Nordic Cross Flag - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The Nordic Cross Flag, Nordic Cross, or Scandinavian Cross is a pattern of flags usually associated with the flag

Flag

A flag is a piece of fabric with a distinctive design that is usually rectangular and used as a symbol, as a signaling device, or decoration. The term flag is also used to refer to the graphic design employed by a flag, or to its depiction in another medium.The first flags were used to assist...

s of the Scandinavia

Scandinavia

Scandinavia is a cultural, historical and ethno-linguistic region in northern Europe that includes the three kingdoms of Denmark, Norway and Sweden, characterized by their common ethno-cultural heritage and language. Modern Norway and Sweden proper are situated on the Scandinavian Peninsula,...

n countries of which it originated. All of the Nordic countries

Nordic countries

The Nordic countries make up a region in Northern Europe and the North Atlantic which consists of Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden and their associated territories, the Faroe Islands, Greenland and Åland...

except Greenland

Flag of Greenland

The flag of Greenland was designed by Greenland native Thue Christiansen. It features two equal horizontal bands of white and red with a large disk slightly to the hoist side of centre. The top half of the disk is red, the bottom half is white...

have adopted such flags. The cross

Christian cross

The Christian cross, seen as a representation of the instrument of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, is the best-known religious symbol of Christianity...

design, which represents Christianity

Christianity

Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...

, is depicted extending to the edges of the flag with the vertical part of the cross shifted to the hoist side, rather than centred on the flag. All Scandinavian flags may be flown as gonfalons

Gonfalone

The gonfalon or gonfalone , is a type of heraldic flag or banner, often pointed, swallow-tailed, or with several streamers, and suspended from a crossbar...

as well.

The first flag with the design was the Danish

Denmark

Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...

Dannebrog

Flag of Denmark

The national flag of Denmark, Dannebrog is red with a white Scandinavian cross that extends to the edges of the flag; the vertical part of the cross is shifted to the hoist side...

; thereafter, 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....

, 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...

, Finland

Finland

Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...

, Iceland

Iceland

Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...

, and some of their subdivisions used this as inspiration for their own flags. The Norwegian

Flag of Norway

The flag of Norway is red with an indigo blue Scandinavian cross outlined in white that extends to the edges of the flag; the vertical part of the cross is shifted to the hoist side in the style of the Dannebrog, the flag of Denmark.- History :...

flag was the first Nordic cross flag with three colours. Though the flags share this pattern, they have individual histories and symbolism.

Some of the flags in this list do not have official status. Also, note that flag proportions

Flag terminology

Flag terminology is a jargon used in vexillology, the study of flags, to describe precisely the parts, patterns, and other attributes of flags and their display.-Description of standard flag parts and terms:...

may vary between the different flags and sometimes even between different versions of the same flag.

Flags of the Nordic countries

Note that most of these flags are historical or have not been officially adopted and their use remains limited.

Flags of Germany

Nordic flags in Germany

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

were historically used to allude to the nation's Norse

Norsemen

Norsemen is used to refer to the group of people as a whole who spoke what is now called the Old Norse language belonging to the North Germanic branch of Indo-European languages, especially Norwegian, Icelandic, Faroese, Swedish and Danish in their earlier forms.The meaning of Norseman was "people...

heritage and Nordic origins. Nordic flag designs very similar to Denmark

Denmark

's, Sweden

Sweden

's, and Norway

Norway

's national flags were proposed as Germany's national flags in both 1919 and 1948, after World War I

World War I

World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...

and World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

, respectively. Today, the Nordic cross is a feature in some city and district flags or coats of arms.

Flags of the United Kingdom

Many locations in Scotland

Scotland

Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...

and England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

were colonized by Norwegian and Danish settlers and viking

Viking

The term Viking is customarily used to refer to the Norse explorers, warriors, merchants, and pirates who raided, traded, explored and settled in wide areas of Europe, Asia and the North Atlantic islands from the late 8th to the mid-11th century.These Norsemen used their famed longships to...

raiders during the 9th, 10th, and 11th centuries. Several locales, particularly in the Scottish islands, have flags or have had flag proposals based on the Nordic cross as a recognition of this Scandinavian heritage.

Flags of the Baltic states

Many territories around the Baltic Sea

Baltic Sea

The Baltic Sea is a brackish mediterranean sea located in Northern Europe, from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from 20°E to 26°E longitude. It is bounded by the Scandinavian Peninsula, the mainland of Europe, and the Danish islands. It drains into the Kattegat by way of the Øresund, the Great Belt and...

have begun using Nordic cross flags. Sometimes this is done to bolster the locality's association with the Scandinavian states (and, as with the proposed flags of Latvia and Estonia, to assert a Baltic identity over a long-standing affiliation with the Russia

Russia

Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...

n sphere of influence.)

Flags elsewhere that feature the Nordic Cross or similar design

Non-Nordic Cross flags of areas associated with the Nordic countries

Although different, the offset of the circles and the lines are reminiscent of the Nordic cross flags.

External links

Extensive compilation of official and non-official Nordic Cross flags (at Flags of the World).

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.