1971 - World Flag Chart

Sub-Saharan Africa
◀︎ ▶︎

Ethiopia

royal flag ^{1¹ Often (but not always) flown by the royal house and the government.}

Ethiopia

national flag ^{2² Flown by anyone.}

Ghana

Rwanda

Guinea

Mali

Senegal

Cameroon

Chad

Nigeria

Ivory Coast

Niger

Upper Volta

Sierra Leone

Gabon

Dahomey

yellow-green, thick red stripe, black star

Guinea and Cape Verde

PAIGC flag ^{3³ Flag of the African Party for the Independence of Guinea and Cape Verde, which aimed for separation from Portugal. Eventually became the flag of Guinea-Bissau. Portuguese colonies did not have official flags.}

Malagasy Republic

Congo

Malawi

black-red-green, white outlines, shield and spears emblem

Kenya

African National Congress

green-black-yellow, white outlines, red triangle

Mozambique

FRELIMO flag ^{4⁴ Flag of the Liberation Front of Mozambique, which aimed for independence from Portugal. Direct predecessor of the modern flag of Mozambique. Portuguese colonies did not have official flags.}

diagonal green-black-blue, yellow outlines

Tanzania

Angola

FNLA flag ^{5⁵ Flag of the National Liberation Front of Angola, which aimed for independence from Portugal, and its government-in-exile in Kinshasa. Portuguese colonies did not have official flags.}

Angola

MPLA flag ^{6⁶ Flag of People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola, a competing independence movement. Direct predecessor of the modern Angolan flag.}

red-green-red, black rooster and red sunrise

Angola

UNITA flag ^{7⁷ Flag of the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola, yet another independence movement.}

green, orange eagle, three short red-black-orange stripes

Zambia

green, yellow disc, hand holding a torch

Zaire

four concentric green-yellow-red-black boxes

Zimbabwe

ZANU flag ^{8⁸ Flag of the Zimbabwe African National Union, which sought majority rule in the breakaway British colony of Rhodesia. The territory's illegal white supremacist government flew a green and white flag with the Rhodesian coat of arms.}

Zimbabwe

ZAPU flag ^{9⁹ Flag of the Zimbabwe African People's Union, a competing liberation movement.}

6 red-yellow-black stripes, white circle, crane

Uganda

5 green-yellow stripes, red canton, white star

Togo

11 red-white stripes, blue canton, white star

Liberia

green-red triangles, white saltire, white circle, 3 red 6-pointed stars outlined in green

Burundi

green-white-red, blue triangle, coat of arms

Equatorial Guinea

The Gambia

Botswana

blue-red-blue, yellow outlines, shield and spear

Swaziland

Namibia

SWAPO flag ^{10¹⁰ Flag of the South West Africa People's Organisation, which sought independence from South Africa. Direct predecessor of the flag of Namibia. The territorial government did not have an official flag.}

Lesotho

blue-white-green-yellow, thin red stripe, yellow star

Central African Republic

orange-white-blue, a cross made up of the Union Jack, Orange Free State, and Transvaal flags

South Africa

Somalia

Eritrea

ELF flag ^{11¹¹ Flag of the Eritrean Liberation Front, which sought independence from Ethiopia. Derived from the previous national flag. The provincial government did not have an official flag.}

Middle East and North Africa
◀︎ ▶︎

Turkey

Tunisia

Morocco

Algeria

Mauritania

Palestine

black-white-green, red triangle, white 7-pointed star

Jordan

United Arab Emirates

Kuwait

Sudan

Libya

Egypt

Iraq

Syria

North Yemen

red-white-black, blue triangle, red star

South Yemen

white, two thin blue stripes, blue star of David

Israel

Cyprus

Lebanon

Iran

state flag ^{12¹² Flown by the government, and often by private citizens. In certain ceremonial settings, the ratio was 1:3.}

Iran

national flag ^{13¹³ Allowed to be flown by anyone.}

white-red-green, thick red stripe, white emblem

Oman

Saudi Arabia

Ras al-Khaimah

Bahrain

Qatar

Kurdistan

Druze

white, wavy red-white-blue saltire, azure-orange 4-pointed star, gold image of Assur

Assyrians

Western Europe
◀︎ ▶︎

France

Italy

Ireland

Andorra

Belgium

Netherlands

Luxembourg

Austria

national flag ^{14¹⁴ Flown by private citizens and municipalities.}

Austria

federal service flag ^{15¹⁵ Flown by the federal government and the armed forces.}

Spain

West Germany

East Germany

Switzerland

Denmark

national flag ^{16¹⁶ Allowed to be flown by anyone.}

red, white nordic cross, swallowtail cut

Denmark

sovereign flag ^{17¹⁷ Flown by the royal house, the government, and the armed forces. Also granted to a select list of private institutions and companies.}

Norway

merchant flag ^{18¹⁸ Allowed to be flown by anyone.}

red, white-blue nordic cross, swallowtail cut

Norway

state flag ^{19¹⁹ Flown only on state-owned buildings and naval ships.}

Faroe Islands

Iceland

national flag ^{20²⁰ Allowed to be flown by anyone.}

blue, white-red nordic cross, swallowtail cut

Iceland

state flag ^{21²¹ Flown on government buildings and coast guard ships.}

Åland

Sweden ^{22²² Flown for all purposes. A three-tailed version of the national flag is flown by the military.}

Finland

national flag ^{23²³ Allowed to be flown by anyone.}

Finland

state flag ^{24²⁴ Flown by the government, border guard, and public universities. The armed forces fly a version with a swallowtail cut.}

9 blue-white stripes, blue canton containing a white cross

Greece ^{25²⁵ During the rule of the junta, the shade of blue on the national flag was described as notably darker.}

blue, red-white pinwheel saltire outlined in white, red cross outlined in white

United Kingdom

England · Guernsey

white, red cross, white 6-pointed star, red hand, crown

Northern Ireland ^{26²⁶ Flown by the government, sporting teams and by some private citizens. More or less exclusively a unionist symbol.}

Scotland

Jersey

Wales

San Marino

Liechtenstein

Monaco

national flag ^{27²⁷ Allowed to be flown by anyone.}

Monaco

princely flag ^{28²⁸ Flown over the Prince's Palace and government buildings.}

white, red castle, red stripe, yellow key

Gibraltar

Vatican City

Malta

red, thick green stripe, yellow armillary sphere, coat of arms

Portugal

Canary Islands

Galicia

Catalonia

senyera ^{29²⁹ The traditional Catalan flag.}

9 red-yellow stripes, blue triangle, white star

Catalonia

estelada ^{30³⁰ The flag preferred by supporters of Catalan independence.}

9 black-white stripes, white canton, 11 ermine spots

Brittany

Cornwall

Corsica

Flanders

Wallonia

Isle of Man

Basque Country

Eastern Europe
◀︎ ▶︎

Soviet Union

red, black two-headed eagle, yellow hollow star

Albania

Czechoslovakia

Poland

state flag ^{31³¹ Flown over the Presidential Palace, parliament, provincial legislatures, and other government buildings. Private use highly restricted.}

Poland

coat of arms flag ^{32³² Flown by embassies, airports, and merchant ships. Private use strictly banned.}

blue-white-red, red star outlined in yellow

Yugoslavia

Hungary

Bulgaria

Estonia ^{33³³ Flown by the diplomatic service in exile and the Estonian disaspora. Flying the national flag was banned under the Soviet occupation.}

Lithuania ^{34³⁴ Flown by the diplomatic service in exile and the Lithuanian disaspora. Flying the national flag was banned under the Soviet occupation.}

Latvia ^{35³⁵ Flown by the diplomatic service in exile and the Latvian disaspora. Flying the national flag was banned under the Soviet occupation.}

Romania

South Asia and the Indian Ocean
◀︎ ▶︎

India

green, thick white stripe, white crescent and star

Pakistan

Bangladesh

Afghanistan

red double-tailed pennant outlined in blue, white moon, white sun

Nepal

Bhutan

Sikkim

maroon, yellow outline, yellow lion, four yellow leaves

Ceylon

green, thick red outline, white crescent

Maldives

Comoros

Mauritius

Jammu and Kashmir ^{37³⁷ Flown in the Indian-controlled parts of the disputed region of Kashmir.}

green, four white stripes, orange canton, white crescent and star

Azad Kashmir ^{38³⁸ Flown in the Pakistan-controlled parts of the disputed region of Kashmir.}

blue, white 6-pointed star, red-yellow-green striped-arc

Nagaland ^{39³⁹ Flown by nationalists and separatists. The Indian state of Nagaland does not have an official flag.}

Kannada ^{40⁴⁰ The popular but unofficial flag of the Kannada people. The Indian state of Karnataka does not have an official flag.}

East, Central and Southeast Asia
◀︎ ▶︎

Japan

white, red-blue taeguk surrounded by four black trigrams

South Korea

blue-red-blue, white outlines, white disc, red star

North Korea

China

North Vietnam

South Vietnam

South Vietnam

PRG flag ^{41⁴¹ Flag of the Viet Cong. Flown by the communist Provisional Revolutionary Government of the Republic of South Vietnam, which claimed to be the legitimate government of South Vietnam and was recognized by most Eastern Bloc states.}

white triangle, 12-red-blue wedges, yellow sun, two snow lions, yellow border

Tibet

red-blue-red, yellow soyombo, yellow star

Mongolia

Taiwan ^{42⁴² The flag of the Republic of China, the government of Taiwan. Banned on the mainland, as the People's Republic of China claimed sovereignty over the island.}

Burma

blue, red canton, white Angkor Wat, three white stars

Khmer Republic

Cambodia

GRUNK flag ^{43⁴³ Flown by the Royal Government of the National Union of Kampuchea, a government-in-exile based in Beijing and Hong Kong.}

red, three white elephants under an umbrella

Laos

Laos

Pathet Lao flag ^{44⁴⁴ Flown by the communist Pathet Lao government-in-exile in Hanoi.}

Thailand

blue-red, white triangle, yellow sun, three yellow stars

Philippines

14 red-white stripes, blue canton, yellow crescent and 14-point star

Malaysia

Indonesia

red-white, white crescent, 5 white stars

Singapore

yellow, diagonal white-black stripes, red emblem

Brunei

yellow, vertically divided black-red cross, yellow crown

Sarawak

Shan

red-white-yellow-blue, green canton, brown mountain

Sabah

red-white-blue, thick blue stripe, red sunburst and yellow drum

Karen ^{45⁴⁵ Flown by Karen nationalists seeking independence and separation from Burma.}

East Turkestan ^{46⁴⁶ The national flag of the Uyghur people, banned within the People's Republic of China. Xinjiang Region does not have an official flag.}

Oceania
◀︎ ▶︎

diagonal black-red, white southern cross, yellow bird of paradise

Papua New Guinea

Aboriginal Australians

blue British ensign, white 7-pointed star and southern cross

Australia

blue British ensign, red southern cross outlined in white

New Zealand

white-red-blue-white-red-blue-white-red, union jack

Hawaiʻi

Fiji

blue, thin yellow stripe, white 12-pointed star

Nauru

Micronesia

Western Samoa

Tonga

red, white maltese cross, French flag outlined in white

Wallis and Futuna

Guam

blue, white triangle outlined in red, American eagle holding a gold fly-whisk and club

American Samoa

North America
◀︎ ▶︎

Canada

13 red-white stripes, blue canton, fifty white stars

United States

Bermuda

blue, white cross, four white fleurs-de-lis

Québec

Alaska

white-red, thick blue stripe, white star

Texas

Acadia

California

Cherokee

white, red offset cross, red star, red crescent

Mi’kmaq

Métis

Northern Cheyenne

Oglala Lakota

red-white-black-white-black-white-red, white triangle outlined in black, red-black circle

Arapaho

blue, saltire of red and white chevrons, tribal seal

Seminole

tan, seal on a map, four black-white-blue-yellow mountains, rainbow

Navajo

yellow-purple, staff with 11 feathers dangling from it

Papago

The Caribbean
◀︎ ▶︎

Jamaica

red, diagonal black stripe outlined in white

Trinidad and Tobago

black-blue-white, red triangles, yellow sunrise

Antigua

green, yellow triangle outlined in white, smaller red triangle outlined in black

Guyana

Guyane

Martinique ^{47⁴⁷ An unofficial flag flown by Martinican nationalists and occasionally by local municipalities.}

blue, black triangle outlined in white, shorter yellow triangle

Saint Lucia

Barbados

Saint Christopher-Nevis-Anguilla

blue-white-green, white disc outlined in red, nutmeg emblem

Grenada

white, black elliptical ring of 5 black-brown-yellow-red-white stars outlined in black

Suriname

white, thin red stripe, thin blue band, ring of 6 stars

Netherlands Antilles

white, blue stripe, three orange dolphins

Anguilla ^{48⁴⁸ The unofficial but popular cultural flag of the island.}

white, American eagle flanked on either side by the blue letters

Virgin Islands (U.S.)

Belize

Dominica

Saint Vincent

Garifuna

Latin America
◀︎ ▶︎

green, yellow diamond, blue and white celestial sphere

Brazil

Mexico

Peru

national ensign ^{49⁴⁹ Flown by the government, the navy, the national police, and national sports teams. Raised at major ceremonies. The army uses a similar flag with a different coat of arms.}

Peru

national flag ^{50⁵⁰ Allowed to be flown by anyone.}

Guatemala

Argentina

Honduras

Nicaragua

El Salvador

national flag ^{51⁵¹ The most common flag, flown over most government buildings, at ceremonies, by diplomatic missions and often by public citizens.}

El Salvador

inscribed flag ^{52⁵² An alternative government flag, most commonly flown by the armed forces but also on some public buildings and offices.}

El Salvador

plain flag ^{53⁵³ The simplest version of the national flag, flown by some private citizens.}

Paraguay

front side

Paraguay

back side

Costa Rica

national flag ^{54⁵⁴ The most common Costa Rican flag. Officially designated for private citizens, but in practice often used on government buildings and schools too.}

Costa Rica

national ensign ^{55⁵⁵ Flown by the government and by diplomatic missions, although also used sometimes by private citizens.}

5 red-white stripes, blue triangle, white star

Puerto Rico

5 blue-white stripes, red triangle, white star

Cuba

9 white-blue stripes, white canton, yellow sun

Uruguay

national flag ^{56⁵⁶ Allowed to be flown by anyone.}

Uruguay

flag of Artigas ^{57⁵⁷ A traditional military emblem, ceremonially flown alongside the national flag at government buildings.}

Uruguay

flag of the Treinta y Tres ^{58⁵⁸ A historic flag, ceremonially flown alongside the national flag at government buildings.}

blue-red quarters, white cross, coat of arms

Dominican Republic

Chile

white-red-white-blue quarters, blue star, red star

Panama

blue-red, white square containing a coat of arms

Haiti

yellow-blue-red, arc of 7 white stars, coat of arms

Venezuela

national ensign ^{59⁵⁹ Flown by the government and armed forces, and unofficially used by many private citizens.}

Venezuela

national flag ^{60⁶⁰ Allowed to be flown by anyone.}

Colombia

Ecuador

Bolivia

state flag ^{61⁶¹ Flown by the governmnent. The armed forces flew a similar flag with olive and laurel branches around the coat of arms.}

Bolivia

national flag ^{62⁶² Allowed to be flown by anyone.}

7-by-7 grid of coloured squares, diagonally arranged white-green-blue-purple-red-orange-yellow

Aymara

red-orange-yellow-green-azure-blue-purple

Quechua

Other International and Cultural Flags
◀︎ ▶︎

blue, white map of the world, white wreath

United Nations

Europe

green-white-green, yellow outlines, emblem

Organization of African Unity

blue-yellow-red-white-orange-multicolour

Buddhist Flag

Romani

Pan-African Flag

Esperanto

Red Cross

Red Crescent

Red Lion and Sun

Olympic Games

Events of 1971
◀︎ ▶︎

ABORIGINAL AUSTRALIANS • The Aboriginal flag, designed by activist and artist Harold Thomas, was raised for the first time in Adelaide on July 12. The red, yellow and black colours represented the earth, the Aboriginal people, and the Sun. In 1995 the flag became an official flag of Australia.

ANDORRA • The design of the national flag was slightly adjusted on August 27.

BANGLADESH • Bangladesh declared independence from Pakistan on March 26.

BUGLARIA • The national emblem was modified on May 21.

EGYPT • On September 11, ten years after the separation of Syria, the United Arab Republic reverted to the name Egypt. It retained the two-star flag.

1958 flag of the United Arab Republic and Egypt

NICARAGUA • The coat of arms was slightly redrawn on August 27.

PAPUA NEW GUINEA • Papua New Guinea adopted a new flag, designed by 15-year-old schoolgirl Susan Karike, on July 1.

PERSIAN GULF • The United Kingdom withdrew from its protectorates in the Persian Gulf, starting with Bahrain on August 15 and Qatar on September 3.

On December 1, Britain terminated its protectorate over the seven Trucial States. Six of them — Abu Dhabi, Ajman, Dubai, Fujairah, Sharjah, and Umm al-Quwain — joined together to form the United Arab Emirates the next day.

The seventh emirate, Ras al-Khaimah, elected to forego union with the other states. Its independence would only last another two months.

QUECHUA • The modern seven-stripe rainbow "Inca flag" was designed in 1971. Although it was probably never flown by the actual Inca empire, it has come to be acknlowedged of the flag of the Quechua people and of the idigenous community in Peru.

ROMANI • A national flag was adopted at the first World Romani Congress in London on April 8. The cartwheel was meant to evoke the Ashoka Chakra on the Indian flag, but also symbolized the nomadic traditions of the Romani people.

ZAIRE • The Democratic Republic of the Congo changed its name to Zaire on October 29. On November 19 it adopted a completely new flag showing a hand grasping a torch.

1966 flag of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Notes

¹ Often (but not always) flown by the royal house and the government. ↩

² Flown by anyone. ↩

³ Flag of the African Party for the Independence of Guinea and Cape Verde, which aimed for separation from Portugal. Eventually became the flag of Guinea-Bissau. Portuguese colonies did not have official flags. ↩

⁴ Flag of the Liberation Front of Mozambique, which aimed for independence from Portugal. Direct predecessor of the modern flag of Mozambique. Portuguese colonies did not have official flags. ↩

⁵ Flag of the National Liberation Front of Angola, which aimed for independence from Portugal, and its government-in-exile in Kinshasa. Portuguese colonies did not have official flags. ↩

⁶ Flag of People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola, a competing independence movement. Direct predecessor of the modern Angolan flag. ↩

⁷ Flag of the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola, yet another independence movement. ↩

⁸ Flag of the Zimbabwe African National Union, which sought majority rule in the breakaway British colony of Rhodesia. The territory's illegal white supremacist government flew a green and white flag with the Rhodesian coat of arms. ↩

⁹ Flag of the Zimbabwe African People's Union, a competing liberation movement. ↩

¹⁰ Flag of the South West Africa People's Organisation, which sought independence from South Africa. Direct predecessor of the flag of Namibia. The territorial government did not have an official flag. ↩

¹¹ Flag of the Eritrean Liberation Front, which sought independence from Ethiopia. Derived from the previous national flag. The provincial government did not have an official flag. ↩

¹² Flown by the government, and often by private citizens. In certain ceremonial settings, the ratio was 1:3. ↩

¹³ Allowed to be flown by anyone. ↩

¹⁴ Flown by private citizens and municipalities. ↩

¹⁵ Flown by the federal government and the armed forces. ↩

¹⁶ Allowed to be flown by anyone. ↩

¹⁷ Flown by the royal house, the government, and the armed forces. Also granted to a select list of private institutions and companies. ↩

¹⁸ Allowed to be flown by anyone. ↩

¹⁹ Flown only on state-owned buildings and naval ships. ↩

²⁰ Allowed to be flown by anyone. ↩

²¹ Flown on government buildings and coast guard ships. ↩

²² Flown for all purposes. A three-tailed version of the national flag is flown by the military. ↩

²³ Allowed to be flown by anyone. ↩

²⁴ Flown by the government, border guard, and public universities. The armed forces fly a version with a swallowtail cut. ↩

²⁵ During the rule of the junta, the shade of blue on the national flag was described as notably darker. ↩

²⁶ Flown by the government, sporting teams and by some private citizens. More or less exclusively a unionist symbol. ↩

²⁷ Allowed to be flown by anyone. ↩

²⁸ Flown over the Prince's Palace and government buildings. ↩

²⁹ The traditional Catalan flag. ↩

³⁰ The flag preferred by supporters of Catalan independence. ↩

³¹ Flown over the Presidential Palace, parliament, provincial legislatures, and other government buildings. Private use highly restricted. ↩

³² Flown by embassies, airports, and merchant ships. Private use strictly banned. ↩

³³ Flown by the diplomatic service in exile and the Estonian disaspora. Flying the national flag was banned under the Soviet occupation. ↩

³⁴ Flown by the diplomatic service in exile and the Lithuanian disaspora. Flying the national flag was banned under the Soviet occupation. ↩

³⁵ Flown by the diplomatic service in exile and the Latvian disaspora. Flying the national flag was banned under the Soviet occupation. ↩

³⁶ Banned within the People's Republic of China. The Tibet Autonomous Region does not have an official flag. ↩

³⁷ Flown in the Indian-controlled parts of the disputed region of Kashmir. ↩

³⁸ Flown in the Pakistan-controlled parts of the disputed region of Kashmir. ↩

³⁹ Flown by nationalists and separatists. The Indian state of Nagaland does not have an official flag. ↩

⁴⁰ The popular but unofficial flag of the Kannada people. The Indian state of Karnataka does not have an official flag. ↩

⁴¹ Flag of the Viet Cong. Flown by the communist Provisional Revolutionary Government of the Republic of South Vietnam, which claimed to be the legitimate government of South Vietnam and was recognized by most Eastern Bloc states. ↩

⁴² The flag of the Republic of China, the government of Taiwan. Banned on the mainland, as the People's Republic of China claimed sovereignty over the island. ↩

⁴³ Flown by the Royal Government of the National Union of Kampuchea, a government-in-exile based in Beijing and Hong Kong. ↩

⁴⁴ Flown by the communist Pathet Lao government-in-exile in Hanoi. ↩

⁴⁵ Flown by Karen nationalists seeking independence and separation from Burma. ↩

⁴⁶ The national flag of the Uyghur people, banned within the People's Republic of China. Xinjiang Region does not have an official flag. ↩

⁴⁷ An unofficial flag flown by Martinican nationalists and occasionally by local municipalities. ↩

⁴⁸ The unofficial but popular cultural flag of the island. ↩

⁴⁹ Flown by the government, the navy, the national police, and national sports teams. Raised at major ceremonies. The army uses a similar flag with a different coat of arms. ↩

⁵⁰ Allowed to be flown by anyone. ↩

⁵¹ The most common flag, flown over most government buildings, at ceremonies, by diplomatic missions and often by public citizens. ↩

⁵² An alternative government flag, most commonly flown by the armed forces but also on some public buildings and offices. ↩

⁵³ The simplest version of the national flag, flown by some private citizens. ↩

⁵⁴ The most common Costa Rican flag. Officially designated for private citizens, but in practice often used on government buildings and schools too. ↩

⁵⁵ Flown by the government and by diplomatic missions, although also used sometimes by private citizens. ↩

⁵⁶ Allowed to be flown by anyone. ↩

⁵⁷ A traditional military emblem, ceremonially flown alongside the national flag at government buildings. ↩

⁵⁸ A historic flag, ceremonially flown alongside the national flag at government buildings. ↩

⁵⁹ Flown by the government and armed forces, and unofficially used by many private citizens. ↩

⁶⁰ Allowed to be flown by anyone. ↩

⁶¹ Flown by the governmnent. The armed forces flew a similar flag with olive and laurel branches around the coat of arms. ↩

⁶² Allowed to be flown by anyone. ↩

The World Flag Chart

◀︎ Flags of 1971 ▶︎

Sub-Saharan Africa
◀︎ ▶︎

Middle East and North Africa
◀︎ ▶︎

Western Europe
◀︎ ▶︎

Eastern Europe
◀︎ ▶︎

South Asia and the Indian Ocean
◀︎ ▶︎

East, Central and Southeast Asia
◀︎ ▶︎

Oceania
◀︎ ▶︎

North America
◀︎ ▶︎

The Caribbean
◀︎ ▶︎

Latin America
◀︎ ▶︎

Other International and Cultural Flags
◀︎ ▶︎

Events of 1971
◀︎ ▶︎

Notes

Events of 1971◀︎ ▶︎

Notes

Events of 1971
◀︎ ▶︎