The flag of the Republic of Jamtland

Republic of Jamtland

The United Republics of Jamtland, Herjeådalen and Ravund is a part serious part humorous culture and marketing project, with regionalist and historical elements based in the Swedish County of Jämtland, located in the middle of Scandinavia.-History:The Republic of Jamtland was founded in 1963 as a...

was created in 1983 by activists Kent Backman and Bo Oscarsson as a horizontal tricolor of blue, white and green, symbolising the sky, snow-clad mountains and woodland. (The three bands also symbolise the provinces of the republic, Jamtland, Ragunda

Ragunda Municipality

Ragunda Municipality is a municipality in Jämtland County in northern Sweden. Its seat is in Hammarstrand.The present municipality was formed in 1974, when "old" Ragunda Municipality was amalgamated with the municipalities of Fors and Stugun...

 and Härjedalen

Härjedalen

' is a historical province or landskap in the centre of Sweden. It borders the country of Norway as well as the provinces of Dalarna, Hälsingland, Medelpad, and Jämtland...

.)

On the white band is an old seal granted to Jamtland by king Mangus Lagabøte

Magnus VI of Norway

Magnus VI Lagabøte or Magnus Håkonsson , was king of Norway from 1263 until 1280.-Early life:...

 of Norway

Norway

Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...

 in the 13th century. The seal reads h, seal of the community of Jamtland, and depicts two women holding a shield (uncrowned) with the Norwegian state lion and two hunters taking aim at tree squirrel

Squirrel

Squirrels belong to a large family of small or medium-sized rodents called the Sciuridae. The family includes tree squirrels, ground squirrels, chipmunks, marmots , flying squirrels, and prairie dogs. Squirrels are indigenous to the Americas, Eurasia, and Africa and have been introduced to Australia...

s (at the time, Jamtland paid taxes to Norway in the grey winter furs from squirrel). The seal was in official use up to 1570.

The flag has become quite popular in Jamtland and the Jamtlandic diaspora in Sweden

Sweden

Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....

. Republic statues designate 12 March, 16 June, 23 July and 23 December as flag days: 23 July commemorates the first official 1983 flying of the flag, 12 March is the National Day, 16 June commemorates the national assembly day abolished by Swedish occupation in the 17th century, and 23 December is Sjursmäss ("Sigurd's mass"), a local holiday originally celebrating a saint now forgotten.