was previously used by the SPLM (Sudan People’s Liberation Movement) and it resembles the flags of Kenya and Sudan. The flag has green, red, white and black horizontal bands and a yellow star in a blue triangle. The star represents unity, the black strip represents the people, and the red represents the bloodshed while fighting for independence. The green color represents the agriculture while white symbolizes peace. The blue triangle represents the Nile river. South Sudan adopted the flag on July 9, 2010.

The flag of South Sudan.

Libya

The former flag of Libya.

The original Libyan flag was introduced in 1951 after the creation of the Libya Kingdom. Omar Shennib designed the flag, and it was used until 1969. The flag has red, black, and green bands with a crescent and a star in the middle. After the 1969 coup d’etat, Libya adopted a flag which resembled the Arab liberation flag which they used until 1972 when they joined the federal of Arabs republic and adopted their flag. Muammar Gaddafi introduced the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya flag in 1977. The flag was green in color with no symbol which Libya used until 2011. The original Libyan flag was reintroduced on August 3, 2011, under article three of the constitution, despite disapproval by many Libyans.

The current flag of Libya.

Myanmar

The former flag of Myanmar.

The current Myanmar flag was adopted on October 21, 2010. Myanmar introduced the new flag alongside the idea of a name change as stipulated in their 2008 constitution. The flag has three horizontal bands red, green and yellow with a white 5-pointed star in the middle. The star stands for the country’s union, red represents determination and courage, and green stands for tranquility and peace while the yellow color symbolizes solidarity. The flag design was proposed in 2007 and then accepted during the 2008 referendum. The officials lowered the old flag in favor of the new one on October 21, 2010.

The current flag of Myanmar.

The former flag of Iraq.

The Iraq flag has the three equal horizontal black, white, and red bands of the flag of Arab liberation. Iraq adopted the current tricolor on July 31, 1963, but the green symbols on the white stripe have changed over the years. The recently amended version was adopted on January 22, 2008, and it has the ‘’Takbir’’ written in green. The first flag of Iraq was a green-white-black horizontal flag which had a red trapezoid with two stars. Even though the flag has changed several times, they have maintained the colors of the Arab Liberation flag. In 2008 the stars on the Iraq flag were removed.

The current flag of Iraq.

Kosovo

Kosovo adopted their flag immediately after gaining their independence from Serbia on February 17, 2008. The current flag was the winning design of the international flag designing competition organized by the United Nations which attracted over a thousand entries. Ibrahimi Muhamer designed the winning flag. The flag has six stars above a map of Kosovo on a blue flag. The white stars in an arc on a golden map, symbolize the six ethnic groups in the country. The Kosovo flag resembles the flag of Bosnia and Herzegovina regarding shape and color. Before gaining their independence, Kosovo used the flag of the United Nations for official purposes.

Lesotho

The former flag of Lesotho.

Lesotho adopted their current flag on October 4, 2006, during the 40th anniversary of their independence. The current flag features the horizontal green, white and blue bands plus a black ‘’Mokorotlo’’ in the middle of the white band. The design was meant to represent the nation as a peaceful state both externally and internally. The ’’Mokorotio’’ replaced the military emblem of a knobkerrie, spear, and shield. The white color stands for peace, the green symbolizes prosperity, and the blue represents the rain or sky.

The current flag of Lesotho.

Venezuela

The former flag of Venezuela with 7 stars.

The present Venezuela flag was first raised on March 12, 2006. It features three horizontal bands (red, blue and yellow) just like their original flag which was used in their war of independence in 1811. Over the years a lot of changes have been done on the flag including the addition of a coat of arm, and stars (even changing the number and placement of the stars). The current Venezuela flag has eight white stars. The eighth star represents the province of Guayana.

The current flag of Venezuela.

The Democratic Republic of the Congo

The flag used by Zaire.

The flag of DRC (the Democratic Republic of the Congo) is sky-blue in color. It is cut diagonally by a red strip with yellow edges. The upper-left canton has a yellow star. The country adopted the current flag on February 20, 2006. Their new constitution proposed the idea of replacing their flag with a previous flag which was used from 1963 to 1971, but with its color changed from royal blue to sky blue. The star on the flag symbolizes the country’s radiant future. Red symbolizes the blood of their martyr’s and yellow represents their wealth while the blue represents peace.

The current flag of the DRC.

Why Do Countries Change Their Flags?

As most countries change and evolve, so does the messages symbolized by their flags. A flag tells the country’s history, and the cause of the flag change is usually as strong as their beliefs. One of the main reasons for the adoption of a new flag is a shift in their political power. Others change their flag as part of restructuring their political and structural future. Other changes are to update the world on their status of peace or war.

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Flags of the world

Flags of the World

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Welcome to All Flags World

The biggest database of flags on the web

We identified for you more than 270 flags of the world. Countries, organizations, cities, regions, you will find on this site the flag you’re looking for and download it in different definitions (S, M, L, XL) for your personal use.

But that’s not all!

Flags of the world

Extensive List of Similar Flags from Around the World

Flags of the World

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Flags and Anthems of the World

Visualizing Design: 196 Flags of Countries Around the World

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Visualizing Design: 196 Flags of Countries Around the World

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