Sub-Saharan Africa
Ethiopia 11 The plain tricolour has no legal status but is still flown unofficially.
Ghana
Rwanda
Guinea
Mali
Senegal
Cameroon
Chad
Nigeria
Côte d'Ivoire
Niger
Sierra Leone
Gabon
Congo
Benin
Guinea-Bissau
Cape Verde
Madagascar
Burkina Faso
Angola
Malawi
Kenya
African National Congress
Mozambique
Tanzania
Namibia
The Gambia
Botswana
Zambia
Zaire
São Tomé and Príncipe
Zimbabwe
Uganda
Togo
Liberia
Burundi
Equatorial Guinea
Lesotho
Swaziland
Central African Republic
South Africa
Somalia
Djibouti
Eritrea
EPLF flag 22 Flag of the Eritrean Liberation Front, which sought independence from Ethiopia. Direct predecessor of the modern flag. The provincial government did not have an official flag.
Southern Sudan
SPLM flag 33 Flag of the Sudan People's Liberation Movement, which sought independence for the southern part of Sudan. Direct predecessor of the modern flag. The region did not have an official flag within Sudan.
Somaliland
Oromia
OLF flag 44 Flag of the Oromo Liberation Front, a nationalist liberation movement within Ethiopia. Oromia did not have an official flag within Ethiopia at this time.
Tigray
TPLF flag 55 Flag of the Tigray People's Liberation Front, a nationalist liberation movement within Ethiopia. Direct predecessor of the modern regional flag. Tigray did not have an official flag within Ethiopia at this time.
Middle East and North Africa
Turkey
Tunisia
Morocco
Algeria
Mauritania
Libya
Palestine
Jordan
Western Sahara
Polisario flag 66 Flown by the Polisario Front and the unrecognized Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, which claims to be the rightful government of the disputed Western Sahara. Most of the territory is occupied by Morocco.
United Arab Emirates
Kuwait
Egypt
Yemen
Sudan
Iraq
Syria
Israel
Cyprus
Northern Cyprus
Lebanon
Iran
Oman
Bahrain
Qatar
Saudi Arabia
Kurdistan
Druze
Assyrians
Western Europe
France
Italy
Ireland
Andorra
Belgium
Germany
Netherlands
Luxembourg
Austria
national flag 77 Flown by private citizens and municipalities.
Austria
federal service flag 88 Flown by the federal government and the armed forces.
Spain
Switzerland
Denmark
national flag 99 Allowed to be flown by anyone.
Denmark
sovereign flag 1010 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 1111 Allowed to be flown by anyone.
Norway
state flag 1212 Flown only on state-owned buildings and naval ships.
Iceland
national flag 1313 Allowed to be flown by anyone.
Iceland
state flag 1414 Flown on government buildings and coast guard ships.
Åland
Sweden 1515 Flown for all purposes. A three-tailed version of the national flag is flown by the military.
Finland
national flag 1616 Allowed to be flown by anyone.
Finland
state flag 1717 Flown by the government, border guard, and public universities. The armed forces fly a version with a swallowtail cut.
Faroe Islands
Greece
United Kingdom
England
Guernsey
Northern Ireland
Ulster banner 1818 Northen Ireland has not had an official flag since 1973, but the Ulster Banner is still flown by some sporting teams and private citizens. More or less exclusively a unionist symbol. Nationalists tend to fly the Irish tricolour instead.
Scotland
Wales
San Marino
Liechtenstein
Monaco
national flag 1919 Allowed to be flown by anyone.
Monaco
princely flag 2020 Flown over the Prince's Palace and government buildings.
Gibraltar
Vatican City
Malta
Portugal
Azores
Madeira
Canary Islands
Galicia
Jersey
Catalonia
senyera 2121 The traditional Catalan flag, and the official flag of the Autonomous Community of Catalonia.
Catalonia
estelada 2222 The flag preferred by supporters of Catalan independence.
Brittany
Cornwall
Corsica
Flanders
Wallonia
Isle of Man
Basque Country
Sápmi
Eastern Europe
Russia
Slovenia
Croatia
Yugoslavia
batallion flag 2323 Flown by the prince and the military.
Czechoslovakia
Poland
state flag 2424 Flown over the Presidential Palace, parliament, provincial legislatures, and other government buildings. Technically only allowed for private use on national holidays, but in practice flown throughout the year by anyone.
Poland
coat of arms flag 2525 Only supposed to be flown by embassies, airports, and merchant ships. In practice, flown by private citizens as well.
Belarus
Hungary
Bulgaria
Estonia
Armenia
Lithuania
Azerbaijan
Latvia
Georgia
Albania
Macedonia
Romania
Moldova 2626 The back side of the flag was just a plain tricolour.
Ukraine
Chechnya
Tatarstan
Ossetia 2727 Flown by the breakaway Georgian region of South Ossetia and the Russian republic of North Ossetia.
Gagauzia
Crimean Tatar
Central Asia
Afghanistan
Afghanistan
mujahideen flag 2828 Flag of the Afghan Interim Government in Pakistan, flown by mujahideen fighters within the country.
Kazakhstan 2929 The hammer and sickle was only on the front side of the flag.
Turkmenistan 3030 The hammer and sickle was only on the front side of the flag.
Kyrgyzstan 3131 The hammer and sickle was only on the front side of the flag.
Tajikistan 3232 The hammer and sickle was only on the front side of the flag.
Uzbekistan
East Turkestan 3333 The national flag of the Uyghur people, banned within the People's Republic of China. Xinjiang Province does not have an official flag.
Tibet 3434 Banned within the People's Republic of China. The Tibet Autonomous Region does not have a flag.
Mongolia
South Asia and the Indian Ocean
India
Pakistan
Bangladesh
Nepal
Bhutan
Sri Lanka
Maldives
Comoros
Seychelles
Mauritius
Mayotte 3535 Flown by the departmental council and used as a local flag.
Chagos Islands 3636 Flown by the Chagossians, who were forcibly removed from the islands by the British to make way for a military base. The islands are officially administered as the British Indian Ocean Territory, which has a colonial ensign with a wavy white and blue stripes and a palm tree badge.
Jammu and Kashmir 3737 Flown in the Indian-controlled parts of the disputed region of Kashmir.
Azad Kashmir 3838 Flown in the Pakistan-controlled parts of the disputed region of Kashmir.
Balochistan 3939 Flown by Baloch nationalists seeking independence from Pakistan, Iran, and Afghanistan. The star is sometimes flipped upside down or replaced by a white sun. The provincial government of Balochistan in Pakistan flies a green flag with a white camel emblem.
Nagaland 4040 Flown by nationalists and separatists. The Indian state of Nagaland does not have an official flag.
Kannada 4141 The popular but unofficial flag of the Kannada people. The Indian state of Karnataka does not have an official flag.
East and Southeast Asia
Japan
South Korea
North Korea
Vietnam
China
Taiwan 4242 The flag of the Republic of China, which is the government of Taiwan. Banned on the mainland, as the People's Republic of China claims sovereignty over the island. At major international sporting events like the Olympics, Taiwan competes under the name "Chinese Taipei" and flies a neutral flag.
Myanmar
Thailand
Laos
Cambodia 4343 Flown by the State of Cambodia, the partially-recognized state in control of Phnom Penh.
Cambodia
NGC flag 4444 Flown by the National Government of Cambodia, the government-in-exile which retained control of Cambodia's UN seat.
Philippines
Malaysia
Indonesia
Singapore
Brunei
Sarawak
East Timor 4545 Flown by nationalists seeking the indpenedence of Timor-Leste. Under Indonesian occupation, flying the flag was illegal. The rarely-used official flag of "Timor Timur" was orange with the provincial seal in the middle.
Shan
Rohingya
Karen 4646 Flown by Karen nationalists seeking independence and separation from Myanmar. Kayin State has its own flag, a blue-white-red tricolour with a white star in the top left.
Sabah
Ainu
Oceania
Papua New Guinea
Aboriginal Australians
Māori
Vanuatu
Kanaky-New Caledonia
FLNKS flag 4747 Flag of the Kanak and Socialist National Liberation Front, which sought the independence from France.
Solomon Islands
Australia
Aotearoa New Zealand
Cook Islands
Fiji
Tuvalu
Niue
Marshall Islands
Nauru
Micronesia
Palau
Kiribati
Hawaiʻi
Western Samoa
Tonga
Wallis and Futuna
Maohi Nui
Rapa Nui
Northern Mariana Islands
Guam
American Samoa
Norfolk Island
Christmas Island
Bougainville
North America
Canada
Greenland
United States
Bermuda
Saint Pierre and Miquelon 4848 A popular but unofficial local flag.
Québec
Newfoundland
California
Alaska
Texas
Acadia
Mi’kmaq
Métis
Northern Cheyenne
Haudenosaunee
Choctaw
Cherokee
Oglala Lakota
Haida
Arapaho
Blackfeet
Seminole
Comanche
Navajo
Tohono O’odham
Innu
The Caribbean
Jamaica
Saint Kitts and Nevis
Trinidad and Tobago
Antigua and Barbuda
Guyana
Dominica
Grenada
Guyane
Suriname
Guadeloupe 4949 An unofficial flag flown by Guadeloupe nationalists. There is also a rarely used "heraldic banner" based on the coat of arms of Pointe-à-Pitre.
Martinique 5050 An unofficial flag flown by Martinican nationalists and occasionally by local municipalities.
The Bahamas
Saint Lucia
Barbados
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
Bonaire
Aruba
Curaçao
Saint Martin
unity flag 5151 A common cultural flag representing both the French and Dutch halves of the island of Saint Martin.
Saint Martin (Dutch)
Saba
Netherlands Antilles
Anguilla 5252 The unofficial but popular cultural flag of the island.
Virgin Islands (U.S.)
Belize
Garifuna
Latin America
Brazil
Mexico
Peru
national ensign 5353 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 5454 Allowed to be flown by anyone.
Guatemala
Argentina
Honduras
Nicaragua
El Salvador
national flag 5555 The most common flag, flown over most government buildings, at ceremonies, by diplomatic missions and often by public citizens.
El Salvador
inscribed flag 5656 An alternative government flag, most commonly flown by the armed forces but also on some public buildings and offices.
El Salvador
plain flag 5757 The simplest version of the national flag, flown by some private citizens.
Paraguay
front side
Paraguay
back side
Costa Rica
national flag 5858 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 5959 Flown by the government and by diplomatic missions, although also used sometimes by private citizens.
Puerto Rico
Cuba
Uruguay
national flag 6060 Allowed to be flown by anyone.
Uruguay
flag of Artigas 6161 A traditional military emblem, ceremonially flown alongside the national flag at government buildings.
Uruguay
flag of the Treinta y Tres 6262 A historic flag, ceremonially flown alongside the national flag at government buildings.
Haiti
Dominican Republic
Chile
Panama
Venezuela
national ensign 6363 Flown by the government and armed forces, and unofficially used by many private citizens.
Venezuela
national flag 6464 Allowed to be flown by anyone.
Colombia
Ecuador
Bolivia
state flag 6565 Flown by the governmnent. The armed forces flew a similar flag with olive and laurel branches around the coat of arms.
Bolivia
national flag 6666 Allowed to be flown by anyone.
Aymara
Quechua
Misak
Other International and Cultural Flags
United Nations
Europe
Organization of African Unity
Commonwealth of Nations
La Francophonie
Buddhist Flag
Romani
Pan-African Flag
Warrior Flag
Esperanto
Red Cross
Red Crescent
Pride Flag
Olympic Games
Events of 1991
CHECHNYA • In the midst of the collapse of the Soviet Union, Chechnya attempted to break away from Russia by issuing an unrecognized declaration of independence on November 1. The new separatist flag was much like the previous one with the white and red colours inverted.
COMANCHE • The Comanche Nation adopted a flag.
CONGO • The original national flag was readopted on June 10 to mark the establishment of the establishment of a multi-party democracy.
CRIMEAN TATAR • The Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar People adopted a national flag on June 30.
ETHIOPIA • Ethiopia's transitional government removed the seal from the national flag on May 28.
IRAQ • Iraq added an inscription reading "God is great" in Saddam Hussein's handwriting to the national flag on January 13.
SOMALILAND • Somaliland declared independence from Somalia on May 18. The breakaway republic has never attained international recognition but has managed to function as a relatively stable government.
SOVIET UNION • The USSR rapidly disintegrated over the course of 1991 as its constituent republics declared sovereignty or independence. Old national flags were revived across the union, most notably in Russia, where the original tricolour was re-established on August 12.
Ukraine declared independence from the Soviet Union on August 24, in the aftermath of the failed coup against Gorbachev. The neighbouring states of Byleorussia and Moldova followed suit on August 25 and 27 respectively. Ukraine provisionally readopted its pre-Soviet flag on September 4. Byelorussia renamed itself to Belarus and readopted its white-red-white tricolour on September 19. Molodva had adopted a new Romanian-inspired flag in 1990.
In the Caucausus, Georgia declared independence on April 9, Azerbaijan on August 30, and Armenia on September 21. All three states had readopted their flags in 1990.
The Baltic states of Latvia and Lithuania had declared independence in 1990. Estonia followed suit on 20 August. On September 6 the three states were officially granted their independence. All of them had officially readopted their interwar flags between 1988 and 1990.
The Central Asian republics had no pre-existing flag traditions to fall back on, and declared independence under their Soviet flags: Kyrgyzstan on August 31, Tajikistan on September 9, Turkmenistan on October 27, and Kazakhstan on December 16. Only Uzbekistan, which declared independence on August 31, managed to create a national flag before the end of 1991.
By December 25, when the Soviet flag was lowered from the Kremlin for the last time, the Union had effectively ceased to exist. The twelve remaining member republics officially became fully independent states the following day.
YUGOSLAVIA • The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia also began to collapse in 1991. Croatia and Slovenia declared independence on June 25, with the latter state adopting a new flag two days later. Macedonia declared independence on September 8. Bosnia would declare independence the following spring, leaving only Serbia and Montenegro in the union.
Notes
1 The plain tricolour has no legal status but is still flown unofficially. ↩
2 Flag of the Eritrean Liberation Front, which sought independence from Ethiopia. Direct predecessor of the modern flag. The provincial government did not have an official flag. ↩
3 Flag of the Sudan People's Liberation Movement, which sought independence for the southern part of Sudan. Direct predecessor of the modern flag. The region did not have an official flag within Sudan. ↩
4 Flag of the Oromo Liberation Front, a nationalist liberation movement within Ethiopia. Oromia did not have an official flag within Ethiopia at this time. ↩
5 Flag of the Tigray People's Liberation Front, a nationalist liberation movement within Ethiopia. Direct predecessor of the modern regional flag. Tigray did not have an official flag within Ethiopia at this time. ↩
6 Flown by the Polisario Front and the unrecognized Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, which claims to be the rightful government of the disputed Western Sahara. Most of the territory is occupied by Morocco. ↩
7 Flown by private citizens and municipalities. ↩
8 Flown by the federal government and the armed forces. ↩
9 Allowed to be flown by anyone. ↩
10 Flown by the royal house, the government, and the armed forces. Also granted to a select list of private institutions and companies. ↩
11 Allowed to be flown by anyone. ↩
12 Flown only on state-owned buildings and naval ships. ↩
13 Allowed to be flown by anyone. ↩
14 Flown on government buildings and coast guard ships. ↩
15 Flown for all purposes. A three-tailed version of the national flag is flown by the military. ↩
16 Allowed to be flown by anyone. ↩
17 Flown by the government, border guard, and public universities. The armed forces fly a version with a swallowtail cut. ↩
18 Northen Ireland has not had an official flag since 1973, but the Ulster Banner is still flown by some sporting teams and private citizens. More or less exclusively a unionist symbol. Nationalists tend to fly the Irish tricolour instead. ↩
19 Allowed to be flown by anyone. ↩
20 Flown over the Prince's Palace and government buildings. ↩
21 The traditional Catalan flag, and the official flag of the Autonomous Community of Catalonia. ↩
22 The flag preferred by supporters of Catalan independence. ↩
23 Flown by the prince and the military. ↩
24 Flown over the Presidential Palace, parliament, provincial legislatures, and other government buildings. Technically only allowed for private use on national holidays, but in practice flown throughout the year by anyone. ↩
25 Only supposed to be flown by embassies, airports, and merchant ships. In practice, flown by private citizens as well. ↩
26 The back side of the flag was just a plain tricolour. ↩
27 Flown by the breakaway Georgian region of South Ossetia and the Russian republic of North Ossetia. ↩
28 Flag of the Afghan Interim Government in Pakistan, flown by mujahideen fighters within the country. ↩
29 The hammer and sickle was only on the front side of the flag. ↩
30 The hammer and sickle was only on the front side of the flag. ↩
31 The hammer and sickle was only on the front side of the flag. ↩
32 The hammer and sickle was only on the front side of the flag. ↩
33 The national flag of the Uyghur people, banned within the People's Republic of China. Xinjiang Province does not have an official flag. ↩
34 Banned within the People's Republic of China. The Tibet Autonomous Region does not have a flag. ↩
35 Flown by the departmental council and used as a local flag. ↩
36 Flown by the Chagossians, who were forcibly removed from the islands by the British to make way for a military base. The islands are officially administered as the British Indian Ocean Territory, which has a colonial ensign with a wavy white and blue stripes and a palm tree badge. ↩
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 Baloch nationalists seeking independence from Pakistan, Iran, and Afghanistan. The star is sometimes flipped upside down or replaced by a white sun. The provincial government of Balochistan in Pakistan flies a green flag with a white camel emblem. ↩
40 Flown by nationalists and separatists. The Indian state of Nagaland does not have an official flag. ↩
41 The popular but unofficial flag of the Kannada people. The Indian state of Karnataka does not have an official flag. ↩
42 The flag of the Republic of China, which is the government of Taiwan. Banned on the mainland, as the People's Republic of China claims sovereignty over the island. At major international sporting events like the Olympics, Taiwan competes under the name "Chinese Taipei" and flies a neutral flag. ↩
43 Flown by the State of Cambodia, the partially-recognized state in control of Phnom Penh. ↩
44 Flown by the National Government of Cambodia, the government-in-exile which retained control of Cambodia's UN seat. ↩
45 Flown by nationalists seeking the indpenedence of Timor-Leste. Under Indonesian occupation, flying the flag was illegal. The rarely-used official flag of "Timor Timur" was orange with the provincial seal in the middle. ↩
46 Flown by Karen nationalists seeking independence and separation from Myanmar. Kayin State has its own flag, a blue-white-red tricolour with a white star in the top left. ↩
47 Flag of the Kanak and Socialist National Liberation Front, which sought the independence from France. ↩
48 A popular but unofficial local flag. ↩
49 An unofficial flag flown by Guadeloupe nationalists. There is also a rarely used "heraldic banner" based on the coat of arms of Pointe-à-Pitre. ↩
50 An unofficial flag flown by Martinican nationalists and occasionally by local municipalities. ↩
51 A common cultural flag representing both the French and Dutch halves of the island of Saint Martin. ↩
52 The unofficial but popular cultural flag of the island. ↩
53 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. ↩
54 Allowed to be flown by anyone. ↩
55 The most common flag, flown over most government buildings, at ceremonies, by diplomatic missions and often by public citizens. ↩
56 An alternative government flag, most commonly flown by the armed forces but also on some public buildings and offices. ↩
57 The simplest version of the national flag, flown by some private citizens. ↩
58 The most common Costa Rican flag. Officially designated for private citizens, but in practice often used on government buildings and schools too. ↩
59 Flown by the government and by diplomatic missions, although also used sometimes by private citizens. ↩
60 Allowed to be flown by anyone. ↩
61 A traditional military emblem, ceremonially flown alongside the national flag at government buildings. ↩
62 A historic flag, ceremonially flown alongside the national flag at government buildings. ↩
63 Flown by the government and armed forces, and unofficially used by many private citizens. ↩
64 Allowed to be flown by anyone. ↩
65 Flown by the governmnent. The armed forces flew a similar flag with olive and laurel branches around the coat of arms. ↩
66 Allowed to be flown by anyone. ↩