World Flag Info

Flags are easy, right? A couple of colors on a rectangle, maybe a quick symbol … call it a day and hit the links. Sure, if all you’re looking for is to disappoint everyone in your entire country. Why not shake things up a little, like these visionaries did?

We’re actually going to limit this a bit to just the most unique symbols on flags, rather than the most striking designs, like, say, Nepal’s.

(That’s the whole thing, by the way. There’s no white beyond the blue. It’s the only non-quadrilateral flag of a country in the world.)

Instead, we’ll just take

For a small set of islands of the Northwest coast of Europe, with a total landmass not much greater than that of Utah, the peoples of the United Kingdom have had a profound impact on the history of the modern world. In the 19th century it was said that the sun never set on the British Empire, as its reach spread vastly overseas with conquests and colonies spanning the globe. It would not be a stretch to say then that during this time the flag of the United Kingdom, the Union Jack, was the most recognizable flag in the world.

The Union Jack, though, has its own history, and has undergone a series of evolutions that mirror the history and evolution – often contentious, always fascinating – of the nation(s) it represents.

Although the influence of the Empire, now a Commonwealth of Nations, has lessened over time, the Union Jack is still known and flown around the world. In fact, not only is it