Birds, Stars, Crosses and Weapons Quiz

Answer: American Samoa

The American Samoa flag is quite complex. The eagle is a bald eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) with a war club and "fly-whisk" in its talons. The field consists of three triangles, 2 dark blue ones top and bottom with the Apex pointing to the fly and a red-edged white triangle pointing to the hoist. The eagle sits on the fly side of the white triangle. It is probably that species because of it being a symbol of the US. There are no eagles found in American Samoa.

The eagle on the Mexican flag is depicted within the Mexican coat of arms situated centrally on the flag. The eagle is carrying a serpent in its talons, perched on a prickly pear which is on a rock above a lake. The Coat of Arms is a representation of an Aztec pictogram of the formation of Mexico City. For years the eagle has been noted as a "Mexican Eagle" which as a species does not exist. There are eight species of eagle resident in Mexico including the bald eagle. The species of eagle on the flag has been finalised as a golden eagle (Aquila chrysaetos).

The flag of Kazakhstan is a sky blue field with a central 32 ray sun over a golden eagle. There is a golden ornamentation (the Horns of the Rams) on the hoist side. The eagle is a Steppe Eagle (Aquila nipalensis) which is native to Kazakhstan.

The Zambian flag is a light green field (flora) with a block of three vertical stripes in the fly lower corner. The stripes are red (struggle), black (people) and orange (natural and mineral resources). An orange eagle in flight is above the three stripes. The eagle species is unspecified and represents the peoples' ability to overcome its difficulties.

Answer: Kosovo

In 2000, the self-proclaimed Kosovo nation had an unofficial national flag before independence. The flag featured a double-headed eagle like its neighbour Albania (with whom Kosovo had a cultural connection). The flag was short-lived and after independence in 2008, the flag was almost immediately replaced with the blue flag with the outline of the country plus six stars, one star for each cultural group. Serbia also has a double-headed eagle in its coat of arms on a shield within the flag (Slovakia has a very similar flag but the shield contains three mountain peaks). Cyprus' flag has a country outline but no stars and no double-headed eagle.

The double-headed eagle is a symbol of the Byzantine and Holy Roman Empires. In the former the double-headed eagle was a symbol of the Emperor having power over both secular and religious matters (as well as a representation of the size of the empire which was divided into East and West). In the Holy Roman empire, the bird represented the church and the state.

Kosovo and Bosnia and Herzogovina are two new flags in the European context, both being released after the European Union flag had been released. Both have links to the European Union flag. Both have the same blue colour background and both feature stars.

Answer: Dominica

The parrot on the Dominica flag is a Sisserou Parrot (Amazona imperialis) which is both endemic to Dominica and is endangered. The parrot sits on a red disc encircled by ten stars representing the ten parishes. The field is green with two offset crosses, one yellow, one white.

The Ugandan flag contains six horizontal stripes black (top), yellow, red then repeated. In the centre is a white disc containing the national symbol the Grey Crowned Crane (Regulorum gibbericeps) facing the hoist.

The Papua New Guinea flag is a field of two triangles red (upper) and black. The Southern Cross is on the black triangle and a Bird of Paradise (unspecified species) is on the red triangle.

The "Zimbabwe Bird" is found on the Zimbabwe flag. This is based on an ancient artifact discovered in Zimbabwe and is a carving. The carving is probably based on a eagle but it is not possible to try to determine which species of eagle is represented.

Only the Sisserou Parrot is endemic to the country it represents. All other birds are found in additional countries besides the one it represents.

Answer: Cuba and East Timor

The flag of North Korea has a single red star representing communism. The nation of South Sudan's has a yellow star meaning the unity of the states within South Sudan. East Timor or Timor-Leste's national flag has a white star, (though it is referred to as the "Light that guides") and represents peace. The white star in the red triangle of the Cuban flag represents independence and the blood shed in battle, respectively.
Puerto Rico and Mozambique also have stars on the hoist side of their respective flags.

The flag of Puerto Rico is an inversion of the colours of the Cuban Flag; however, the star remains white. The symbols on the flag have no attributed meaning, but the star is retained from an earlier version of a flag where the star meant liberty and freedom.

Mozambique also features a yellow star in the hoist side of its flag although this is hard to discern as, a book, a hoe and a weapon are superimposed over the star). The white star represents "Marxism and Internationalism".

Answer: No

The European Union flag consists of twelve gold stars arranged in a circle on an azure background. The stars symbolise the ideals of unity, solidarity and harmony among the European people. The flag is a symbol of Europe as a whole, not just the European member states. The circle of stars specifically signifies unity. The number of stars does not change when a new member state is added: the number of stars is fixed at twelve.

Answer: New Zealand

New Zealand was the first national flag to include the Southern Cross. Their flag includes only the four stars that make up the cross itself, not the five that make up the constellation. The NZ flag is also different in that the stars are red with white outlines. The other countries have white stars. Australia also has an additional star situated under the canton. This seven pointed white "Commonwealth Star" represents the six states and the territories of Australia.

The flag of Brazil also includes the Southern Cross in the 27 stars that are seen on the flag. This is meant to represent the night sky seen from Rio de Janeiro, but the stars also represent the 26 states and one federal district that comprise the nation.

Answer: Tanzania

Tanzania has one black diagonal stripe (edged in yellow) from the top right to the bottom left of the flag but it does not have another corresponding diagonal stripe therefore this is not a saltire. (The upper field is green and the lower field is blue).

The other three flags are all saltires. The Cross of St Andrew is the Scottish flag and is responsible for the field and diagonal cross of the Union Jack. St Patrick's saltire, a red diagonal cross on a white background was used when the Kingdom of Ireland joined the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1800. St Patrick's saltire was incorporated into the Union Flag in 1801 and has remained ever since even though Ireland is no longer part of the United Kingdom.

Jamaica's flag arose from a public competition held after Jamaica gained independence from the UK in 1962. The original design features gold, black and green (Pan-African colours) and consisted of three stripes. This was considered too close to the flag of Tanganyikan (Now part of Tanzania) so the saltire was substituted. The three colours have represented different things at different times before Jamaica settled on the following: gold represents the sun; green the island's verdant vegetation; and black the strength and creativity of the people and the ability to overcome hardships.
The flag on Burundi is a white (peace) saltire on a field of alternating green (hopes for the future) and red (struggle for independence). Superimposed on the saltire is a white disc aligned centrally with three six pointed red stars, arranged in a triangle, representing, the three ethnic groups of Burundi: The Twa, the Tutsi and the Hutu as well as God, King and Country and the country's motto: Unity, Work, and Progress.

Answer: Iceland and Norway

Both Iceland and Norway have their crosses edged in white. Iceland has a blue field and red cross. Norway has a red field with a blue cross. Both have different origins. All Scandinavian flags are based on the Dannebrog, the Danish flag, which dates back to 948AD and is one of the oldest flags in the world.

The Danish flag is a white Nordic cross on a red field. Norway was under Danish control until 1814, when it proclaimed independence and soon formed an alliance with Sweden. The current flag was designed in 1821 and consisted of the Danish Dannebrog (which was flown until independence) with a blue Nordic cross fitted within the existing white cross. Iceland too was under Danish rule (1380-1918).

In 1897, Iceland used a white Nordic cross on a dark blue background.

In 1915, Danish King Christian X ruled the flag as too simple and inserted a red Nordic cross within the existing white cross. After self-rule in 1918 and independence in 1944, this flag was retained.

Answer: Mozambique

Mozambique features a multicoloured flag of green yellow and black horizontal stripes with two thin white strips between the bands. There is a red triangle (blood) on the hoist side with the three national symbols: the rifle; the hoe and the book. There have been numerous calls to change the national flag. All have been unsuccessful. In 2005, there was a proposal to have a minimalist change, to simply remove the rifle but this too was rejected.

The Angolan flag features a machete, a long broad knife, but this represents the peasants and probably reflects the Angola sugar industry which thrived before the Angolan Civil War between 1975 and 2002.

The Swaziland flag features two spears, a fighting staff and a shield all of which represent the defence of Swaziland.

The Kenyan flag also features two spears and a traditional shield but these represent the defence of freedom.

Guatemala, in Central America also has two rifles on its coat of arms which is featured on the central portion of the flag. The rifles represent Guatemala's ability to defend itself.

Answer: Oman

Oman has the national symbol depicted in its canton. This symbol consists of a dagger called a khanjar and two crossed swords all held together by a horse bit.

The Saudi Arabian flag dates back to the 18th century and depicts the profession of the Islamic faith, the Shahada on a green field. The sword (tip pointing towards the hoist) was added later in 1902.

The lion on the Sri Lankan flag holds a kastane sword. The sword represents "The sovereignty of [Sri Lanka] and the braveness of its people".

The Coat of arms of Guatemala contains four items: the national bird, the Quetzal; the proclamation of independence in 1821, two crossed rifles and two crossed swords. The coat of arms is situated in the white middle band of the flag. The swords represent honour.