A national flag is a flag that symbolises a country. A flag is a piece of Cloth, often flown from a pole or mast, generally used Symbolically for signaling or identification The flag is flown by the government, but usually can be flown by citizens of that country as well.
Both public and private buildings such as schools and courthouses often fly the national flag. In some countries, the national flags are only flown from non-military buildings on certain flag days.
There are three distinct types of national flag for use on land, and three for use at sea, although many countries use identical designs for several (and sometimes all) of these types of flag.
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National flags on land
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On land, there is a distinction between civil flags (FIAV symbol 
), state flags (
), and war or military flags (
). A civil flag is a version of the National flag that is flown by civilians on non-government installations or craft The Fédération internationale des associations vexillologiques (FIAV is an international federation of 52 regional national and multinational associations and institutions There are two separate meanings for the term state flag in Vexillology – the flag of state of a Government, and the flag of an individual subnational state A war flag (or military flag) is a variant of a National flag for use by the nation's military forces on land State flags are those used officially by government agencies, whereas civil flags may be flown by anyone irrespective of whether they are linked to government. War flags (also called military flags) are used by military organisations such as armies.
In practice, many countries (including the United States and the United Kingdom) have identical flags for these three purposes; national flag is sometimes used as a vexillological term to refer to such a three-purpose flag (
). The United States of America —commonly referred to as the The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located In a number of countries, however—notably those in Latin America—there is a distinct difference between civil and state flags. In most cases, the civil flag is a simplified version of the state flag, the difference often being the presence of a coat of arms on the state flag which is absent from the civil flag.
Very few countries use a war flag that differs from the state flag; the PRC, ROC, and Japan are notable exceptions. Talk People's Republic of China) PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA ARTICLE GUIDELINES Taiwan ( Taiwanese: Tâi-oân/Tāi-oân (historically 大灣/台員/大員/台圓/大圓/台窩灣 is an Island in East Asia. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Japan topics. The Philippines does not have a distinctive war flag in this usual sense, but the flag of the Philippines is unique in that it is flown with the red stripe on top, rather than the blue, when the country is in a state of war. The Philippines ( Filipino: Pilipinas, officially known as the Republic of the Philippines (fil ''Republika ng Pilipinas'' RP
National ensigns at sea
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- See also: Gallery of maritime flags
The flag that indicates nationality on a ship is called ensign. An ensign is a distinguishing Flag of a ship or a military unit or a distinguishing token emblem or badge such as a symbol of office As with the national flags, there are three varieties: the civil ensign (
), flown by private vessels; state ensigns (also called government ensigns; 
), flown by government ships; and war ensigns (also called naval ensigns; 
), flown by naval vessels. The civil Ensign (also known as merchant flag or merchant ensign) is the National flag flown by civil ships (merchant ships and others to denote The ensign is flown from an ensign-staff at the stern of the ship, or from a gaff when underway. The stern is the rear or aft part of a Ship or Boat, technically defined as the area built up over the Sternpost, extending upwards from the Counter Both these positions are superior to any other on the ship, even though the masthead is higher. In the absence of a gaff the ensign may be flown from the yardarm. A yard is a Spar on a mast from which Sails are set It may be constructed of timber steel or from more modern materials like Aluminum or (See Maritime flags. A maritime flag is a Flag designated for use on Boats and other watercraft ) National flags may also be flown by aircraft and the vehicles of important officials.
In some countries, such as the United States and Canada, the national ensign is identical to the national flag, while in others, such as the United Kingdom and Japan, there are specific ensigns for maritime use. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Japan topics. Most countries do not have a separate state ensign, although the United Kingdom is a rare exception, in having a red ensign for civil use, a white ensign as its naval ensign, and a blue ensign for government non-military vessels. The Red Ensign or " Red Duster " is a Flag that originated in the early 17th century as an Ensign flown by the Royal Navy. The White Ensign is an Ensign flown on British Royal Navy ships and Shore establishments It consists of a red St George's Cross on The Blue Ensign is a Flag, one of several British ensigns, used by certain organisations or territories associated with the United Kingdom.
Similar flags
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- See also: Gallery of flags by similarity
Although the national flag is meant to be a unique symbol for a country, many pairs of countries have highly similar and thus easily confusable flags. This is a gallery of pairs (or larger groupings of Flags that exhibit such similarity in design that they can be difficult to distinguish Examples include the flags of Monaco and of Indonesia, which differ only slightly in proportion; of the Netherlands and of Luxembourg, which differ in proportion as well as in the shade of blue used; and of Romania and of Chad, which are almost completely identical. The national Flag of Monaco has two equal horizontal bands of red (top and white making it similar to the flags of Indonesia, Singapore The national flag of Indonesia, which is known as Sang Merah Putih ("The Red and White" in Indonesian, is based on the flag of the 13th The Flag of the Netherlands is a horizontal Tricolour of Red, White, and Blue. The flag of Luxembourg consists of three horizontal stripes red white and blue and can be in 12 or 35 ratio The national flag of Romania is a tricolour with vertical stripes beginning from the flagpole blue yellow and red The National flag of the Republic of Chad is a vertical tricolor consisting (left to right of a Blue, a Yellow and a Red field
There are three color combinations that are used on several flags in certain regions. Red, white and blue are common amongst European and Western nations, including France, Great Britain, Australia and the United States of America. This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. See also Kingdom of Great Britain Great Britain (Breatainn Mhòr Prydain Fawr Breten Veur Graet Breetain is the larger of the two main islands For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Many African nations use red, yellow and green, including Senegal, Mali and Cameroon. Senegal (le Sénégal officially the Republic of Senegal, is a country south of the Sénégal River in western Africa. Mali, officially the Republic of Mali (République du Mali is a Landlocked nation in Western Africa. The Republic of Cameroon is a unitary republic of central and western Africa. Flags containing red, white and black can be found particularly amongst Arab nations such as Iraq, Yemen and Egypt. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Iraq topics. Yemen ( Arabic: اليَمَن al-Yaman officially the Republic of Yemen ( Arabic: الجمهورية اليمنية al-Jumhuuriyya This article is about the country of Egypt For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Egypt topics.
While some similarities are coincidental, others are rooted in shared histories. For example, the flags of Venezuela, of Colombia, and of Ecuador all use variants of the flag of Great Colombia, the country they comprised upon their independence from Spain, created by the Venezuelan independence hero Francisco de Miranda; and the flags of Egypt, of Iraq, of Syria, and of Yemen are all highly similar variants of the flag of the Arab revolt of 1916–1918. The flag of Venezuela dates from 1811, the beginning of that nation's struggle for independence List of Colombian flags The Flag of Colombia was adopted on November 26, 1861. The flag of Ecuador, which consists of horizontal bands of yellow (double width blue and red was adopted on September 26, 1860. The Flag of Gran Colombia was based on Francisco de Miranda 's Tricolour, which served as the national flag of the First Republic of Venezuela Spain () or the Kingdom of Spain (Reino de España is a country located mostly in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Sebastián Francisco de Miranda y Rodríguez ( Caracas, March 28, 1750 – in prison El Arsenal de la Carraca, Cadiz, The flag of Egypt ( علم مصر) in its current form was adopted on October 4, 1984. The flag of Iraq ( علم العراق) has had five different designs since the Kingdom of Iraq was established in 1921 The current flag of Syria ( علم سوريا) was re-adopted in 1980. The national flag of Yemen ( علم اليمن) was adopted on May 22, 1990, the same day that North Yemen and South Yemen The Pan-Arab colors are Red, Black, White, and Green and have their origins in the flag of the Arab Revolt. The Nordic countries all have the same design (Iceland, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland, in addition to the autuonomus regions of the Faroe Islands and Åland), a cross on a single-colored background. List of flags of Iceland The flag of Iceland was officially described in Law No The national flag of Denmark, Dannebrog, is red with a white Scandinavian cross that extends to the edges of the flag the vertical part of the The flag of Norway is red with an indigo blue Scandinavian cross outlined in white that extends to the edges of the flag the vertical part of the cross is shifted List of flags of Sweden The Flag of Sweden (Sveriges flagga is blue with a yellow Scandinavian cross that extends to the edges of the flag List of flags of Finland The flag of Finland, also called Siniristilippu ("Blue Cross Flag" dates from the beginning of the 20th century The flag of the Faroe Islands is an offset cross following as with other Nordic flags the tradition set by Dannebrog. The flag of Åland refers to the geographical and political position of the Finnish islands of Åland just off the coast of Sweden: it is the The USA and UK both have red, white, and blue. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located This similarity is due to the fact that the first 13 states of the USA were former colonies of England. Also, Australia and New Zealand both share a very similar flag, they are both based on their English heritage. Both flags fly the Union Jack, both have royal blue background and both have the Southern Cross as a prominent feature. The Union Flag, also known as the Union Jack, is the national flag of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. CRUX is a lightweight I686 -optimized Linux distribution targeted at experienced Linux users The only two differences between these flags is that the Australian flag have the Commonwealth Star, and that on the New Zealand flag, the Southern Cross is red instead of white. The flag of Australia was chosen in 1901 from entries in a worldwide design competition held following Federation. The Commonwealth Star (sometimes known as The Federation Star, The Seven Point Star or Star of Federation) is a seven-pointed star symbolising the
Many other similarities may be found among current national flags, particularly if inversions of color schemes are considered (e. g. , compare the flag of Côte d'Ivoire to that of Ireland). The Flag of Côte d'Ivoire features three equal vertical bands of orange ( hoist side white and green Still more identical or closely similar pairs exist comparing present day and historical flags; for example, the current national flag of Albania was the war flag of the Byzantine (Eastern Roman) Empire. The national flag of Albania is a red flag with a black Two-headed eagle in the center
Unusual flags
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The flag of Nepal is the only national flag which is non-rectangular. The national flag of Nepal is the only national flag in the world that is not a quadrilateral
The flags of Switzerland and the Vatican City are the only national flags which are exact squares. The Flag of Switzerland consists of a red square with a bold equilateral white cross in the center
The flag of Libya is the only national flag which consists of just one solid color (green). The flag of Libya ( علم ليبيا) (adopted on November 11, 1977) consists of a simple Green field with no other characteristics
The flags of Cyprus and Kosovo are the only national flags which depict the shape of the country that it represents (although the Korean Unification Flag depicts the Korean Peninsula). The Flag of Cyprus came into use on August 16, 1960 under the Zürich and London Agreements whereby a constitution was drafted and Cyprus was List of flags of Kosovo The flag of the Republic of Kosovo was adopted by the Assembly of Kosovo immediately following the declaration of independence of the The Unification Flag is used to represent all of Korea when North and South Korea participate together in sporting events Physical geography See also Geography of North Korea, Geography of South Korea Mountains cover 70 percent of the Korean Peninsula and arable plains are
The flag of Moldova and the flag of Paraguay are substantially different on their obverse and reverse sides. The National flag of Moldova is a vertical Tricolor of Blue, Yellow, and Red, charged with the Coat of arms of The flag of Paraguay (bandera de Paraguay was adopted in 1842.
The flag of Cambodia is the only national flag which depicts an actual building (the Angkor Wat temple). The national flag of Cambodia was readopted in 1993 after elections returned the monarchy to rule Angkor Wat (or Angkor Vat) (អង្គរវត្ត is a Temple complex at Angkor, Cambodia, built for King Suryavarman II
The flag of Mozambique is the only national flag to incorporate a modern firearm into its design (an AK-47). The flag of Mozambique was adopted on May 1, 1983. It includes the image of an AK-47 and is the only national flag in the world to feature such The AK-47 (contraction of Russian Автомат Калашникова образца 1947 года; Avtomat Kalashnikova obraztsa 1947 goda; "Kalashnikov's
Flag protocol
There is a great deal of protocol involved in the proper display of national flags. Flag protocol defines the proper placement handling and use of Flags Some countries have added certain protocols into their law system while others prefer to have "guidelines" For example, national flags should never be flown upside down (where this is possible) except as a distress signal.
There are many regulations concerning the display of national flags, but the general rule is that the national flag should be flown in the position of honor, and not in an inferior position to any other flag (although some countries make an exception for royal standards). The following regulations are typical.
- When a national flag is displayed together with any other flags, it must be hoisted first and lowered last.
- When a national flag is displayed together with the national flags of other countries, all the flags should be of approximately equal size and must be flown at an equal height, although the national flag of the host country should be flown in the position of honour (in the center of an odd number of flagstaffs or at the far right — left from an observer's point of view — of an even number of flagstaffs).
- When a national flag is displayed together with flags other than national flags, it should be flown on a separate flagstaff, either higher or in the position of honor.
- When a national flag is displayed together with any other flags on the same flagstaff, it must be at the top, though separate flagstaffs are preferable.
- When a national flag is displayed together with any other flag on crossed staffs, the national flag must be on the observer's left and its staff must be in front of the staff of the other flag.
- When a national flag is displayed together with another flag or flags in procession, the national flag must be on the marching right. If there is a row of flags, it should be in the position of honor.
- When a national flag, with some exceptions, is flown upside down it indicates distress.
See also
- Flag terminology
- Flag desecration
- Flag Day
- Flags of the World
- Flag protocol
- National emblem
- Coat of arms
- Gallery of country coats of arms
- List of countries
- Gallery of country flags
- List of sovereign states
- Gallery of sovereign-state flags
- Gallery of maritime flags
- Flags of formerly independent states
- Flags of active autonomist and secessionist movements
- Gallery of sovereign state coats of arms
- Scandinavian Cross
Notes
External links
- Flags of the World, a massive online vexillological database on national and many other kinds of flags
- The World All Countries Flags, a website about national symbols
- World Flag Database reverse search for ID by color and layout
References
The design and description of Flags typically uses specialised flag terminology' with precise and technical meanings and is hence a form of Jargon. Flag desecration is a term applied to various acts that intentionally deface a Flag, most often a National flag (though other flags can be defaced as well A flag day is a Flag -related holiday—either a day designated for flying a certain flag (such as a National flag) or a day set aside to celebrate a historical event For a list of flags see List of flags or Gallery of flags by design. Flag protocol defines the proper placement handling and use of Flags Some countries have added certain protocols into their law system while others prefer to have "guidelines" This article is about symbols of nations Many countries it can be used for is Chantal A coat of arms or armorial bearings (often just arms for short in European tradition is a design belonging to a particular person (or group of people This gallery of country coats of arms shows the Coat of arms (or an emblem serving a similar purpose of each of the countries in the List of countries. Wikipedia talkFeatured lists for an explanation of this and other inclusion tags below -->This list of countries, arranged alphabetically This gallery of sovereign-state flags shows the Flags of Sovereign states in the List of sovereign states. This list of sovereign states, alphabetically arranged gives an overview of States around the world with information on the extent of their Sovereignty. This gallery of sovereign-state flags shows the Flags of Sovereign states in the List of sovereign states. See also Flags of active autonomist and secessionist movements Flags of dependent territories Flags of ethnic groups See also Independentism Self-determination Autonomy Independence Sovereignty This gallery of country coats of arms shows the Coat of arms (or an emblem serving a similar purpose of each of the countries in the List of countries. Nordic Cross Flag Nordic Cross Scandinavian Cross is a pattern of flags usually associated with the Flags of the Scandinavian countries of which it originated Vexillology is the scholarly study of Flags The word is a synthesis of the Latin word Vexillum and the suffix –''ology'', meaning "studyDapyx Software network: MP3 Explorer | Ebook Manager | Zenithic