View source for Vexillological symbol

{{Short description|Symbols used to describe flags}}
{{More citations needed|date=January 2025}}
'''Vexillological symbols''' are used by [[Vexillology|vexillologists]] to indicate certain characteristics of [[flag]]s, such as where they are used, who uses them, and what they look like. The symbols were created by vexillologist [[Whitney Smith]] and then adopted by the [[International Federation of Vexillological Associations]] (FIAV) in the early 1970s.<ref>{{Cite web |title=FIAV Flag Information Symbols |url=https://www.crwflags.com/fotw/flags/xf-fis.html |access-date=2022-10-20 |website=CRW Flags}}</ref> Vexillologist Željko Heimer added the symbols for {{FIAV|Normal}} '''normal''' and  {{FIAV|Historical}}'''historical''' in the early 1990s.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The FAME: Symbols and Abbreviations |url=https://zeljko-heimer-fame.from.hr/descr/use.html |access-date=2025-04-17 |website=zeljko-heimer-fame.from.hr}}</ref> 
== Status and design symbols ==
Vexillological symbols describe information on a flag's recognition status and design.

{{sticky header}}{{table alignment}}{{static row numbers}}
{| class="wikitable sortable sticky-header"
|+ style="text-align: left;" | List of symbols
!Symbol
!Meaning
|-
|{{FIAV|Normal}}
| Normal or ''[[de jure]]'' version of flag, or obverse side
|-
|{{FIAV|proposal}}
|Design was proposed in the past, but never officially adopted
|-
|{{FIAV|reconstructed}}
|Design is a reconstruction, based on past observation
|-
|{{FIAV|Reverse}}
|Reverse side of flag
|-
|{{FIAV|Variant}}
|An acceptable variant of the standard flag
|-
|{{FIAV|Alternate}}
|One of several alternative versions of the flag that can be displayed
|-
|{{FIAV|defacto}}
|''[[De facto]]'' flag, widely accepted and used
|-
|{{FIAV|twosided}}
|Flag has different designs on its obverse side and its reverse side
|-
|{{FIAV|Sinister}}
|Obverse side meant to be hoisted with pole to the observer's right
|-
|{{FIAV|Authorised}}
|Design officially authorized to represent nation by government of that nation (not necessary to use when the ''de jure'' symbol is used)
|-
|{{FIAV|Historical}}
|Design used in the past, but now abandoned
|-
|{{FIAV|Mirror}}
|Reverse side is mirror image of obverse side
|-
|{{FIAV|Equal}}
|Reverse side is congruent to the obverse side
|-
|{{FIAV|No reverse info}}
|Information on reverse side is not available
|-
|{{FIAV|Vertical normal}}
|Flag can be hung vertically by hoisting on a normal pole, then turning the pole 90°
|-
|{{FIAV|Vertical rotated}}
|Flag can be hung vertically by rotating the design first
|-
|{{FIAV|Vertical unknown}}
|Vertical hoist method of flag is unknown
|-
|{{FIAV|Vertical inapplicable}}
|Design has no element which can be rotated
|-
|{{FIAV|Vertical exclusive}}
|Flag can only be hoisted vertically
|-
|{{FIAV|noflag}}
|Flag is not authorized to represent the group or country
|}

{{Gallery
|title=Examples
|mode=nolines|style=background:var(--background-color-neutral, beige); color:var(--color-base, black); padding:20px|whitebg=n|height=100|align=left
|Flag of Paraguay.svg|{{FIAV|normal}}{{FIAV|twosided}} '''[[Flag of Paraguay]]''' <br /> The normal and two-sided symbols indicate this is the obverse side of an authorized flag, and that the reverse side is different.
|Flag of Paraguay (reverse).svg|{{FIAV|reverse}}{{FIAV|Authorised}}{{FIAV|twosided}} '''Flag of Paraguay'''<br /> The reverse, official, and two-sided symbols indicate this is the reverse side of an authorized flag, and that the obverse side is different.
|Flag of France.svg|{{FIAV|normal}} '''[[Flag of France]]''' <br /> The normal symbol indicates this is the official flag of the nation.
|Flag of France (lighter variant).svg|{{FIAV|normal}}{{FIAV|variant}} '''Flag of France'''<br />The normal and variant symbols indicate this flag is an acceptable variant of the national flag.
|Proposed flag of Antarctica (Graham Bartram).svg|{{FIAV|defacto}} '''[[Flag of Antarctica]]'''<br /> The ''de facto'' symbol indicates the flag is widely accepted and used, but not codified by law.
|Royal Standard of Lesotho (1966–1987).svg|{{FIAV|historical}} '''Royal Standard of Lesotho''' (1966–1987) <br /> The historical symbol indicates that the design was used in the past but is no longer used.|Royal Standard of Lesotho (1966–1987, incorrect version).svg|{{FIAV|reconstructed}} '''Incorrect Variant of Royal Standard of Lesotho''' (1966–1987) <br /> The reconstructed symbol indicates that this flag was drawn based purely on written sources.
|Flag of Eswatini.svg|{{FIAV|normal}}{{FIAV|Mirror}} '''[[Flag of Eswatini]]''' <br />The mirror symbol indicates that the reverse side of the flag is a mirrored version of the obverse side.|Flag of Eswatini with Black Tassels.svg|{{FIAV|alternate}}{{FIAV|Mirror}} '''Flag of Eswatini with Black Tassels''' <br /> The alternate symbol indicates that this is one of several other acceptable alternative variants of the flag. The Eswatini flag can have lighter colors and blue tassels as well.|Flag of Benelux.svg|{{FIAV|noflag}} '''[[Flag of Benelux]]''' <br /> The no-flag symbol indicates that this flag cannot be officially used to represent the group or country.|Flag of Saudi Arabia.svg|{{FIAV|sinister}}{{FIAV|Equal}} {{FIAV|Vertical inapplicable}} '''[[Flag of Saudi Arabia]]''' <br /> The sinister and equal symbols indicate that the national flag's hoist is on its right side and that its reverse and obverse sides are identical. The vertical inapplicable symbol indicates that the flag cannot have its elements rotated.|Flag of Saudi Arabia (Hanging).svg|{{FIAV|Vertical exclusive}} '''Hanging Flag of Saudi Arabia''' <br /> The vertical exclusive symbol indicates that this version of the national flag can only be displayed vertically.
}}
{{clear}}

== Usage symbols ==<!-- This section is linked from [[List of Polish flags]] -->
The usage symbols are based on a grid of two rows representing use on land and use on water, and three columns representing private use, public use, and military use. Each circle in the grid indicates the flag has one or more of the following six basic usages:

{{sticky header}}{{table alignment}}{{static row numbers}}
{| class="wikitable sticky-header"|style="text-align: center;"
!
! scope="col" | Private
! scope="col" | Public
! scope="col" | Military
|-
! scope="row" | '''Land'''
|[[Civil flag]]
Flown by private citizens on land
|[[State flag]]
Flown by the government on land
|[[War flag]]
Flown by the military on land
|-
! scope="row" | '''Water'''
|[[Civil ensign]]
Flown by private vessels
|[[State ensign]]
Flown by government vessels
|[[Naval ensign]]
Flown by military vessels
|}
A single design may be associated with no usages or multiple usages. Heimer suggested an additional row for air ensigns, but it has not been adopted by FIAV. The air ensign row refers to flags displayed on aircraft, including when on the ground, and air installations. The air ensign row is placed above the remaining two rows.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=The FAME: Symbols and Abbreviations |url=http://zeljko-heimer-fame.from.hr/descr/use.html |access-date=2022-10-21 |website=zeljko-heimer-fame.from.hr}}</ref>

{{sticky header}}{{table alignment}}{{static row numbers}}
{| class="wikitable sortable sticky-header"
|+ style="text-align: left;" | List of symbols
! Symbol
! Meaning
! Symbol
! Meaning
|- style="font-size: 90%"
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|100000}} || [[Civil flag]]
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|111000}} || [[National flag]]
|- style="font-size: 90%"
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|010000}} || [[State flag]]
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|000111}} || [[National ensign]]
|- style="font-size: 90%"
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|001000}} || [[War flag]]
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|011001}} || [[State flag|State]] and [[war flag]], war ensign
|- style="font-size: 90%"
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|000100}} || [[Civil ensign]]
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|010101}} || [[State flag]], civil and war ensign
|- style="font-size: 90%"
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|000010}} || [[State ensign]]
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|110110}} || [[Civil flag|Civil]] and [[state flags]] and ensigns
|- style="font-size: 90%"
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|000001}} || [[War ensign]]
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|011011}} || [[State flag|State]] and [[war flags]] and ensigns
|- style="font-size: 90%"
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|110000}} || [[Civil flag|Civil]] and [[state flag]]
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|111100}} || [[National flag]], [[civil ensign]]
|- style="font-size: 90%"
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|011000}} || [[State flag|State]] and [[war flag]]
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|111010}} || [[National flag]], [[state ensign]]
|- style="font-size: 90%"
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|000110}} || [[Civil ensign|Civil]] and [[state ensign]]
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|111110}} || [[National flag]], [[civil ensign|civil]] and [[state ensign]]
|- style="font-size: 90%"
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|000011}} || [[State ensign|State]] and [[war ensign]]
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|111011}} || [[National flag]], [[state ensign|state]] and [[war ensign]]
|- style="font-size: 90%"
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|100100}} || [[Civil flag]] and [[civil ensign|ensign]]
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|011111}} ||  [[State flag|State]] and [[war flag]], [[national ensign]]
|- style="font-size: 90%"
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|010010}} || [[State flag]] and [[State ensign|ensign]]
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|110111}} || [[Civil flag|Civil]] and [[state flag]], [[national ensign]]
|- style="font-size: 90%"
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|001001}} || [[War flag]] and [[War ensign|ensign]]
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|111111}} || National flag and ensign
|- style="font-size: 90%"
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|000101}} || Civil and war ensign
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|100001}} || Civil flag, war ensign
|- style="font-size: 90%"
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|100010}} || Civil flag, state ensign
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|100011}} || Civil flag, state and war ensign
|- style="font-size: 90%"
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|100101}} || Civil flag, civil and war ensign
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|100110}} || Civil flag, civil and state ensign
|- style="font-size: 90%"
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|100111}} || Civil flag, national ensign
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|101000}} || Civil and war flag
|- style="font-size: 90%"
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|101001}} || Civil and war flag, war ensign
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|101010}} || Civil and war flag, state ensign
|- style="font-size: 90%"
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|101011}} || Civil and war flag, state and war ensign
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|101100}} || Civil and war flag, civil ensign
|- style="font-size: 90%"
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|101101}} || Civil and war flags and ensigns
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|101110}} || Civil and war flag, civil and state ensign
|- style="font-size: 90%"
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|101111}} || Civil and war flag, national ensign
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|110001}} || Civil and state flag, war ensign
|- style="font-size: 90%"
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|110010}} || Civil and state flag, state ensign
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|110011}} || Civil and state flag, state and war ensign
|- style="font-size: 90%"
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|110100}} || Civil and state flag, civil ensign
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|110101}} || Civil and state flag, civil and war ensign
|- style="font-size: 90%"
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|010001}} || State flag, war ensign
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|010011}} || State flag, state and war ensign
|- style="font-size: 90%"
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|010100}} || State flag, civil ensign
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|010110}} || State flag, state and civil ensign
|- style="font-size: 90%"
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|010111}} || State flag, national ensign
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|011010}} || State flag and ensign, war flag
|- style="font-size: 90%"
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|011100}} || State and war flag, civil ensign
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|011101}} || State and war flag, civil and war ensign
|- style="font-size: 90%"
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|011110}} || State and war flag, civil and state ensign
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|001010}} || War flag, state ensign
|- style="font-size: 90%"
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|001011}} || War flag, state and war ensign
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|001100}} || War flag, civil ensign
|- style="font-size: 90%"
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|001101}} || War flag, civil and war ensign
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|001110}} || War flag, civil and state ensign
|- style="font-size: 90%"
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|001111}} || War flag, national ensign
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|111001}} || National flag, war ensign
|- style="font-size: 90%"
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|111101}} || National flag, civil and war ensign
| style="text-align:center" | {{FIAV|000000}} || Other
|}

{{Gallery
|title=Examples
|mode=nolines|style=background:var(--background-color-neutral, beige); color:var(--color-base, black); padding:20px|whitebg=n|height=100|align=left
|Civil flag of Serbia.svg|{{FIAV|100100}} The civil flag and ensign of Serbia is used by Serbian citizens on land and sea
|Flag of Serbia.svg| {{FIAV|010010}} The state flag and ensign is used by the Serbian government on land and sea
|Standard of the Serbian Armed Forces (front).svg| {{FIAV|001000}} The war flag is used by the [[Serbian Army]]
|Naval Ensign of Serbia.svg| {{FIAV|000001}} The naval ensign is used by the [[Serbian River Flotilla]]
}}
{{clear}}

== See also ==
*[[Glossary of vexillology]]

{{Vexillology}}

== References ==
<references />

[[Category:Vexillology|symbol]]
[[Category:Symbols introduced in the 1970s]]