List of national flags by design

A national flag is a flag that represents and symbolizes a country or nation-state. Flags come in many shapes and designs, which often represent something about the country or people that the flag represents. Common design elements of flags include shapes — such as crescent moons, crosses, stars, stripes, and suns — layout elements such as including a canton (a rectangle with a distinct design, such as another national flag), and the overall shape of a flag, such as the aspect ratio of a rectangular flag — whether the flag is square or rectangle, and how wide it is — or the choice of a non-rectangular flag. Sometimes these flags are used as a short-hand guide to represent languages on say, tourist information or versions of websites on internet.

Many countries with shared history, culture, ethnicity, or religion have similarities in their flags that represent this connection. Sets of flags in this list within the same category may represent countries' shared connections — as with the Scandinavian countries exhibiting the Nordic cross on their flags — or the design similarity may be a coincidence — as with the red and white flags of Indonesia and Monaco.

For clarity, unless stated, all flags shown are the civil flag of the nation state / country recognised as such by the United Nations — the state flags, (usually of the government), along with the flags of autonomous countries, regions, and territories of a UN nation state will be annotated in italics as such.

Aspect ratio

A great many flags have a single defined aspect ratio. The most common aspect ratio is 2:3, followed by 1:2. Some flags have multiple acceptable ratios, or do not define any ratio at all, such as the Union Jack of the UK having its commonest aspect ratios of 1:2 followed by 2:3.

The following flags have a distinctive specified aspect ratio:

  •  Belgium:
    The aspect ratio is 13:15 ≈ 1:1.538
  •  Monaco:
    The aspect ratio is 4:5 ≡ 1:1.25
  •  Nepal:
    The only non-rectangular national flag — being made with 5 sides — and the only one that is taller than wide, with the bordering aspect ratio of ≈ 6:5
  •  Niger:
    The aspect ratio is 6:7 ≈ 1:1.667
  •  Qatar:
    The largest aspect ratio of any national flag — being over 2½ times as long as the height — of 11:28 ≈ 1:2.545
  •  El Salvador:
    The aspect ratio is 189:335 ≈ 1:1.772
  •  Switzerland
    The aspect ratio is 1:1 — square-shaped
  •  Togo:
    The aspect ratio is of Fibonacci's golden ratio that is approximately 1:1.618 ≈ 13:21
  •  The Vatican City:
    The aspect ratio was defined as 1:1 in Article 23 of the 2023 Fundamental Law of Vatican City State — square-shaped — The flag of 2001→2023 was, but did not have to be square-shaped.[1]
  • Wiphala
    The aspect ratio is 1:1 — square-shaped — with implied 13 diagonals of squares in a rainbow pattern of seven colours in a seven-by-seven square
    (alternative recognised flag of Bolivia used since 2009 for the native Incan peoples of South America in Bolivia and surrounding nations)

Borders

See also: Bordure

Diagonal divisions and stripes

Diagonally divided field

See also: Division of the field § Common divisions of the field

Diagonal stripes

  •  Bonaire
    — single broad off-center diagonal stripe
    (The Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territory of the Dutch Crown)
  •  Brunei
    — two diagonal stripes
  •  The Solomon Islands
    — single thin diagonal stripe
  • Wiphala
    — implied 13 diagonals of squares in a rainbow pattern of seven colours in a seven-by-seven square
    (alternative recognised flag of Bolivia used since 2009 for the native Incan peoples of South America in Bolivia and surrounding nations)

Fimbriated diagonal stripes

See also: Bend (heraldry)

Many radiating diagonal stripes

Horizontal divisions and stripes

Horizontal bi-color divisions and stripes

One horizontal bi-color division — equal

One horizontal bi-color division — unequal

One horizontal bi-color division with a band or a triangle at the hoist

Three horizontal bi-color stripes — equal

See also: triband (flag) and fess

Three horizontal bi-color stripes — thin-and-thick

Three horizontal bi-color stripes with a band or a triangle at the hoist

Three horizontal bi-color stripes — fimbriated thin-and-thick

See also: Fimbriation

Many horizontal bi-color stripes — equal

  •  Catalonia
    (autonomous community of Spain) — nine stripes

Many horizontal bi-color stripes with a band, a canton, or a triangle at the hoist

Many horizontal bi-color stripes — unequal

  •  Aruba
    (constituent country of the Netherlands) — five stripes
  •  Israel
  •  The Turkmen SSR
    (1953→1992 — constituent republic of the Soviet Union) — five stripes
  •  South Vietnam
    (1949–1975) — seven stripes

Horizontal tri-color stripes

Three horizontal tri-color stripes — equal

See also: tricolor

Three horizontal tri-color stripes — unequal

Three horizontal tri-color stripes with a band or a triangle at the hoist

Three horizontal tri-color stripes — fimbriated

See also: Fimbriation

Five horizontal tri-color stripes — unequal

Many horizontal tri-color stripes — equal

Horizontal stripes in many colors

Four horizontal stripes in four colors — equal

Five horizontal stripes in five colors — equal

Vertical divisions and stripes

Vertical bi-color divisions and stripes

One vertical bi-color division — equal

One vertical bi-color division — unequal

One vertical bi-color division — unequal serrated

Three vertical bi-color stripes — equal

See also: triband (flag) and pale (heraldry)

Three vertical bi-color stripes — unequal

Further information: Canadian pale

Vertical tri-color stripes

See also: tricolor

Three vertical tri-color stripes — equal

Historical

Three vertical tri-color stripes — unequal

Mobile charge — Circle

Further information: Charge (heraldry) and roundel

One circle in center

One circle off-centre

One broken or implied circle

Mobile charge — National coat of arms / badge

Further information: Coat of arms and Heraldic badge

Civil flags

State flags only

Further information: state flag

The following are the government / state flag only — the national civil flag is without the arms.

Mobile charge — National emblem / seal

Further information: National emblem

Ordinary / mobile charge — Cross

Further information: Ordinary (heraldry) and History of Christian flags

Quadrilateral division — four rectangles meeting at center

Upright centred cross

Further information: Christian cross variants

Saint George's Cross

Further information: St George's Cross

Nordic Cross

Further information: Nordic Cross

Nordic Cross in two colors

Nordic Cross fimbriated in three colors

Quadrilateral division — four triangles meeting at center

Diagonal cross / Saltire cross of SS. Andrew and Patrick

Further information: Saltire

Upright and diagonal centred crosses

The Union Jack in the canton

See also: British ensign and Flags of the British Empire

Historically

Notably, the Union Jack features in many territorial and sub-national flags usually based on the Red Ensign, (e.g.  Bermuda), or Blue Ensign, (e.g.  New South Wales). The British Ensign is used in a few cases with backgrounds of other colours, (e.g.  The British Antarctic Territory and  Niue), or a unique pattern in the field, (e.g.  The British Indian Ocean Territory and  Hawaii). Some flags use the Union Jack other than at the canton, (e.g.  British Columbia). Unofficial flags also use it, (e.g.  The Ross Dependency of Antarctica).

Other crosses in the canton or on the charged coat of arms / emblem

Mobile charge — Living organisms

Human and body parts

Animals

Birds

Eagles and hawks

Lions

Livestock

Others

Historically

Plants

Historically

Fleurs-de-lis

Mobile charge — Astronomical

Sun

Further information: Sun (heraldry)

Moon

Full Moon

Crescent Moon

Crescent Moon and Star

Further information: crescent and star

Crescent Moon and Stars

Star

Further information: star (heraldry)

Five-pointed star

See also: Five-pointed star
One five-pointed star in center
One five-pointed star on hoist
One five-pointed star on canton
See also: Canton (flag)
Many equal five-pointed stars
Many equal five-pointed stars in circle pattern
Many unequal five-pointed stars

Six-pointed star

One six-pointed star
  •  Bonaire
    (Netherlands Caribbean)
  •  Israel
  •  Northern Ireland
    (unofficial flag of Northern Ireland based on the Ulster flag — former flag of UK constituent province — not in current use)
Many equal six-pointed stars

Many-pointed star

One many-pointed star
Many many-pointed stars
  •  Australia — one 5-pointed star and five 7-pointed stars

Stars and stripes

Stars and alternating stripes
Stars and varying stripes

Stars in southern cross pattern

Mobile charge — Other objects

Building

Headgear

Cap / hat

Crown / tiara

Map

Ships

Tool, instrument, device, or book

Historically

Weaponry

Other symbols

Mobile charge — Text

Main article: List of inscribed flags

Country name

Motto

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Country name and motto

  •  Afghanistan
    (2013–2021) — the lowest line of text reads Afghanistan in the Pashto alphabet, and the calligraphic text at the top is the Shahada with the Takbir written beneath it.
  •  Brunei
    — the line of text on the crescent reads: Sentiasa Membuat Kebajikan Dengan Petunjuk Allah, meaning "Always render service with God's guidance", while the lower line reads Brunei Darussalam, both in the Jawi script.
  •  The Dominican Republic
    — the motto Dios, Patria, Libertad, Spanish for "God, Homeland, Freedom", can be read above the coat of arms at the center, below is the name of the country.
  •  El Salvador
    — the name of the country encircles the coat of arms, which features inside the motto Dios, Unión, Libertad, Spanish for "God, Unity, Freedom"

Other texts

Ordinary charge — Hoist variants

Vertical band on hoist

See also: Side (heraldry)

Canton — upper left quarter

See also: Canton (flag)

Historically

Triangle(s) on hoist — pile

See also: Pile (heraldry)

Triangle(s) on hoist — pall

See also: Pall (heraldry)

Mobile charge — Chevrons, triangles, and quadrilaterals in the center

See also: chevron (insignia)

See also

References

  1. ^ "letter to the German nunciature (2010-05-27)" (PDF) (in German). Retrieved 2021-09-26.
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