Atriband is avexillological style which consists of three stripes arranged to form aflag. These stripes may be two or three colors, and may becharged with an emblem in the middle stripe.^[1] Not all tribands are tricolor flags, which requires three unique colors.

Outside of the name, which requires three bands of color, there are no other requirements for what a triband must look like, so there are many flags that look very different from each other but are all considered tribands.

Some triband flags (e.g. those ofGermany,Russia andthe Netherlands) have their stripes positioned horizontally, while others (e.g. that ofItaly) position the stripes vertically. Often the stripes on a triband are of equal length and width, though this is not always the case, as can be seen in the flags ofColombia andCanada. Symbols on tribands may beseals, such as on theBelizean flag, or any manner of emblems of significance to the area the flag represents, such as in the flags ofArgentina,India andLebanon.

The first tricolor flag, called thePrince's Flag, is the precursor of the red-white-blueStatenvlag: the modernflags of the Netherlands, which inspired many other red-white-blue tricolor flags due to its association with republicanism and liberty.

Theflag of Russia, an example of a horizontal tricolor flag

Theflag of France, an example of a vertical tricolor flag

Atricolor (AE), or atricolour (BE), is a type of triband design which originated in the 16th century as a symbol ofrepublicanism,liberty, orrevolution. The oldest tricolor flag originates fromthe Netherlands, whose successor's design later inspired theFrench andRussian flags.^[2][3]

The flags ofFrance,Italy,Romania,Mexico,Ireland andParaguay^[4] were all adopted with the formation of an independentrepublic in the period of theFrench Revolution to theRevolutions of 1848, with the exception of the Irish tricolor, which dates from 1848 but was not popularized until theEaster Rising in 1916 and adopted in 1919.^[5]

The first association of the tricolor with republicanism is the orange-white-blue design of thePrince's Flag (Prinsenvlag, precursor of theflags of the Netherlands), first depicted 1575 and used byWilliam I of Orange-Nassau in theEighty Years' War, establishing the independence of theDutch Republic from theSpanish Empire. Its red-white-blue successor is the oldest tricolor flag still in use. The flag of the Netherlands inspired both the French and Russian flags, which in turn further inspired many tricolor flags in other countries.^[2][3]

Though not the first tricolor flag, one of the most famous, known asLe Tricolore, is the blue, white and red (whence also calledLe Bleu-Blanc-Rouge)flag of France adopted in 1790 during theFrench Revolution. Based on a 1789 design of theCockade of France, it was easy to construct and also stood in a visual opposition to complicated royal banners of theAncien Regime.

With the formation ofFrench client republics after 1795, the revolutionary tricolor was exported and adopted more widely in Europe, by theRepublic of Alba 1796 (red-blue-yellow),Cisalpine Republic 1797 (Transpadane Republic, green-white-red),Cisrhenian Republic 1797 (green-white-red),Anconine Republic 1797 (blue-yellow-red),Roman Republic 1798 (black-white-red),Helvetic Republic 1798 (green-red-yellow;canton of Neuchatel 1848),Parthenopean Republic 1799 (blue-yellow-red), andPrincipality of Lucca and Piombino 1805 (blue-white-red). Thus providing the format for many of modern Europe's national flags, from theflag of Italy, to theflags of Germany,Ireland,Belgium,Romania,Bulgaria,Moldova, and others around the world such as theflags of India,Cameroon,Chad,Ivory Coast,Gabon,Guinea,Mali, andNigeria.

The green-white-red tricolor remained a symbol of republicanism throughout the 19th century and was adopted asnational flag by a number of states following theRevolutions of 1848. It was also adopted by theKingdom of Sardinia (inherited by theKingdom of Italy 1861).

Theflag of Germany (black-red-gold) originates from the uniform Colors of theLützow Free Corps during theNapoleonic Wars, which contained volunteers from many German states and became famous through propaganda. Prominent veterans and later students became the core of the republican movement of early 1800s which adopted the Colors. At the time the flag was known asDreifarb, a Germancalque ofTricolore. It was a symbol of opposition against the GermanKleinstaaterei and the desire forGerman Unification. It was at first illegal in theGerman Confederation, but was adopted as the national flag at theFrankfurt Parliament of 1848/9. Theflag of Belgium was introduced in a similar context, in 1831, its colors taken from the flag used in theBrabant Revolution of 1789. The first national flag of theNew World inspired by this symbolism was theflag of Mexico, adopted when theFirst Mexican Empire gainedindependence from Spain in 1821.

After 1848, the young republicannation states continued to pick triband designs, but now more prevalently expressing the sentiment ofnationalism orethnic identity than anti-monarchism, theflag of Hungary (1848), theflag of Romania (1848), theflag of Ireland (1848), theflag of Estonia (1880s), theflag of Lithuania (1905), and theflag of Armenia (1918). By contrast, theflag of Russia was adopted by theTsardom of Russia in the late 17th century and while it may or may not have been inspired by the Dutch tricolor, it never had any republican implications; likewise the tribandflag of Iran was adopted by theQajar empire in 1905 and never had any republican implications either.

The political ideology of the unification of an ethnicnation state associated with tricolor flags since the 19th century has resulted in the design of new "tricolors" expressing specificnationalisms in the 20th century, thePan-African colors adopted in the 1920s forPan-Africanism, chosen in numerous African flags duringdecolonization (green-yellow-red, taken from the triband design used by theSolomonic dynasty for theEthiopian Empire since 1897). ThePan-Arab colors adopted inArab nationalism 1916 are a comparable concept, even though they combine four, not three, colors. Also in the 20th century, Pan-Iranian colors forIranian nationalism andPan-Slavic colors forSlavic nationalism were adopted based on the triband design of the flags used during the 19th century by theQajar dynasty and theRussian Empire, respectively.

During the briefSecond Spanish Republic, a red-yellow-purple tricolor was adopted as its official flag. Today, it is still used by Spanish republicans.

TheIndian independence movement in 1931 also adopted a tricolor (loan-translated as Hindi, तिरंगाTiraṅgā) in the traditional symbolism of "national unification" and republican "self-rule" (Purna Swaraj), adopted as theflag of the India in 1947.^[6]

In 1999, a red, green, and blue tricolor was proposed as theflag of Mars. The design symbolizesliberty, and also theterraforming of Mars byhumanity from a red planet to a habitable green planet, and eventually an Earth-like blue one.

This sectionmay containexcessive orirrelevant examples. Please helpimprove it by removingless pertinent examples andelaborating on existing ones.(November 2025) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

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  Theflag of Afghanistan (2013–2021), a charged vertical triband.
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  TheAlamo Flag, a charged vertical triband.
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  The flag of theRepublic of Alba (1796), a simple vertical triband.
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  Variant flag of theRepublic of Alba (1796), a simple horizontal triband.
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  The flag of the ItalianNational Liberation Committee (1944), a charged vertical triband.
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  Theflag of Albany, New York, a charged horizontal triband.
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  The flag ofAnaheim, California (2018–2019), a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Andorra, a charged vertical triband.
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  The flag of theArabian Republican movement, a simple horizontal triband.
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  The flag of theRepublic of Ararat, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Argentina, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Armenia, a simple horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Austria, a simple horizontal triband.
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  The flag of theFederal State of Austria, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Azerbaijan, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Barbados, a charged vertical triband.
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  Theflag of Belgium, a simple vertical triband.
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  Theflag of Belize, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Biafra, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Birmingham, Alabama, a charged vertical triband.
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  Thebisexual pride flag, a simple horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Bolivia, a simple horizontal triband.
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  The flag ofThe Bronx, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Bulgaria, a simple horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Cambodia, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Cameroon, a charged vertical triband.
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  Theflag of Canada, a charged vertical triband.
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  Theflag of Chad, a simple vertical triband.
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  The flag of theCispadane Republic, a charged horizontal triband.
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  The flag ofCoahuila y Tejas, a charged vertical triband.
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  The flag ofCoclé Province, Panama, a charged vertical triband.
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  Theflag of Colombia, a simple horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Colorado, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Colorado (1911–1964), a charged horizontal triband.
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  The flag ofConway, Arkansas, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Crimea, a simple horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Croatia, a charged horizontal triband.
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  The flag ofSR Croatia, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Curaçao, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Dallas, Texas, a charged horizontal triband.
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  TheDodson tri-color flag, a charged vertical triband.
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  The flag of theDurrani Empire, a simple horizontal triband.
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  The flag of theDutch West India Company, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of East Germany, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Ecuador, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Egypt, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of El Salvador, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Estonia, a simple horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Ethiopia, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of France, a simple vertical triband.
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  Variant of theflag of France, a simple vertical triband.
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  The flag ofFree France, a charged vertical triband.
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  Theflag of French Polynesia, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of French Sudan, a charged vertical triband.
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  Theflag of Gabon, a simple horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Gagauzia, a charged horizontal triband.
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  The genderqueer pride flag, a simple horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of the German Empire, a simple horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Germany, a simple horizontal triband.
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  Variant of theflag of Germany, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Ghana, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Ghana (1964–1966), a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Gran Colombia (1819–1820), a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Gran Colombia (1820–1821), a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Gran Colombia (1821–1830), a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Guatemala, a charged vertical triband.
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  Theflag of Guinea, a simple vertical triband.
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  Theflag of Honduras, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Hungary, a simple horizontal triband.
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  TheIllinois centennial flag, a charged horizontal triband.
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  TheIndiana centennial flag, a charged vertical triband.
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  Theflag of India, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Iowa, a charged vertical triband.
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  Variantflag of Iowa, a charged vertical triband.
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  Theflag of Iran, a charged horizontal triband.
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  The flag ofPahlavi Iran, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Iraq, a charged horizontal triband.
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  The flag of Iraq (2004–2008), a charged horizontal triband.
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  The flag of Iraq (1991–2004), a charged horizontal triband.
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  The flag of Iraq (1963–1991), a charged horizontal triband.
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  The flag of Iraq (1959–1963), a charged vertical triband.
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  Theflag of Ireland, a simple vertical triband.
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  Theflag of Italy, a simple vertical triband.
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  Thecivil ensign of Italy, a charged vertical triband.
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  Thestate ensign of Italy, a charged vertical triband.
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  Thenaval ensign of Italy, a charged vertical triband.
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  Thewar flag of Italy, a simple vertical triband.
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  The flag of theKingdom of Italy, a charged vertical triband.
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  Theflag of Ivory Coast, a simple vertical triband.
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  Theflag of the Kazakh SSR, a charged horizontal triband.
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  The flag of theGuna people, a charged horizontal triband.
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  The flag of the Guna people (1942), a charged horizontal triband.
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  The flag ofKyiv Oblast, a charged vertical triband.
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  Theflag of Laos, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Latvia, a simple horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Lebanon, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Lesotho, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Libya, a charged horizontal triband.
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  The flag of theLibyan Arab Republic (1972–1977), a charged horizontal triband.
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  The flag of the Libyan Arab Republic (1969–1972), a simple horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Lithuania, a simple horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of the Lithuanian SSR, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Luxembourg, a simple horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Malawi, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Mali, a simple vertical triband.
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  The flag ofManhattan, a charged vertical triband.
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  Theflag of Mauritania, a charged horizontal triband.
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  The maverique pride flag, a simple horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Mexico, a charged vertical triband.
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  Theflag of Missouri, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Moldova, a charged vertical triband.
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  Theflag of the Moldavian SSR, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Mongolia, a charged vertical triband.
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  The flag ofMonseñor Nouel Province, Dominican Republic, a simple horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Myanmar, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Nauru, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of the Netherlands, a simple horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of New York City, a charged vertical triband.
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  Theflag of Nicaragua, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Niger, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Nigeria, a simple vertical triband.
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  The flag ofNorth Caribbean Coast, Nicaragua, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Ossetia, a simple horizontal triband.
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  ThePan-African flag, a simple horizontal triband.
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  Thepansexual flag, a simple horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Paraguay, a charged horizontal triband.
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  TheFlag of Peru, a simple vertical triband.
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  Thepolyamory pride flag (original 1995 design by Jim Evans), a charged horizontal triband.
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  The polysexual pride flag, a simple horizontal triband.
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  ThePrince's Flag, a simple horizontal triband.
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  The flag ofPríncipe, a charged vertical triband.
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  Theflag of Prussia (1892–1918), a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Prussia (1918–1933), a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theservice flag of Prussia (1933–1935), a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of the Republic of the Congo, a simple diagonal triband.
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  The flag of theRoman Republic (1849), a charged vertical triband.
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  Theflag of Romania, a simple vertical triband.
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  Theflag of Russia, a simple horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Russia (1991–1993), a simple horizontal triband.
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  Theblack-yellow-white flag of the Russian Empire, a simple horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Rwanda, a charged horizontal triband.
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  The 1962–2001 flag of Rwanda, a charged vertical triband.
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  Theflag of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, a charged vertical triband.
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  The flag ofSanta Cruz Department, Bolivia, a simple horizontal triband.
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  The flag ofSchenectady County, New York, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Senegal, a charged vertical triband.
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  Theflag of Serbia, a charged horizontal triband.
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  The flag ofSR Serbia, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Sierra Leone, a simple horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Slovakia, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Slovenia, a charged horizontal triband.
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  The flag ofSR Slovenia, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Somaliland, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of South Africa (1928–1994), a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Spain, a charged horizontal triband.
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  The flag ofFrancoist Spain (1945–1977), a charged horizontal triband.
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  The flag of Francoist Spain (1938–1945), a charged horizontal triband.
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  The flag of Francoist Spain (1936–1938), a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of the Second Spanish Republic, a charged horizontal triband.
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  The flag of theFirst Spanish Republic, a charged horizontal triband.
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  TheStatenvlag, a simple horizontal triband.
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  The flag of Sudan (1956–1970), a simple horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Syria (previously the flag of theSyrian opposition to Bashar al-Assad), a charged horizontal triband.
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  The flag of theSyrian Salvation Government, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of theUnited Arab Republic andBa'athist Syria, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Tajikistan, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Thecivil ensign of the Republic of Texas, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Transnistria, a charged horizontal triband.
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  The flag ofUlster County, New York, a charged horizontal triband.
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  The flag of theUnion of African States (1958–1961), a charged horizontal triband.
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  The flag of theUnion of African States (1961–1963), a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Utah, a horizontal triband charged with abeehive.
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  The flag of theUnited Team of Germany, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Venezuela, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Yemen, a simple horizontal triband.
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  The flag of theYemen Arab Republic, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Serbia and Montenegro, a simple horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Yugoslavia, a charged horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, a simple horizontal triband.
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  Theflag of Yukon, a charged vertical triband.
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  The flag ofSR Zanzibar, a simple horizontal triband.

• Flag families
• List of flags by design
• List of national flags by design
• Gallery of sovereign state flags
• Gallery of flags of dependent territories
• Fin flash on military aircraft, sometimes in a "tricolour" form

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