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Frequently Asked Questions - Part 3

The Flags Of The World FAQ

The Flags of the World FAQ - Part 3
(American English language version)
last updated 24 April 1998
written and compiled by Steve Kramer [scooter@otd.com]

The following document is an attempt to answer the most common questions a layman might have about the field of vexillology, the academic study of flags. There's no attempt to provide a scrupulously complete answer to every question one might have, but instead give the reader a simple answer to a simple question, as well as provide some background information from which to research further. As such, reading the entire document through should provide an introduction to the field.

The source for all of this information is the Flags of the World Internet mailing list, an ongoing discussion by an international group of vexillologists and vexillophiles using the medium of the Internet. Some members gained the information through books or similar sources; others learned through direct observation or their own research. As such, it is hard to pin exact bibliographical sources on many of the answers. A polite request for sources to the List, at raeside@acadiau.ca, will usually get you something more definitive for use in serious research.

The first and second section deal with the terminology and abbreviations used in the discussion of vexillology; thus, it can be referred to at any time you find it hard to understand a particular bit of jargon. The third section deals with a special topic: "families" of flags, created by one flag designs influence on another. If your question is of the variety, "Why are these two flags so much alike?", this section may provide your answer. The final section answers specific questions about flags, flag protocol, and vexillology, with sub-sections that deal in depth with the flags that draw the most questions: the Stars & Stripes of the U.S., and the Union Jack of the United Kingdom.

B. Questions about the Flag of the United States

Who designed the U.S. flag?

A cherished U.S. legend states that a Philadelphia seamstress named Betsy Ross designed the first "Continental Colors" (the fi