Man

Isle of Man, Mannin, Ellan Vannin

Last modified: 2002-06-21 by rob raeside
Keywords: man | isle of man | trinacria | triskelion | sicily |
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by Stuart Notholt
Use of flag confirmed 27 August 1971.

• Description
• Origin of the triskelion
  • the Legend of Mannanin
• Civil ensign
• Variant in 1848 text
• Flag of Tynwald
• Miscellaneous flags
• Arms

See also:

• Dependencies of the Crown

The national flag of Man is a plain red field with the "trinacria" emblem in the centre. This is a banner of the arms which date back to the 13th century and are believed to be connected with Sicily, where a similar device was used in the Norman period.

Roy Stilling, 7 December 1996.

The present rotation of the legs was restored by a royal proclamation in 1968.

Pascal Vagnat, 25 September 1998.

'The triskelion (from the Greek "three-legged") is one of the oldest symbols known to mankind. The earliest representations of it were found in prehistoric rock carvings in northern Italy. It also appears on Greek vases and coins from the 6th and 8th centuries BC., and was revered by Norse and Sicilian peoples. The Sicilian version has a representation of the head of Medusa in the center. The Manx people believe that the triskelion came from Scandinavia. According to Norse mythology, the triskelion was a symbol of the movement