Flag Miscellany, With Images Trivia Quiz

Answer: Finland

The coat of arms on one version of the Finnish flag is located directly on the blue cross. This coat of arms is based on the crest of the Nyland family that ruled a long time ago. This set up a Finnish tradition (when the country was still under the control of Russia) to include arms emblems on all of the flags of different yacht clubs.

At least one online flag enthusiast feels that usage of the coat of arms is the reason the arms of the cross on Finland's flag are thicker than those on the flags of other Nordic countries. The cropped image shows enough of the blue cross and white background to hopefully be useful in identifying the country.

Answer: Rhode Island

Yes, the state is Rhode Island with its state motto, none other than "Hope", imprinted on the square flag underneath an anchor and inside a circle of 13 stars. This picture of the anchor and its motto has been appearing on seals ever since the 17th century. The other four-letter state motto is Washington's lesser-known "Alki".

Answer: Scotland

The two white diagonal lines on the flag of Scotland are a representation of the shape of the cross that St Andrew, the patron saint of Scotland, was crucified upon. A legend goes that many of his relics were buried in Scotland, so, because of that, his cross is honoured on the flag. This flag is one of three that were combined to form Great Britain's union flag.

Answer: False

Actually, the letter "R" was to differentiate the flag from the flag of Guinea, not Guinea-Bissau. The latter, though it consisted of the same colours, had a red vertical bar with black star by the hoist, with horizontal bars of yellow and green in the fly. Nevertheless, Rwanda adopted a new flag in 2001, with a yellow sun on the top right of a rectangle of light blue, yellow, and green.

Answer: Kuwait

The black trapezoid turned on its side represents the defeat of numerous enemies that have fought against Kuwait, primarily for its oil. Very many Middle Eastern countries contain black, green, and red in their flags, as they are the Pan-Arab colors.

Answer: New Brunswick

The province of New Brunswick relies greatly on shipbuilding and the seas, so a very decorative one appears on the flag. Above the ship is a picture of a golden lion, which indicates the close relationship of the province to Great Britain. The flag is, in fact, a banner of the coat of arms of the province, granted by Queen Victoria in 1868.

Answer: An eighth star

The flag of Venezuela, adopted in March 2006, has eight stars, as compared to seven on the previous flag. The eighth star is somewhat controversial, in that it represents a region that mostly lies in the neighbouring country of Guyana, and which is the subject of some animosity between the countries.

Answer: Equatorial Guinea

As minute as it is, there is a tree on the flag of Equatorial Guinea. This tree is under six stars, also rather small, representing the mainland and five main islands of the country. These, together with a scroll inscribed with the motto "Unidad, Paz, Justicia" (Unity, Peace, Justice), make up the coat of arms of Equatorial Guinea.

Answer: True

The yellow triangle, while representing various ethnic groups, also represents hope, yellow being the color of the sun. The country itself is roughly triangular in shape. The flag was purposely designed to have no symbols representative of any single group.

Answer: Northern Territory

The flag of the Northern Territory is made up of black and brown (actually ochre) and white the official colours of that territory. The unusual flower, Sturt's Desert Rose, is the official floral emblem of the territory. The flag of the ACT is yellow with blue and white; Christmas Island has green, blue and yellow and Norfolk Island is green and white.