A History of the Oldest Flags in the World

The flag of Denmark has been in use since 1625, making it the oldest flag in the world that has been continuously used. Denmark’s national flag is called the Dannebrog. The white-on-red cross has been used as a symbol of Denmark allegedly since the 14^th century, but it wasn’t until the 1600s that the current flag has been recognized as the country’s official flag.

Do you know the other flags that have been in continuous use the longest? The team at Wizard Pins examined flag designs from countries all around the world to visualize which ones have been continuously used by their respective countries the longest. Do you know which other countries have the oldest flags?

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The countries with the oldest flags in continuous use include the following:

1. Denmark (1625): Red background with a white Nordic cross
2. Netherlands (1660): Horizontal bands of red, white, and blue
3. Nepal (1743): The only irregularly-shaped flag consisting of two pennants with a red background (representing the color of the country’s national flower, the rhododendron) and a blue border (symbolizing the color of peace)
4. United Kingdom (1801): The UK flag, also known as the Union Jack, is composed of the red cross of St. George, the saltire of St. Patrick, and the saltire of St. Andrew
5. Chile (1817): The Chilean flag is composed of two equal horizontal bands of white and red with a blue square and five-pointed white star in the upper left corner

The flag of the United States, with all 50 stars and 13 states, was officially adopted in 1960.