All 193 United Nations member states and two observer states—Palestine and Vatican City—alongside several de facto states, use national flags to represent themselves. These flags serve as powerful emblems that distinguish one state from another in global politics. Governments adopt them not only to symbolize national identity but also to legitimize authority and foster unity among their citizens. National flags often incorporate elements tied to a country’s people, military, rulers, territories, or dynasties.
The flag of Denmark holds the title of the oldest national flag still in use. Recognized as a national symbol since the 13th century, its current design was officially adopted in 1867.
Background and Definitions
Collins English Dictionary defines a national flag as “a flag that represents or is an emblem of a country.” The term country typically refers to a sovereign or independent state. Under international law, each state customarily adopts a flag to distinguish itself from others.
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Flags are widely considered one of the clearest expressions of national identity. Governments use them to promote patriotism, unify citizens, honor national efforts, and legitimize political authority. Throughout history, national flags have incorporated symbols that reflect a country’s leadership, heritage, military, and people. They often convey core national values, including membership, loyalty, and love for the homeland.
In 1975, vexillologist Whitney Smith emphasized the deep societal importance of flags, stating:
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“So strong is the tradition of flags, we may not be far from the truth in surmising that there is a law – not of nature, but of human society – which impels man to make and use flags… Despite the absence of any international regulation or treaty requiring a national flag, without exception, every country has adopted at least one.” — Whitney Smith, Flags Through the Ages and Across the World, p. 32
The Oxford English Dictionary defines a sovereign state as “a state or nation with a defined territory and a permanent population, which administers its own government, and which is recognized as not subject to or dependent upon another power.” Most often, the number of sovereign states is based on UN membership, although non-member or de facto states exist as well.
As of 2024, the United Nations includes 193 member states and 2 permanent observer states. Several de facto states, which lack full international recognition but maintain independent governance, include:
Taiwan
Kosovo
Somaliland
Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic
Transnistria
Abkhazia
South Ossetia
Northern Cyprus
The United Nations Headquarters in New York City displays the national flags of all 193 member states and its two observers, symbolizing their presence and participation on the world stage.
Flag of Marshall IslandsFlag of GreeceFlag of PhilippinesFlag of AfghanistanFlag of IranFlag of MalawiFlag of Guinea-BissauFlag of Papua New GuineaFlag of IsraelFlag of Dominican RepublicFlag of MontserratFlag of Equatorial GuineaFlag of FijiFlag of Trinidad and TobagoFlag of GrenadaFlag of United StatesFlag of CyprusFlag of European UnionFlag of KazakhstanFlag of CanadaFlag of MauritiusFlag of MoroccoFlag of Bosnia and HerzegovinaFlag of KiribatiFlag of SurinameFlag of GuernseyFlag of Turks and Caicos IslandsFlag of JapanFlag of MaldivesFlag of SingaporeFlag of AlbaniaFlag of SwedenFlag of San MarinoFlag of RwandaFlag of Virgin IslandsFlag of RomaniaFlag of UgandaFlag of NicaraguaFlag of IrelandFlag of Saint Barthelemy is that of FranceFlag of PanamaFlag of GabonFlag of PalauFlag of South Georgia and South Sandwich IslandsFlag of GuyanaFlag of Micronesia, Federated States ofCook Islands FlagFlag of OmanFlag of Christmas IslandJan Mayen uses Norway FlagFlag of MexicoFlag of GuatemalaFlag of VenezuelaFlag of NauruFlag of GermanyFlag of SerbiaFlag of Isle of ManFlag of SudanFlag of AzerbaijanFlag of ChileFlag of DjiboutiFlag of Cayman IslandsFlag of South SudanFlag of ComorosFlag of KenyaFlag of Norfolk IslandFlag of ThailandFlag of DominicaFlag of NamibiaFlag of Solomon IslandsFlag of BelgiumFlag of SeychellesFlag of Antigua and BarbudaFlag of JordanFlag of MongoliaFlag of South AfricaFlag of HondurasFlag of Costa RicaFlag of TaiwanFlag of CambodiaFlag of Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas)Flag of ArubaFlag of Saint Helena is a British Overseas TerritoryFlag of BhutanFlag of SamoaCote d’Ivoire FlagFlag of North MacedoniaFlag of CroatiaFlag of LiechtensteinFlag of MauritaniaFlag of CubaFlag of LaosFlag of BruneiFlag of BulgariaFlag of Saint Vincent and the GrenadinesFlag of Holy See (Vatican City)Flag of TongaFlag of Congo, Democratic Republic of theFlag of TurkmenistanFlag of MacauFlag of HungaryFlag of AntarcticaFlag of NigeriaFlag of Central African RepublicFlag of PolandFlag of FinlandFlag of EgyptFlag of New ZealandFlag of LibyaFlag of BelarusFlag of Pitcairn IslandsFlag of BurmaFlag of NiueFlag of IndonesiaFlag of El SalvadorSaint Martin uses Flag of FranceFlag of ParaguayFlag of BelizeFlag of Bahamas, TheFlag of UruguayFlag of QatarFlag of MadagascarFlag of TanzaniaFlag of GeorgiaFlag of NepalFlag of TajikistanFlag of PakistanClipperton Island the france Flag is usedFlag of Saint Kitts and NevisFlag of Saint Pierre and MiquelonFlag of Malaysiaflag of AndorraFlag of Puerto RicoFlag of BrazilFlag of LebanonFlag of CzechiaFlag of Northern Mariana IslandsFlag of Sint MaartenFlag of SyriaFlag of KosovoFlag of Sierra LeoneFlag of AnguillaFlag of NorwayFlag of PortugalFlag of SomalilandFlag of KuwaitFlag of VietnamFlag of United Arab Emirates ( UAE)Flag of RussiaFlag of EritreaFlag of BotswanaFlag of British Indian Ocean TerritoryFlag of DenmarkFlag of JamaicaFlag of PeruFlag of Saint LuciaFlag of MonacoFlag of BoliviaFlag of AustriaFlag of Hong KongFlag of Sri LankaFlag of Kyrgyzstanthe flag of Norway is usedFlag of TuvaluFlag of United KingdomFlag of SloveniaFlag of EswatiniFlag of NetherlandsSvalbard uses Flag of NorwayFlag of Turkey (Turkiye)Flag of LuxembourgFlag of SpainFlag of NigerFlag of SomaliaFlag of GreenlandFlag of ChinaFlag of SwitzerlandFlag of BahrainFlag of TokelauThe American flagFlag of Sao Tome and PrincipeFlag of ArmeniaFlag of Argentinathe flag of the UK is usedFlag of FranceFlag of Gambia, TheFlag of GibraltarFlag of TogoFlag of Korea, SouthFlag of EthiopiaFlag of Timor-LesteFlag of Korea, NorthFlag of VanuatuFlag of YemenFlag of British Virgin IslandsFlag of MoldovaFlag of Cabo VerdeFlag of Faroe IslandsFlag of Wallis and FutunaFlag of American SamoaFlag of EcuadorFlag of ColombiaFlag of MaltaFlag of SlovakiaFlag of Congo, Republic of theFlag of IcelandFlag of EstoniaFlag of TunisiaFlag of LithuaniaFlag of MontenegroFlag of BangladeshFlag of IndiaFlag of GuamFlag of BarbadosFlag of MozambiqueFlag of CuracaoFlag of ZimbabweFlag of IraqFlag of ItalyFlag of Saudi ArabiaFlag of ChadFlag of HaitiFlag of UzbekistanFlag of JerseyFlag of French PolynesiaFlag of BermudaFlag of LatviaFlag of Ukraine
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