Flag of Åland

The flag of Åland (Swedish: Åland flagga) is a yellow or gold Nordic cross with another red cross inside on a blue background with the vertical bar shifted towards the hoist side.[1] It is intended to resemble the Swedish flag defaced by a red cross symbolizing Finland.[2] The flag was officially adopted as the flag of the Åland Islands in 1954 and first hoisted in Mariehamn on 3 April 1954.[3] Prior to autonomy, an unofficial horizontal bicolour triband of blue-yellow-blue was in use until it was made illegal in 1935.[4]

Åland
UseCivil and state flag, civil and state ensign
Proportion17:26
Adopted1954
DesignA yellow-fimbriated red Nordic cross on a blue field
The flag of Åland hangs with the flag of Finland.

History

When Finland obtained independence from Russia in 1917, many Ålanders feared they would lose their Swedish culture and language which led to the native population starting a movement to unite with Sweden. This led to Finland, Sweden, and Russia appealing to the United Nations, who decided in favor of Ålander autonomy. Starting in the early 1920s, Åland unofficially used a blue and yellow tricolor flag until it was banned in 1935 by the Finnish government. In 1952, new laws gave Åland the right to make its own flag and a proposed flag resembling the Swedish flag with a blue cross inside was rejected by the president. The final design ended up being the first proposed model with a red cross inside to represent Finland.[5]

Colors
Color model Blue Yellow Red
RGB 255-206-0 0-82-165 210-16-52
CMYK 1-18-100-0 100-70-15-2 11-100-85-2
Pantone 116 C 301 032
  • Flags of Åland
  • The unofficial flag from 1921–1954
  • Original proposed flag of Åland

See Also

References
  1. "Landskapslag (1992:41) om Ålands flagga | Ålands landskapsregering". www.regeringen.ax. Retrieved 2020-08-18.
  2. "Flag of Aland Islands Image and Meaning History - FlagsWorld". flagsworld.org. Retrieved 2020-08-18.
  3. "The Åland flag | Nordic cooperation". www.norden.org. Retrieved 2020-08-18.
  4. "Ålands Flagga". Ålandsbutiken (in Swedish). 2020-02-01. Retrieved 2020-08-18.
  5. "Ålands flagga och frimärken". Visit Åland (in Swedish). Retrieved 2020-08-18.
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