From Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Vexillology is the study of flags. The word comes from both the Latin word vexilla "little sail" for flag plus the Greek suffix-ology that means "study of". The vexillum was a particular kind of flag used by the Roman legions. Vexillology is a kind of study of symbols related to heraldry. A person who studies flags is a vexillologist, and a person who designs flags is a vexillographer.
Because they are flown outside, where they move with the wind, flags are usually designed with bold images and bright, basic colors. Flag design also follows a historical process, where later flag designs are based on earlier flag designs. This means that many flags in an area may look similar because they are all based on one historical flag. Examples include the Pan-African colors, Pan-Arab colors, and the Nordic Cross.
The Flag Identification System was created by Whitney Smith and adopted by Fédération internationale des associations vexillologiques (FIAV).
The first row is for use on land and the second row is for use on water, each divided into private (civil), government (state), and military (war) use.
Usage
Private Use
Government Use
Military Use
Land Use
Civil Flag
State Flag
War Flag
Sea Use
Civil Ensign
State Ensign
War Ensign
There are 63 symbols that can describe the flag, including:
FIS
Text mode
Description
Usage
C**/***
Civil Flag
by private person on land
*S*/***
State Flag
by state offices on land
**W/***
War Flag
by military on land (army)
***/C**
Civil Ensign
on private ships (merchant ensign)
***/*S*
State Ensign
on state owned ships
***/**W
War Ensign
by military ships (navy)
CS*/***
Civil and State Flag
by private person and state on land
*SW/***
State and War Flag
by state services and military on land
CSW/***
National Flag
for all purposes on land
***/CSW
National Ensign
for all purposes on ships
CSW/CSW
National Flag and Ensign
for all purposes on land and sea
Other symbols are used to describe other uses of the flag, such as official status and which side of the flag is shown. The symbols in common use are:
Normal or de jure version of flag, or obverse (front) side