The flag of Åland ( sv, Ålands flagga) is a yellow or gold

Nordic cross A Nordic cross flag is a flag bearing the design of the Nordic or Scandinavian cross, a cross symbol in a rectangular field, with the centre of the cross shifted towards the hoist. All independent Nordic countries have adopted such flags in t ...

with another red cross inside on a blue background with the vertical bar shifted towards the hoist side. It is intended to resemble the Swedish flag defaced by a red cross symbolizing

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

. The flag was officially adopted as the flag of

Åland Åland ( fi, Ahvenanmaa: ; ; ) is an autonomous and demilitarised region of Finland since 1920 by a decision of the League of Nations. It is the smallest region of Finland by area and population, with a size of 1,580 km2, and a populat ...

in 1954 and first hoisted in Mariehamn on 3 April 1954. Prior to autonomy, an unofficial horizontal bicolour triband of blue-yellow-blue was in use until it was made illegal in 1935. The dimensions of the Ålandish flag are 16:3:4:3:26 horizontally and 12:3:4:3:12 vertically.

History

When Finland obtained independence from

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...

in 1917, many Ålanders feared they would lose their Swedish culture and

language Language is a structured system of communication. The structure of a language is its grammar and the free components are its vocabulary. Languages are the primary means by which humans communicate, and may be conveyed through a variety of ...

which led to the native population starting a movement to unite with Sweden. This led to Finland, Sweden, and Russia appealing to the

League of Nations The League of Nations (french: link=no, Société des Nations ) was the first worldwide intergovernmental organisation whose principal mission was to maintain world peace. It was founded on 10 January 1920 by the Paris Peace Conference that ...

, who decided in favour of Ålander autonomy. Starting in the early

1920s File:1920s decade montage.png, From left, clockwise: Third Tipperary Brigade Flying Column No. 2 under Seán Hogan during the Irish War of Independence; Prohibition agents destroying barrels of alcohol in accordance to the 18th amendment, which ...

, Åland unofficially used a blue and yellow

tricolour A tricolour () or tricolor () is a type of flag or banner design with a triband design which originated in the 16th century as a symbol of republicanism, liberty, or revolution. The flags of France, Italy, Romania, Mexico, and Ireland were ...

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.

Colors

Gallery

File:Åland flag 1922.svg, The unofficial flag from 1921 to 1954 File:Åland flag (proposal 1).svg, Original proposed flag of Åland

References

External links

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Flags of Åland Island
{{DEFAULTSORT:Aland, Flag of Flags of Finland Flag Nordic Cross flags

Flags introduced in 1954

History

Colors

Gallery

See also

References

External links