The National Flag of Lebanon

The national flag of Lebanon

is formed of two horizontal red stripes enveloping a horizontal white stripe. The white stripe is to be two times a red one (ratio 1:2:1)—a Spanish fess. The green cedar in the middle touches each of the red stripes and its width is one third of the width of the flag.

It was designed to be a neutral flag, not allied to any one of Lebanon’s religious groups. The red stripes symbolize the pure blood shed in the aim of liberation. The white stripe symbolizes peace, and the white snow covering Lebanon’s mountains. The green cedar, (Species: Cedrus libani orLebanon Cedar) symbolizes immortality and steadiness.

This cedar is referenced many times in the Bible: “The righteous flourish like the palm tree, and grow like a cedar in Lebanon” (Psalms 92:12). There is also some reference in W. Smith’s 1980 book on the colours: “The red and white colours are those associated, respectively, with theQaysites and Yemenites, opposing clans that divided Lebanese society between 634 and 1711 AD“. However, that explanation is poorly known (not to mention quite unheard of) in the Lebanese tradition.

It is a common mistake to draw the branches of the cedar and the tree trunk in brown or black which could be seen as unconstitutional. The cedar should be fully green regarding the provisions in the Constitution.

Take a look at our Ancient/Obsolete flags of Lebanon Section

The National Flag of Latvia

The national flag of Latvia

was used by independent Latvia from 1918 until the country was occupied by the Soviet Union in 1940. Its use was suppressed during Soviet rule. After regaining its independence, Latvia re-adopted on 27 February 1990 the same red-white-red flag.

Though officially adopted in 1922, the Latvian flag was in use as early as the 13th century. The red colour is sometimes described as symbolizing the readiness of the Latvians to give the blood from their hearts for freedom and their willingness to defend their liberty. An alternative interpretation, according to one legend, is that a Latvian leader was wounded in battle, and the edge of the white sheet in which he was wrapped were stained by his blood. The white stripe may stand for the sheet that wrapped him. This story is similar to the legend of the origins of the flag of Austria.

The red-white-red Latvian flag was first mentioned in the chapters of Ditleb von Alnpeke’s Rhymed Chronicle of Livonia (Livländische Reimchronik). This historical evidence places the Latvian flag among the oldest flags in the world. The chronicle tells about a battle that took place around 1280, in which ancient Latvian tribes from Cēsis, a city in the northern part of Latvia, went to war, bearing a red flag with a white stripe.

A legend refers to a mortally wounded chief of a Latvian tribe who was wrapped in a white sheet. The part of the sheet on which he was lying remained white, but the two edges were stained in his blood. During the next battle the bloodstained sheet was used as a flag. According to the legend this time the Latvian warriors were successful and drove the enemy away. Ever since then Latvian tribes have used these colours.

Based on the aforementioned historical record, the present day flag design was adapted by artist Ansis Cīrulis in May 1917. The Latvian national flag, together with the national coat of arms was affirmed in this format by a special parliamentary decree of the Republic of Latvia passed on 15 June 1921.

The “red” colour of the Latvian flag is in fact maroon, a particularly dark shade of red which is composed of brown and purple. It is sometimes referred to as Latvian red. The flag’s colour proportions are 2:1:2 (the upper and lower red bands each being twice as wide as the central white band), and the ratio of the height of the flag to its width is fixed at 1:2.

The National Flag of Laos

The national flag of Laos

was adopted on December 2, 1975. The flag had previously been used by the short-lived Lao Issara government of 1945-46, then by the Pathet Lao.

The flag consists of three horizontal strips, middle blue strip is twice the height of the top and bottom red stripes. In the middle is a white disc, the diameter of the disc is 0.8 times the height of the blue stripe. The flag ratio is 2:3. The national flag of Laos was adopted in 1975, when the country became a people’s republic. It is one of the few Communist flags that does not use the five-pointed star as an emblem. This flag replaced the original flag of Laos, which was red, with a triple-headed white elephant on a pedestal beneath a parasol. This expressed the ancientrnment coalition, before assuming power directly and prompting the abdication of the king. Their flag was adopted as the national flag. In the center is a whinisad name of the country, “Land of a Million Elephants,” and dated from the 19th century. From 1953 onward the royal government waged war with the Pathet Lao, whose flag was blue with a white disk and red borders at the top and bottom. From 1973-1975, the Pathet Lao formed part of the disk symbolizing the unity of the people under the leadership of the Lao People’s Revolutionary Party and the country’s bright future. It is also said to represent a full moon against the Mekong River.

The National Flag of Kyrgyzstan

The national flag of Kyrgyzstan

was adopted on 3 March 1992 by the Supreme Council of Kyrgyzstan. It consists of a red field with a yellow sun in the centre having 40 uniformly spaced rays. In the centre of the sun is a red ring crossed by two sets of three lines, a stylized representation of the tündük or crown of the traditional Kyrgyz yurt, a symbol replicated in many facets of Kyrgyz architecture.

The red background of the flag symbolizes bravery and valour, the sun represents peace and wealth, and the tunduk signifies the family home or, by extension, the universe. According to popular interpretations, the sun’s 40 rays represent the 40 Kyrgyz tribes unified against the Mongols by the epic hero Manas.

The National Flag of Kuwait

The national flag of Kuwait

 was adopted on September 7, 1961, and officially hoisted November 24, 1961.

Before 1961, the flag of Kuwait, like those of other Gulf states, was red and white with the word “الكويت” in the middle. The present flag is in the Pan-Arab colours, but each colour is also significant in its own right. Black represents the defeat of the enemy, while red is the colour of blood on the Kuwaiti swords. White symbolizes purity, and green is for the fertile land.

The colours’ meaning came from a poem by Safie Al-Deen Al-Hali:

White are our deeds
Black are our battles
Green are our lands
Red are our swords

Rules of hanging and flying the flag:

Horizontally: The green stripe should be on top.
Vertically: The black stripe should be on the left side of the flag.

in 2005, it became the design of the world’s largest kite at a size of 1019 square metres. It was made in New Zealand by Peter Lynn, launched to the public for the first time in 2004 in the United Kingdom, officially launched in Kuwait in 2005, and has not been surpassed since.

The National Flag of South Korea

The national flag of South Korea

or Taegeukgi has three parts: a white background; a red and blue taegeuk (also known as Taiji and Yinyang) in the centre; and four black trigrams, one in each corner of the flag. These trigrams are carried over from the eight trigrams (Ba gua), which are of Daoist origin. Taiji, Trigrams and Taoism are parts of the Chinese Culture which influences Korea throughout the history.

The white background symbolizes “cleanliness of the people”. The Taegeuk represents the origin of all things in the universe; holding the two principles of yin and yang in perfect balance; the former being the negative aspect rendered in blue, and the latter as the positive aspect rendered in red. Together, they represent a continuous movement within infinity, the two merging as one.

East Riding Flag - Approved

Reblogged from Yorkshire Boundary Society:

I am pleased to announce that the winning design of the East Riding flag competition has been approved by the Chief Vexillologist of the Flag Institute to be registered on the UK Flag Register.

I have ordered the first East Riding flag which will be hand-made.

I am now in the process of finalising arrangements for the unfurling of the first East Riding flag, this is planned for the week beginning Monday 15 April.

North Riding Flag - Approved

Reblogged from Yorkshire Boundary Society:

I am pleased to announce that the winning design of the North Riding flag competition has been approved by the Chief Vexillologist of the Flag Institute to be registered on the UK Flag Register.

I am now in the process of finalising arrangements for the unfurling of the first North Riding flag, this is planned for the week beginning Wednesday 1 May.

The National Flag of North Korea

The national flag of North Korea

was adopted on 8 September 1948, as the national flag and ensign.

The current North Korean flag was adopted when the northern portion of Korea became a communist state supported by the People’s Republic of China and the Soviet Union following the Korean Revolution and the surrender of the Empire of Japan. The colours of the Korean Empire flag were white, blue, and a pale shade of red bordering on orange. North Korea retained these colours for their new flag, with more prominence given to the red, per communist symbology, and added a red star on a white disk.

A 600-lb (270 kg) North Korean national flag flies from the world’s third tallest flagpole, which is located at Kijŏng-dong, on the North Korean side of the Military Demarcation Line within the Korean Demilitarized Zone. The flag-pole is 160 meters (525 feet) tall.

There are several other known flags in use. There is a flag for the Korean People’s Army, as well as its two subdivisions the Korean People’s Air Force and Korean People’s Navy, which follow a common design but with different colours (blue and white for the Navy and dark blue and light blue for the Air Force). There is also a flag of the ruling Worker’s Party of Korea, modelled after similar communist party flags, and a flag for the Supreme Commander of the KPA used by Kim Jong-un, which has the Supreme Commander’s Arms on a red field.

Man Club - April 2013 Edition (Man Flags)

Reblogged from Daily Thoughts:

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In conjunction with the bedazzling post from the April 2013 Female Code monthly edition, I suggested we men should have a flag system to communicate with our wives.  Since women are now bedazzling their body parts, why can't we men hoist flags on ours?  Some men would have difficulty making eye-to-eye contact with their wives, "Hey honey look up, I'm up here!"

Read more… 354 more words