Chapter 108

Bulgaria:three equal horizontal bands of white (top), green, andred; the national emblem formerly on the hoist side of the whitestripe has been removed - it contained a rampant lion within awreath of wheat ears below a red five-pointed star and above aribbon bearing the dates 681 (first Bulgarian state established) and1944 (liberation from Nazi control)

Burkina Faso:two equal horizontal bands of red (top) and green witha yellow five-pointed star in the center; uses the popularpan-African colors of Ethiopia

Burma:red with a blue rectangle in the upper hoist-side cornerbearing, all in white, 14 five-pointed stars encircling a cogwheelcontaining a stalk of rice; the 14 stars represent the 14administrative divisions

Burundi:divided by a white diagonal cross into red panels (top andbottom) and green panels (hoist side and outer side) with a whitedisk superimposed at the center bearing three red six-pointed starsoutlined in green arranged in a triangular design (one star above,two stars below)

Cambodia:three horizontal bands of blue (top), red (double width),and blue with a white three-towered temple representing Angkor Watoutlined in black in the center of the red band

Cameroon:three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), red, andyellow with a yellow five-pointed star centered in the red band;uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia

Canada:three vertical bands of red (hoist side), white (doublewidth, square), and red with a red maple leaf centered in the whiteband

Cape Verde:three horizontal bands of light blue (top, doublewidth), white (with a horizontal red stripe in the middle third),and light blue; a circle of 10 yellow five-pointed stars is centeredon the hoist end of the red stripe and extends into the upper andlower blue bands

Cayman Islands:blue, with the flag of the UK in the upperhoist-side quadrant and the Caymanian coat of arms on a white diskcentered on the outer half of the flag; the coat of arms includes apineapple and turtle above a shield with three stars (representingthe three islands) and a scroll at the bottom bearing the motto HEHATH FOUNDED IT UPON THE SEAS

Central African Republic:four equal horizontal bands of blue (top),white, green, and yellow with a vertical red band in center; thereis a yellow five-pointed star on the hoist side of the blue band

Chad:three equal vertical bands of blue (hoist side), yellow, andred; similar to the flag of Romania; also similar to the flags ofAndorra and Moldova, both of which have a national coat of armscentered in the yellow band; design was based on the flag of France

Chile:two equal horizontal bands of white (top) and red; there is ablue square the same height as the white band at the hoist-side endof the white band; the square bears a white five-pointed star in thecenter; design was based on the US flag

China:red with a large yellow five-pointed star and four smalleryellow five-pointed stars (arranged in a vertical arc toward themiddle of the flag) in the upper hoist-side corner

Christmas Island:the flag of Australia is used

Clipperton Island:the flag of France is used

Cocos (Keeling) Islands:the flag of Australia is used

Colombia:three horizontal bands of yellow (top, double-width),blue, and red; similar to the flag of Ecuador, which is longer andbears the Ecuadorian coat of arms superimposed in the center

Comoros:green with a white crescent in the center of the field, itspoints facing downward; there are four white five-pointed starsplaced in a line between the points of the crescent; the crescent,stars, and color green are traditional symbols of Islam; the fourstars represent the four main islands of the archipelago - Mwali,Njazidja, Nzwani, and Mayotte (a territorial collectivity of France,but claimed by Comoros); the design, the most recent of several, isdescribed in the constitution approved by referendum on 7 June 1992

Congo, Democratic Republic of the:light blue with a large yellowfive-pointed star in the center and a columnar arrangement of sixsmall yellow five-pointed stars along the hoist side

Congo, Republic of the:divided diagonally from the lower hoist sideby a yellow band; the upper triangle (hoist side) is green and thelower triangle is red; uses the popular pan-African colors ofEthiopia

Cook Islands:blue, with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-sidequadrant and a large circle of 15 white five-pointed stars (one forevery island) centered in the outer half of the flag

Coral Sea Islands:the flag of Australia is used

Costa Rica:five horizontal bands of blue (top), white, red (doublewidth), white, and blue, with the coat of arms in a white disk onthe hoist side of the red band

Cote d'Ivoire:three equal vertical bands of orange (hoist side),white, and green; similar to the flag of Ireland, which is longerand has the colors reversed - green (hoist side), white, and orange;also similar to the flag of Italy, which is green (hoist side),white, and red; design was based on the flag of France

Croatia:red, white, and blue horizontal bands with Croatian coat ofarms (red and white checkered)

Cuba:five equal horizontal bands of blue (top and bottom)alternating with white; a red equilateral triangle based on thehoist side bears a white, five-pointed star in the center; designinfluenced by the US flag

Cyprus:white with a copper-colored silhouette of the island (thename Cyprus is derived from the Greek word for copper) above twogreen crossed olive branches in the center of the flag; the branchessymbolize the hope for peace and reconciliation between the Greekand Turkish communities

note: the Turkish Cypriot flag has a horizontal red stripe at thetop and bottom between which is a red crescent and red star on awhite field

Czech Republic:two equal horizontal bands of white (top) and redwith a blue isosceles triangle based on the hoist side (identical tothe flag of the former Czechoslovakia)

Denmark:red with a white cross that extends to the edges of theflag; the vertical part of the cross is shifted to the hoist side,and that design element of the Dannebrog (Danish flag) wassubsequently adopted by the other Nordic countries of Finland,Iceland, Norway, and Sweden

Djibouti:two equal horizontal bands of light blue (top) and lightgreen with a white isosceles triangle based on the hoist sidebearing a red five-pointed star in the center

Dominica:green, with a centered cross of three equal bands - thevertical part is yellow (hoist side), black, and white and thehorizontal part is yellow (top), black, and white; superimposed inthe center of the cross is a red disk bearing a sisserou parrotencircled by 10 green, five-pointed stars edged in yellow; the 10stars represent the 10 administrative divisions (parishes)

Dominican Republic:a centered white cross that extends to the edgesdivides the flag into four rectangles - the top ones are blue (hoistside) and red, and the bottom ones are red (hoist side) and blue; asmall coat of arms is at the center of the cross

Ecuador:three horizontal bands of yellow (top, double width), blue,and red with the coat of arms superimposed at the center of theflag; similar to the flag of Colombia which is shorter and does notbear a coat of arms

Egypt:three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and blackwith the national emblem (a shield superimposed on a golden eaglefacing the hoist side above a scroll bearing the name of the countryin Arabic) centered in the white band; similar to the flag of Yemen,which has a plain white band; also similar to the flag of Syria,which has two green stars, and to the flag of Iraq, which has threegreen stars (plus an Arabic inscription) in a horizontal linecentered in the white band

El Salvador:three equal horizontal bands of blue (top), white, andblue with the national coat of arms centered in the white band; thecoat of arms features a round emblem encircled by the wordsREPUBLICA DE EL SALVADOR EN LA AMERICA CENTRAL; similar to the flagof Nicaragua, which has a different coat of arms centered in thewhite band - it features a triangle encircled by the words REPUBLICADE NICARAGUA on top and AMERICA CENTRAL on the bottom; also similarto the flag of Honduras, which has five blue stars arranged in an Xpattern centered in the white band

Equatorial Guinea:three equal horizontal bands of green (top),white, and red with a blue isosceles triangle based on the hoistside and the coat of arms centered in the white band; the coat ofarms has six yellow six-pointed stars (representing the mainland andfive offshore islands) above a gray shield bearing a silk-cottontree and below which is a scroll with the motto UNIDAD, PAZ,JUSTICIA (Unity, Peace, Justice)

Eritrea:red isosceles triangle (based on the hoist side) dividingthe flag into two right triangles; the upper triangle is green, thelower one is blue; a gold wreath encircling a gold olive branch iscentered on the hoist side of the red triangle

Estonia:pre-1940 flag restored by Supreme Soviet in May 1990 -three equal horizontal bands of blue (top), black, and white

Ethiopia:three equal horizontal bands of green (top), yellow, andred with a yellow pentagram and single yellow rays emanating fromthe angles between the points on a light blue disk centered on thethree bands; Ethiopia is the oldest independent country in Africa,and the colors of her flag were so often adopted by other Africancountries upon independence that they became known as thepan-African colors

Europa Island:the flag of France is used

Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas): blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Falkland Island coat of arms in a white disk centered on the outer half of the flag; the coat of arms contains a white ram (sheep raising is the major economic activity) above the sailing ship Desire (whose crew discovered the islands) with a scroll at the bottom bearing the motto DESIRE THE RIGHT

Faroe Islands:white with a red cross outlined in blue that extendsto the edges of the flag; the vertical part of the cross is shiftedto the hoist side in the style of the Dannebrog (Danish flag)

Fiji:light blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-sidequadrant and the Fijian shield centered on the outer half of theflag; the shield depicts a yellow lion above a white field quarteredby the cross of Saint George featuring stalks of sugarcane, a palmtree, bananas, and a white dove

Finland:white with a blue cross that extends to the edges of theflag; the vertical part of the cross is shifted to the hoist side inthe style of the Dannebrog (Danish flag)

France:three equal vertical bands of blue (hoist side), white, andred; known as the French Tricouleur (Tricolor); the design and/orcolors are similar to a number of other flags, including those ofBelgium, Chad, Ireland, Cote d'Ivoire, Luxembourg, and Netherlands;the official flag for all French dependent areas

French Guiana:the flag of France is used

French Polynesia:two narrow red horizontal bands encase a widewhite band; centered on the white band is a disk with blue and whitewave pattern on the lower half and gold and white ray pattern on theupper half; a stylized red, blue and white ship rides on the wavepattern; the French flag is used for official occasions

French Southern and Antarctic Lands:the flag of France is used

Gabon:three equal horizontal bands of green (top), yellow, and blue

Gambia, The:three equal horizontal bands of red (top), blue withwhite edges, and green

Georgia:maroon field with small rectangle in upper hoist sidecorner; rectangle divided horizontally with black on top, white below

Germany:three equal horizontal bands of black (top), red, and gold

Ghana:three equal horizontal bands of red (top), yellow, and greenwith a large black five-pointed star centered in the yellow band;uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia; similar to the flagof Bolivia, which has a coat of arms centered in the yellow band

Gibraltar:two horizontal bands of white (top, double width) and redwith a three-towered red castle in the center of the white band;hanging from the castle gate is a gold key centered in the red band

Glorioso Islands:the flag of France is used

Greece:nine equal horizontal stripes of blue alternating withwhite; there is a blue square in the upper hoist-side corner bearinga white cross; the cross symbolizes Greek Orthodoxy, the establishedreligion of the country

Greenland:two equal horizontal bands of white (top) and red with alarge disk slightly to the hoist side of center - the top half ofthe disk is red, the bottom half is white

Grenada:a rectangle divided diagonally into yellow triangles (topand bottom) and green triangles (hoist side and outer side), with ared border around the flag; there are seven yellow, five-pointedstars with three centered in the top red border, three centered inthe bottom red border, and one on a red disk superimposed at thecenter of the flag; there is also a symbolic nutmeg pod on thehoist-side triangle (Grenada is the world's second-largest producerof nutmeg, after Indonesia); the seven stars represent the sevenadministrative divisions

Guadeloupe:three horizontal bands, a narrow green band (top), awide red band, and a narrow green band; the green bands areseparated from the red band by two narrow white stripes; a goldfive-pointed star is centered in the red band toward the hoist side;the flag of France is used for official occasions

Guam:territorial flag is dark blue with a narrow red border on allfour sides; centered is a red-bordered, pointed, vertical ellipsecontaining a beach scene, outrigger canoe with sail, and a palm treewith the word GUAM superimposed in bold red letters; US flag is thenational flag

Guatemala:three equal vertical bands of light blue (hoist side),white, and light blue with the coat of arms centered in the whiteband; the coat of arms includes a green and red quetzal (thenational bird) and a scroll bearing the inscription LIBERTAD 15 DESEPTIEMBRE DE 1821 (the original date of independence from Spain)all superimposed on a pair of crossed rifles and a pair of crossedswords and framed by a wreath

Guernsey:white with the red cross of Saint George (patron saint ofEngland) extending to the edges of the flag and a yellow equal-armedcross of William the Conqueror superimposed on the Saint George cross

Guinea:three equal vertical bands of red (hoist side), yellow, andgreen; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia; similar tothe flag of Rwanda, which has a large black letter R centered in theyellow band

Guinea-Bissau:two equal horizontal bands of yellow (top) and greenwith a vertical red band on the hoist side; there is a blackfive-pointed star centered in the red band; uses the popularpan-African colors of Ethiopia

Guyana:green, with a red isosceles triangle (based on the hoistside) superimposed on a long, yellow arrowhead; there is a narrow,black border between the red and yellow, and a narrow, white borderbetween the yellow and the green

Haiti:two equal horizontal bands of blue (top) and red with acentered white rectangle bearing the coat of arms, which contains apalm tree flanked by flags and two cannons above a scroll bearingthe motto L'UNION FAIT LA FORCE (Union Makes Strength)

Heard Island and McDonald Islands:the flag of Australia is used

Holy See (Vatican City):two vertical bands of yellow (hoist side)and white with the crossed keys of Saint Peter and the papal mitercentered in the white band

Honduras:three equal horizontal bands of blue (top), white, andblue with five blue five-pointed stars arranged in an X patterncentered in the white band; the stars represent the members of theformer Federal Republic of Central America - Costa Rica, ElSalvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua; similar to the flag ofEl Salvador, which features a round emblem encircled by the wordsREPUBLICA DE EL SALVADOR EN LA AMERICA CENTRAL centered in the whiteband; also similar to the flag of Nicaragua, which features atriangle encircled by the word REPUBLICA DE NICARAGUA on top andAMERICA CENTRAL on the bottom, centered in the white band

Hong Kong:red with a stylized, white, five-petal bauhinia flower inthe center

Howland Island:the flag of the US is used

Hungary:three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and green

Iceland:blue with a red cross outlined in white that extends to theedges of the flag; the vertical part of the cross is shifted to thehoist side in the style of the Dannebrog (Danish flag)

India:three equal horizontal bands of orange (top), white, andgreen with a blue chakra (24-spoked wheel) centered in the whiteband; similar to the flag of Niger, which has a small orange diskcentered in the white band

Indonesia:two equal horizontal bands of red (top) and white;similar to the flag of Monaco, which is shorter; also similar to theflag of Poland, which is white (top) and red

Iran:three equal horizontal bands of green (top), white, and red;the national emblem (a stylized representation of the word Allah) inred is centered in the white band; ALLAH AKBAR (God is Great) inwhite Arabic script is repeated 11 times along the bottom edge ofthe green band and 11 times along the top edge of the red band

Iraq:three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and blackwith three green five-pointed stars in a horizontal line centered inthe white band; the phrase ALLAHU AKBAR (God is Great) in greenArabic script - Allahu to the right of the middle star and Akbar tothe left of the middle star - was added in January 1991 during thePersian Gulf crisis; similar to the flag of Syria which has twostars but no script and the flag of Yemen which has a plain whiteband; also similar to the flag of Egypt which has a symbolic eaglecentered in the white band

Ireland:three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), white,and orange; similar to the flag of Cote d'Ivoire, which is shorterand has the colors reversed - orange (hoist side), white, and green;also similar to the flag of Italy, which is shorter and has colorsof green (hoist side), white, and red

Israel:white with a blue hexagram (six-pointed linear star) knownas the Magen David (Shield of David) centered between two equalhorizontal blue bands near the top and bottom edges of the flag

Italy:three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, andred; similar to the flag of Ireland, which is longer and is green(hoist side), white, and orange; also similar to the flag of theCote d'Ivoire, which has the colors reversed - orange (hoist side),white, and green

note: inspired by the French flag brought to Italy by Napoleon in1797

Jamaica:diagonal yellow cross divides the flag into four triangles- green (top and bottom) and black (hoist side and outer side)

Jan Mayen:the flag of Norway is used

Japan:white with a large red disk (representing the sun withoutrays) in the center

Jarvis Island:the flag of the US is used

Jersey:white with a diagonal red cross extending to the corners ofthe flag and in the upper quadrant, surmounted by a yellow crown, ared shield holding the three lions of England in yellow

Johnston Atoll:the flag of the US is used

Jordan:three equal horizontal bands of black (top, the AbbassidCaliphate of Islam), white (the Ummayyad Caliphate of Islam), andgreen (the Fatimid Caliphate of Islam) with a red isosceles triangle(representing the Great Arab Revolt of 1916) based on the hoist sidebearing a small white seven-pointed star symbolizing the sevenverses of the opening Sura (Al-Fatiha) of the Holy Koran; the sevenpoints on the star represent faith in One God, humanity, nationalspirit, humility, social justice, virtue, and aspirations

Juan de Nova Island:the flag of France is used

Kazakhstan:sky blue background representing the endless sky and agold sun with 32 rays soaring above a golden steppe eagle in thecenter; on the hoist side is a "national ornamentation" in gold

Kenya:three equal horizontal bands of black (top), red, and green;the red band is edged in white; a large warrior's shield coveringcrossed spears is superimposed at the center

Kingman Reef:the flag of the US is used

Kiribati:the upper half is red with a yellow frigate bird flyingover a yellow rising sun, and the lower half is blue with threehorizontal wavy white stripes to represent the ocean

Korea, North:three horizontal bands of blue (top), red (triplewidth), and blue; the red band is edged in white; on the hoist sideof the red band is a white disk with a red five-pointed star

Korea, South:white with a red (top) and blue yin-yang symbol in thecenter; there is a different black trigram from the ancient I Ching(Book of Changes) in each corner of the white field

Kuwait:three equal horizontal bands of green (top), white, and redwith a black trapezoid based on the hoist side

Kyrgyzstan:red field with a yellow sun in the center having 40 raysrepresenting the 40 Kirghiz tribes; on the obverse side the rays runcounterclockwise, on the reverse, clockwise; in the center of thesun is a red ring crossed by two sets of three lines, a stylizedrepresentation of the roof of the traditional Kirghiz yurt

Laos:three horizontal bands of red (top), blue (double width), andred with a large white disk centered in the blue band

Latvia:three horizontal bands of maroon (top), white (half-width),and maroon

Lebanon:three horizontal bands of red (top), white (double width),and red with a green and brown cedar tree centered in the white band

Lesotho:divided diagonally from the lower hoist side corner; theupper half is white, bearing the brown silhouette of a large shieldwith crossed spear and club; the lower half is a diagonal blue bandwith a green triangle in the corner

Liberia:11 equal horizontal stripes of red (top and bottom)alternating with white; there is a white five-pointed star on a bluesquare in the upper hoist-side corner; the design was based on theUS flag

Libya:plain green; green is the traditional color of Islam (thestate religion)

Liechtenstein:two equal horizontal bands of blue (top) and red witha gold crown on the hoist side of the blue band

Lithuania:three equal horizontal bands of yellow (top), green, andred

Luxembourg:three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, andlight blue; similar to the flag of the Netherlands, which uses adarker blue and is shorter; design was based on the flag of France

Macau:light green with a lotus flower above a stylized bridge andwater in white, beneath an arc of five gold, five-pointed stars: onelarge in center of arc and four smaller

Macedonia, The Former Yugoslav Republic of:a rising yellow sun witheight rays extending to the edges of the red field

Madagascar:two equal horizontal bands of red (top) and green with avertical white band of the same width on hoist side

Malawi:three equal horizontal bands of black (top), red, and greenwith a radiant, rising, red sun centered in the black band

Malaysia:14 equal horizontal stripes of red (top) alternating withwhite (bottom); there is a blue rectangle in the upper hoist-sidecorner bearing a yellow crescent and a yellow fourteen-pointed star;the crescent and the star are traditional symbols of Islam; thedesign was based on the flag of the US

Maldives:red with a large green rectangle in the center bearing avertical white crescent; the closed side of the crescent is on thehoist side of the flag

Mali:three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), yellow, andred; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia

Malta:two equal vertical bands of white (hoist side) and red; inthe upper hoist-side corner is a representation of the Saint GeorgeCross, edged in red

Man, Isle of:red with the Three Legs of Man emblem (Trinacria), inthe center; the three legs are joined at the thigh and bent at theknee; in order to have the toes pointing clockwise on both sides ofthe flag, a two-sided emblem is used

Marshall Islands:blue with two stripes radiating from the lowerhoist-side corner - orange (top) and white; there is a white starwith four large rays and 20 small rays on the hoist side above thetwo stripes

Martinique:a light blue background is divided into four quadrantsby a white cross; in the center of each rectangle is a white snake;the flag of France is used for official occasions

Mauritania:green with a yellow five-pointed star above a yellow,horizontal crescent; the closed side of the crescent is down; thecrescent, star, and color green are traditional symbols of Islam

Mauritius:four equal horizontal bands of red (top), blue, yellow,and green

Mayotte:the flag of France is used

Mexico:three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, andred; the coat of arms (an eagle perched on a cactus with a snake inits beak) is centered in the white band

Micronesia, Federated States of:light blue with four whitefive-pointed stars centered; the stars are arranged in a diamondpattern

Midway Islands:the flag of the US is used

Moldova:same color scheme as Romania - three equal vertical bandsof blue (hoist side), yellow, and red; emblem in center of flag isof a Roman eagle of gold outlined in black with a red beak andtalons carrying a yellow cross in its beak and a green olive branchin its right talons and a yellow scepter in its left talons; on itsbreast is a shield divided horizontally red over blue with astylized ox head, star, rose, and crescent all in black-outlinedyellow

Monaco:two equal horizontal bands of red (top) and white; similarto the flag of Indonesia which is longer and the flag of Polandwhich is white (top) and red

Mongolia:three equal, vertical bands of red (hoist side), blue, andred; centered on the hoist-side red band in yellow is the nationalemblem ("soyombo" - a columnar arrangement of abstract and geometricrepresentation for fire, sun, moon, earth, water, and the yin-yangsymbol)

Montserrat:blue, with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-sidequadrant and the Montserratian coat of arms centered in the outerhalf of the flag; the coat of arms features a woman standing besidea yellow harp with her arm around a black cross

Morocco:red with a green pentacle (five-pointed, linear star) knownas Solomon's seal in the center of the flag; green is thetraditional color of Islam

Mozambique:three equal horizontal bands of green (top), black, andyellow with a red isosceles triangle based on the hoist side; theblack band is edged in white; centered in the triangle is a yellowfive-pointed star bearing a crossed rifle and hoe in blacksuperimposed on an open white book

Namibia:a large blue triangle with a yellow sunburst fills theupper left section and an equal green triangle (solid) fills thelower right section; the triangles are separated by a red stripethat is contrasted by two narrow white-edge borders

Nauru:blue with a narrow, horizontal, yellow stripe across thecenter and a large white 12-pointed star below the stripe on thehoist side; the star indicates the country's location in relation tothe Equator (the yellow stripe) and the 12 points symbolize the 12original tribes of Nauru

Navassa Island:the flag of the US is used

Nepal:red with a blue border around the unique shape of twooverlapping right triangles; the smaller, upper triangle bears awhite stylized moon and the larger, lower triangle bears a white12-pointed sun

Netherlands:three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, andblue; similar to the flag of Luxembourg, which uses a lighter blueand is longer

Netherlands Antilles:white, with a horizontal blue stripe in thecenter superimposed on a vertical red band, also centered; fivewhite, five-pointed stars are arranged in an oval pattern in thecenter of the blue band; the five stars represent the five mainislands of Bonaire, Curacao, Saba, Sint Eustatius, and Sint Maarten

New Caledonia:the flag of France is used

New Zealand:blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-sidequadrant with four red five-pointed stars edged in white centered inthe outer half of the flag; the stars represent the Southern Crossconstellation

Nicaragua:three equal horizontal bands of blue (top), white, andblue with the national coat of arms centered in the white band; thecoat of arms features a triangle encircled by the words REPUBLICA DENICARAGUA on the top and AMERICA CENTRAL on the bottom; similar tothe flag of El Salvador, which features a round emblem encircled bythe words REPUBLICA DE EL SALVADOR EN LA AMERICA CENTRAL centered inthe white band; also similar to the flag of Honduras, which has fiveblue stars arranged in an X pattern centered in the white band

Niger:three equal horizontal bands of orange (top), white, andgreen with a small orange disk (representing the sun) centered inthe white band; similar to the flag of India, which has a bluespoked wheel centered in the white band

Nigeria:three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), white,and green

Niue:yellow with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-sidequadrant; the flag of the UK bears five yellow five-pointed stars -a large one on a blue disk in the center and a smaller one on eacharm of the bold red cross

Norfolk Island:three vertical bands of green (hoist side), white,and green with a large green Norfolk Island pine tree centered inthe slightly wider white band

Northern Mariana Islands: blue, with a white, five-pointed star superimposed on the gray silhouette of a latte stone (a traditional foundation stone used in building) in the center, surrounded by a wreath

Norway:red with a blue cross outlined in white that extends to theedges of the flag; the vertical part of the cross is shifted to thehoist side in the style of the Dannebrog (Danish flag)

Oman:three horizontal bands of white, red, and green of equal widthwith a broad, vertical, red band on the hoist side; the nationalemblem (a khanjar dagger in its sheath superimposed on two crossedswords in scabbards) in white is centered at the top of the verticalband

Pakistan:green with a vertical white band (symbolizing the role ofreligious minorities) on the hoist side; a large white crescent andstar are centered in the green field; the crescent, star, and colorgreen are traditional symbols of Islam

Palau:light blue with a large yellow disk (representing the moon)shifted slightly to the hoist side

Palmyra Atoll:the flag of the US is used

Panama:divided into four, equal rectangles; the top quadrants arewhite (hoist side) with a blue five-pointed star in the center andplain red; the bottom quadrants are plain blue (hoist side) andwhite with a red five-pointed star in the center

Papua New Guinea:divided diagonally from upper hoist-side corner;the upper triangle is red with a soaring yellow bird of paradisecentered; the lower triangle is black with five, white, five-pointedstars of the Southern Cross constellation centered

Paraguay:three equal, horizontal bands of red (top), white, andblue with an emblem centered in the white band; unusual flag in thatthe emblem is different on each side; the obverse (hoist side at theleft) bears the national coat of arms (a yellow five-pointed starwithin a green wreath capped by the words REPUBLICA DEL PARAGUAY,all within two circles); the reverse (hoist side at the right) bearsthe seal of the treasury (a yellow lion below a red Cap of Libertyand the words Paz y Justicia (Peace and Justice) capped by the wordsREPUBLICA DEL PARAGUAY, all within two circles)

Peru:three equal, vertical bands of red (hoist side), white, andred with the coat of arms centered in the white band; the coat ofarms features a shield bearing a llama, cinchona tree (the source ofquinine), and a yellow cornucopia spilling out gold coins, allframed by a green wreath

Philippines:two equal horizontal bands of blue (top) and red with awhite equilateral triangle based on the hoist side; in the center ofthe triangle is a yellow sun with eight primary rays (eachcontaining three individual rays) and in each corner of the triangleis a small yellow five-pointed star

Pitcairn Islands:blue with the flag of the UK in the upperhoist-side quadrant and the Pitcairn Islander coat of arms centeredon the outer half of the flag; the coat of arms is yellow, green,and light blue with a shield featuring a yellow anchor

Poland:two equal horizontal bands of white (top) and red; similarto the flags of Indonesia and Monaco which are red (top) and white

Portugal:two vertical bands of green (hoist side, two-fifths) andred (three-fifths) with the Portuguese coat of arms centered on thedividing line

Puerto Rico:five equal horizontal bands of red (top and bottom)alternating with white; a blue isosceles triangle based on the hoistside bears a large, white, five-pointed star in the center; designinfluenced by the US flag, but based on the Cuban flag

Qatar:maroon with a broad white serrated band (nine white points)on the hoist side

Reunion:the flag of France is used

Romania:three equal vertical bands of blue (hoist side), yellow,and red; the national coat of arms that used to be centered in theyellow band has been removed; now similar to the flag of Chad, alsoresembles the flags of Andorra and Moldova

Russia:three equal horizontal bands of white (top), blue, and red

Rwanda:three equal vertical bands of red (hoist side), yellow, andgreen with a large black letter R centered in the yellow band; usesthe popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia; similar to the flag ofGuinea, which has a plain yellow band

Saint Helena:blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-sidequadrant and the Saint Helenian shield centered on the outer half ofthe flag; the shield features a rocky coastline and three-mastedsailing ship

Saint Kitts and Nevis:divided diagonally from the lower hoist sideby a broad black band bearing two white, five-pointed stars; theblack band is edged in yellow; the upper triangle is green, thelower triangle is red

Saint Lucia:blue, with a gold isosceles triangle below a blackarrowhead; the upper edges of the arrowhead have a white border

Saint Pierre and Miquelon:a yellow sailing ship facing the hoistside rides on a dark blue background with a black wave line underthe ship; on the hoist side, a vertical band is divided into threeparts: the top part is red with a green diagonal cross extending tothe corners overlaid by a white cross dividing the square into foursections; the middle part has a white background with an erminepattern; the third part has a red background with two stylizedyellow lions outlined in black, one on top of the other; the flag ofFrance is used for official occasions

Saint Vincent and the Grenadines:three vertical bands of blue(hoist side), gold (double width), and green; the gold band bearsthree green diamonds arranged in a V pattern

Samoa:red with a blue rectangle in the upper hoist-side quadrantbearing five white five-pointed stars representing the SouthernCross constellation

San Marino:two equal horizontal bands of white (top) and light bluewith the national coat of arms superimposed in the center; the coatof arms has a shield (featuring three towers on three peaks) flankedby a wreath, below a crown and above a scroll bearing the wordLIBERTAS (Liberty)

Sao Tome and Principe:three horizontal bands of green (top), yellow(double width), and green with two black five-pointed stars placedside by side in the center of the yellow band and a red isoscelestriangle based on the hoist side; uses the popular pan-Africancolors of Ethiopia

Saudi Arabia:green with large white Arabic script (that may betranslated as There is no God but God; Muhammad is the Messenger ofGod) above a white horizontal saber (the tip points to the hoistside); green is the traditional color of Islam

Senegal:three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), yellow,and red with a small green five-pointed star centered in the yellowband; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia

Seychelles:five oblique bands of blue (hoist side), yellow, red,white, and green (bottom) radiating from the bottom of the hoist side

Sierra Leone:three equal horizontal bands of light green (top),white, and light blue

Singapore:two equal horizontal bands of red (top) and white; nearthe hoist side of the red band, there is a vertical, white crescent(closed portion is toward the hoist side) partially enclosing fivewhite five-pointed stars arranged in a circle

Slovakia:three equal horizontal bands of white (top), blue, and redsuperimposed with the Slovak cross in a shield centered on the hoistside; the cross is white centered on a background of red and blue

Slovenia:three equal horizontal bands of white (top), blue, andred, with the Slovenian seal (a shield with the image of Triglav,Slovenia's highest peak, in white against a blue background at thecenter; beneath it are two wavy blue lines depicting seas andrivers, and above it are three six-pointed stars arranged in aninverted triangle which are taken from the coat of arms of theCounts of Celje, the great Slovene dynastic house of the late 14thand early 15th centuries); the seal is located in the upper hoistside of the flag centered in the white and blue bands

Solomon Islands:divided diagonally by a thin yellow stripe from thelower hoist-side corner; the upper triangle (hoist side) is bluewith five white five-pointed stars arranged in an X pattern; thelower triangle is green

Somalia:light blue with a large white five-pointed star in thecenter; design based on the flag of the UN (Italian Somaliland was aUN trust territory)

South Africa:two equal width horizontal bands of red (top) and blueseparated by a central green band which splits into a horizontal Y,the arms of which end at the corners of the hoist side; the Yembraces a black isosceles triangle from which the arms areseparated by narrow yellow bands; the red and blue bands areseparated from the green band and its arms by narrow white stripes

note: prior to 26 April 1994, the flag was actually four flags in one - three miniature flags reproduced in the center of the white band of the former flag of the Netherlands, which had three equal horizontal bands of orange (top), white, and blue; the miniature flags were a vertically hanging flag of the old Orange Free State with a horizontal flag of the UK adjoining on the hoist side and a horizontal flag of the old Transvaal Republic adjoining on the other side

South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands: the flag of the UK is used

Spain:three horizontal bands of red (top), yellow (double width),and red with the national coat of arms on the hoist side of theyellow band; the coat of arms includes the royal seal framed by thePillars of Hercules, which are the two promontories (Gibraltar andCeuta) on either side of the eastern end of the Strait of Gibraltar

Sri Lanka:yellow with two panels; the smaller hoist-side panel hastwo equal vertical bands of green (hoist side) and orange; the otherpanel is a large dark red rectangle with a yellow lion holding asword, and there is a yellow bo leaf in each corner; the yellowfield appears as a border that goes around the entire flag andextends between the two panels

Sudan:three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and blackwith a green isosceles triangle based on the hoist side

Suriname:five horizontal bands of green (top, double width), white,red (quadruple width), white, and green (double width); there is alarge, yellow, five-pointed star centered in the red band

Svalbard:the flag of Norway is used

Swaziland:three horizontal bands of blue (top), red (triple width),and blue; the red band is edged in yellow; centered in the red bandis a large black and white shield covering two spears and a staffdecorated with feather tassels, all placed horizontally

Sweden:blue with a yellow cross that extends to the edges of theflag; the vertical part of the cross is shifted to the hoist side inthe style of the Dannebrog (Danish flag)

Switzerland:red square with a bold, equilateral white cross in thecenter that does not extend to the edges of the flag

Syria:three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and black,with two small green five-pointed stars in a horizontal linecentered in the white band; similar to the flag of Yemen, which hasa plain white band, and of Iraq, which has three green stars (plusan Arabic inscription) in a horizontal line centered in the whiteband; also similar to the flag of Egypt, which has a heraldic eaglecentered in the white band

Tajikistan:three horizontal stripes of red (top), a wider stripe ofwhite, and green; a gold crown surmounted by seven gold,five-pointed stars is located in the center of the white stripe

Tanzania:divided diagonally by a yellow-edged black band from thelower hoist-side corner; the upper triangle (hoist side) is greenand the lower triangle is blue

Thailand:five horizontal bands of red (top), white, blue (doublewidth), white, and red

Togo:five equal horizontal bands of green (top and bottom)alternating with yellow; there is a white five-pointed star on a redsquare in the upper hoist-side corner; uses the popular pan-Africancolors of Ethiopia

Tokelau:the flag of New Zealand is used

Tonga:red with a bold red cross on a white rectangle in the upperhoist-side corner

Trinidad and Tobago:red with a white-edged black diagonal band fromthe upper hoist side

Tromelin Island:the flag of France is used

Tunisia:red with a white disk in the center bearing a red crescentnearly encircling a red five-pointed star; the crescent and star aretraditional symbols of Islam

Turkey:red with a vertical white crescent (the closed portion istoward the hoist side) and white five-pointed star centered justoutside the crescent opening

Turkmenistan:green field with a vertical red stripe near the hoistside, containing five carpet guls (designs used in producing rugs)stacked above two crossed olive branches similar to the olivebranches on the UN flag; a white crescent moon and five white starsappear in the upper corner of the field just to the fly side of thered stripe

Turks and Caicos Islands:blue, with the flag of the UK in the upperhoist-side quadrant and the colonial shield centered on the outerhalf of the flag; the shield is yellow and contains a conch shell,lobster, and cactus

Tuvalu:light blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-sidequadrant; the outer half of the flag represents a map of the countrywith nine yellow five-pointed stars symbolizing the nine islands

Uganda:six equal horizontal bands of black (top), yellow, red,black, yellow, and red; a white disk is superimposed at the centerand depicts a red-crested crane (the national symbol) facing thehoist side

Ukraine:two equal horizontal bands of azure (top) and golden yellowrepresent grainfields under a blue sky

United Arab Emirates:three equal horizontal bands of green (top),white, and black with a thicker vertical red band on the hoist side

United Kingdom:blue with the red cross of Saint George (patronsaint of England) edged in white superimposed on the diagonal redcross of Saint Patrick (patron saint of Ireland) and which issuperimposed on the diagonal white cross of Saint Andrew (patronsaint of Scotland); known as the Union Flag or Union Jack; thedesign and colors (especially the Blue Ensign) have been the basisfor a number of other flags including other Commonwealth countriesand their constituent states or provinces, as well as Britishoverseas territories

United States:thirteen equal horizontal stripes of red (top andbottom) alternating with white; there is a blue rectangle in theupper hoist-side corner bearing 50 small, white, five-pointed starsarranged in nine offset horizontal rows of six stars (top andbottom) alternating with rows of five stars; the 50 stars representthe 50 states, the 13 stripes represent the 13 original colonies;known as Old Glory; the design and colors have been the basis for anumber of other flags, including Chile, Liberia, Malaysia, andPuerto Rico

Uruguay:nine equal horizontal stripes of white (top and bottom)alternating with blue; there is a white square in the upperhoist-side corner with a yellow sun bearing a human face known asthe Sun of May and 16 rays alternately triangular and wavy

Uzbekistan:three equal horizontal bands of blue (top), white, andgreen separated by red fimbriations with a white crescent moon and12 white stars in the upper hoist-side quadrant

Vanuatu:two equal horizontal bands of red (top) and green with ablack isosceles triangle (based on the hoist side) all separated bya black-edged yellow stripe in the shape of a horizontal Y (the twopoints of the Y face the hoist side and enclose the triangle);centered in the triangle is a boar's tusk encircling two crossednamele leaves, all in yellow

Venezuela:three equal horizontal bands of yellow (top), blue, andred with the coat of arms on the hoist side of the yellow band andan arc of seven white five-pointed stars centered in the blue band

Vietnam:red with a large yellow five-pointed star in the center

Virgin Islands:white, with a modified US coat of arms in the centerbetween the large blue initials V and I; the coat of arms shows ayellow eagle holding an olive branch in one talon and three arrowsin the other with a superimposed shield of vertical red and whitestripes below a blue panel

Wake Island:the flag of the US is used

Wallis and Futuna:a large white modified Maltese cross centered ona red background; the flag of France outlined in white on two sidesis in the upper hoist quadrant; the flag of France is used forofficial occasions

Yemen:three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and black;similar to the flag of Syria which has two green stars and of Iraqwhich has three green stars (plus an Arabic inscription) in ahorizontal line centered in the white band; also similar to the flagof Egypt which has a heraldic eagle centered in the white band

Yugoslavia:three equal horizontal bands of blue (top), white, andred

Zambia:green with a panel of three vertical bands of red (hoistside), black, and orange below a soaring orange eagle, on the outeredge of the flag

Zimbabwe:seven equal horizontal bands of green, yellow, red, black,red, yellow, and green with a white isosceles triangle edged inblack with its base on the hoist side; a yellow Zimbabwe bird issuperimposed on a red five-pointed star in the center of the triangle

Taiwan:red with a dark blue rectangle in the upper hoist-sidecorner bearing a white sun with 12 triangular rays

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Afghanistan:purchasing power parity - $21 billion (2000 est.)

Albania:purchasing power parity - $10.5 billion (2000 est.)

Algeria:purchasing power parity - $171 billion (2000 est.)

American Samoa:purchasing power parity - $500 million (2000 est.)

Andorra:purchasing power parity - $1.2 billion (1996 est.)

Angola:purchasing power parity - $10.1 billion (2000 est.)

Anguilla:purchasing power parity - $96 million (1999 est.)

Antigua and Barbuda: purchasing power parity - $533 million (1999 est.)

Argentina:purchasing power parity - $476 billion (2000 est.)

Armenia:purchasing power parity - $10 billion (2000 est.)

Aruba:purchasing power parity - $2 billion (2000 est.)

Australia:purchasing power parity - $445.8 billion (2000 est.)

Austria:purchasing power parity - $203 billion (2000 est.)

Azerbaijan:purchasing power parity - $23.5 billion (2000 est.)

Bahamas, The:purchasing power parity - $4.5 billion (2000 est.)

Bahrain:purchasing power parity - $10.1 billion (2000 est.)

Bangladesh:purchasing power parity - $203 billion (2000 est.)

Barbados:purchasing power parity - $4 billion (2000 est.)

Belarus:purchasing power parity - $78.8 billion (2000 est.)

Belgium:purchasing power parity - $259.2 billion (2000 est.)

Belize:purchasing power parity - $790 million (2000 est.)

Benin:purchasing power parity - $6.6 billion (2000 est.)

Bermuda:purchasing power parity - $2.1 billion (2000 est.)

Bhutan:purchasing power parity - $2.3 billion (2000 est.)

Bolivia:purchasing power parity - $20.9 billion (2000 est.)

Bosnia and Herzegovina: purchasing power parity - $6.5 billion (2000 est.)

Botswana:purchasing power parity - $10.4 billion (2000 est.)

Brazil:purchasing power parity - $1.13 trillion (2000 est.)

British Virgin Islands: purchasing power parity - $311 million (2000 est.)

Brunei:purchasing power parity - $5.9 billion (2000 est.)

Bulgaria:purchasing power parity - $48 billion (2000 est.)

Burkina Faso:purchasing power parity - $12 billion (2000 est.)

Burma:purchasing power parity - $63.7 billion (2000 est.)

Burundi:purchasing power parity - $4.4 billion (2000 est.)

Cambodia:purchasing power parity - $16.1 billion (2000 est.)

Cameroon:purchasing power parity - $26 billion (2000 est.)

Canada:purchasing power parity - $774.7 billion (2000 est.)

Cape Verde:purchasing power parity - $670 million (2000 est.)

Cayman Islands:purchasing power parity - $930 million (1997 est.)

Central African Republic: purchasing power parity - $6.1 billion (2000 est.)

Chad:purchasing power parity - $8.1 billion (2000 est.)

Chile:purchasing power parity - $153.1 billion (2000 est.)

China:purchasing power parity - $4.5 trillion (2000 est.)

Christmas Island:purchasing power parity - $NA

Cocos (Keeling) Islands:purchasing power parity - $NA

Colombia:purchasing power parity - $250 billion (2000 est.)

Comoros:purchasing power parity - $419 million (2000 est.)

Congo, Democratic Republic of the:purchasing power parity - $31billion (2000 est.)

Congo, Republic of the:purchasing power parity - $3.1 billion (2000est.)

Cook Islands:purchasing power parity - $100 million (1999 est.)

Costa Rica:purchasing power parity - $25 billion (2000 est.)

Cote d'Ivoire:purchasing power parity - $26.2 billion (2000 est.)

Croatia:purchasing power parity - $24.9 billion (2000 est.)

Cuba:purchasing power parity - $19.2 billion (2000 est.)

Cyprus:Greek Cypriot area: purchasing power parity - $9.7 billion(2000 est.); Turkish Cypriot area: purchasing power parity - $830million (1999 est.)

Czech Republic:purchasing power parity - $132.4 billion (2000 est.)

Denmark:purchasing power parity - $136.2 billion (2000 est.)

Djibouti:purchasing power parity - $574 million (2000 est.)

Dominica:purchasing power parity - $290 million (2000 est.)

Dominican Republic: purchasing power parity - $48.3 billion (2000 est.)

Ecuador:purchasing power parity - $37.2 billion (2000 est.)

Egypt:purchasing power parity - $247 billion (2000 est.)

El Salvador:purchasing power parity - $24 billion (2000 est.)

Equatorial Guinea:purchasing power parity - $960 million (2000 est.)

Eritrea:purchasing power parity - $2.9 billion (2000 est.)

Estonia:purchasing power parity - $14.7 billion (2000 est.)

Ethiopia:purchasing power parity - $39.2 billion (2000 est.)

Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas): purchasing power parity - $52 million (FY95/96 est.)

Faroe Islands:purchasing power parity - $910 million (2000 est.)

Fiji:purchasing power parity - $5.9 billion (1999 est.)

Finland:purchasing power parity - $118.3 billion (2000 est.)

France:purchasing power parity - $1.448 trillion (2000 est.)

French Guiana:purchasing power parity - $1 billion (1998 est.)

French Polynesia:purchasing power parity - $2.6 billion (1997 est.)

Gabon:purchasing power parity - $7.7 billion (2000 est.)

Gambia, The:purchasing power parity - $1.5 billion (2000 est.)

Gaza Strip:purchasing power parity - $1.11 billion (2000 est.)

Georgia:purchasing power parity - $22.8 billion (2000 est.)

Germany:purchasing power parity - $1.936 trillion (2000 est.)

Ghana:purchasing power parity - $37.4 billion (2000 est.)

Gibraltar:purchasing power parity - $500 million (1997 est.)

Greece:purchasing power parity - $181.9 billion (2000 est.)

Greenland:purchasing power parity - $1.1 billion (2000 est.)

Grenada:purchasing power parity - $394 million (2000 est.)

Guadeloupe:purchasing power parity - $3.7 billion (1997 est.)

Guam:purchasing power parity - $3.2 billion (2000 est.)

Guatemala:purchasing power parity - $46.2 billion (2000 est.)

Guernsey:purchasing power parity - $1.3 billion (1999 est.)

Guinea:purchasing power parity - $10 billion (2000 est.)

Guinea-Bissau:purchasing power parity - $1.1 billion (2000 est.)

Guyana:purchasing power parity - $3.4 billion (2000 est.)


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