The Interesting World of Flags

Flags have a rich history and heritage. Flags trace their genesis to the use of staffs or vexilloids, that were commonly used to lead men into battle. These staffs were decorated with symbols and other items, giving the soldiers a feeling of camaraderie. With time, these staffs were adorned with silk and other types of material. This is what we see now as the modern day 'Flag'. Now every country has its own flag as an identity. These are used to stake claim over a new land or a symbol of presence - flag on the moon by Neil Armstrong.

Throughout the history of mankind, flags have been used to signify different things such as civilizations, ideas, groups, and nations. It was only in the eighteenth century that flags were initially used to symbolize a nation. Today, every country in the world has their own flag. These flags have symbols that the country men relate to and hold with pride close to their hearts as a cherished possession.

The flag of the United States of America is also known as the stars and stripes. This flag was completed in 1960 when Hawaii joined the USA. Until then it had been constantly revised since 1777. The stripes symbolize the first 13 states that made up the USA and each state is represented by a star, thus showing 50 stars on the flag.

The flag of United Kingdom or Great Britain is also known as the Union Jack. The flag which has been the official symbol since 1801, symbolizes the three unification of three different countries; England, Scotland, and Ireland. Currently, the Union Jack represents Northern Ireland, as the rest of Ireland became its own state in 1920. A novel observation is that the Union Jack itself forms a part of the flag of some nations - Australia for one.

The flag of Canada is a red maple leaf flanked by stripes of red. This flag design was officially adopted in 1965, although the maple leaf was a Canadian symbol for many years before that. The two stripes are said to represent the Pacific and Atlantic oceans which flank the country.

Barbados's flag is also filled with symbolism. It bears two blue stripes that stand for the ocean and sky. The yellow center represents the beaches. There is an interesting story about the trident in the center. The trident symbolizes Neptune, and their trident is broken to emphasize that Barbados split from Great Britain in 1966. The flag became official at that time.

The Israeli flag has blue and white stripes. They are the same color used in Jewish prayer shawls. The Star of David takes up the center, another familiar Jewish religious symbol. Their flag became official in 1948.

All flags are rich in heritage, steeped in history, symbolism, and very often religion. There are many flags that have religious sayings or symbols on them. Sometimes, flags go through a transformation owing to shift in territories shift and creation of new nations. The flags of the United Nations and the European Union are two new flags in this impressive galaxy.

Flags have been used for centuries as a symbol of identification and play an important step in bringing people together. The people of a nation identify themselves with their national flag which is a symbol of pride, "belongingness", identity and independence.

Article Source: http://www.free-article-directory.net

About the author: George Pascatt is the chief writer at Flag FX, the best place on the internet when you're after fresh up to date advice and comment to do with Flags. For further information on Flags please visit: www.flagfx.com/articles You can swap links with us by going to: www.flagfx.com/links
Don't reprint the same version as everyone else. Get your own unique content flags articl