A national parade

Did you know the symbolism behind these unique national flags?

A country’s flag is a visual representation of an entire nation, and a symbol that unifies all those who belong to it. While most flags are easily recognizable, they often share common elements such as colors, designs, or meanings. Consider Poland and Indonesia, or Belgium and Germany.

Although flags from the same region or countries with a shared history may have similarities, some flags are so unique that they could never be mistaken for something else. Let’s have a look at some of them!

This South Asian country, located between China and India, is known for being home to Mount Everest, much of the Himalayas, and as the birthplace of Buddhism. But Nepal is also known for another distinctive feature: its flag.

The Nepali flag shares its red, white, and blue colors with other Asian countries such as Thailand, Cambodia, and Laos, but its uniqueness comes from its shape, as Nepal is the only country in the world without a rectangular flag. Instead, it’s formed by two joined pennants (or triangular banners). A sun and a crescent moon symbolize the hope for the country’s longevity.

Mozambique’s flag features three horizontal stripes—green, black, and gold—separated by thin white lines. On the left side, it has a red triangle. Up until now, not so different from many other flags. However, the red triangle contains several symbols: a yellow five-pointed star, a book, and, crossing over them, a gun (specifically an AK-47) and a hoe.

Each of these symbols has a particular meaning: the star symbolizes the country’s solidarity with the world, the book represents education, the hoe, agriculture, and the gun, the nation’s defence. However, some political parties have pushed for the gun to be removed as a symbol.

The Republic of Kiribati is a small island nation located in the Micronesia region. Composed of a series of atolls and one coral island, it lies where the equator meets the 180th meridian, placing it across the northern, southern, eastern, and western hemispheres.

Kiribati’s flag features several national symbols: the upper half is red, and it showcases a golden bird—a symbol of freedom and mastery of the sea—flying over a rising sun. The lower half is blue with three wavy white stripes, representing the Pacific Ocean and the country’s main archipelagos, while the 17 rays of the sun represent Kiribati’s 17 islands.

The flag of Wales stands out from other European flags because of its prominent dragon. It is also one of only three national flags to feature this mythical creature, the other two being Malta and Bhutan. The Y Ddraig Goch (red dragon) is depicted in a passant attitude—heraldic terminology for "striding with a raised paw"—over a green and white background, colors associated with the House of Tudor.

Where does the dragon come from? The Welsh have always used the dragon as a symbol for their leaders, and a red dragon defeating the enemies of Wales appears in many tales. The dragon is also linked to the Arthurian legend and the prophecy of King Arthur’s return to restore the island to the Celtic Britons.

Purple is a color present in very few national flags (four, to be precise), and Dominica’s flag uses it in the most evident way. This Caribbean nation’s banner has a green field crossed by a vertical and a horizontal band, each featuring yellow, black, and white stripes.

At the center, a red circle displays a Sisserou parrot surrounded by ten green stars. The Sisserou parrot, Dominica’s national bird, has dark purple feathers on its chest and head, which are represented on the flag. This species is found only on the island and is considered critically endangered.

Known as the Golden Arrowhead, Guyana’s flag stands out from other South American banners for its use of triangular shapes—one at the hoist and one extending across the flag—an element more commonly seen in Caribbean and Central American flags (e.g., Cuba, Saint Lucia, Jamaica).

The colors of Guyana’s flag are deeply symbolic: red, gold, green, black, and white represent zeal, mineral wealth, agriculture, endurance, and the rivers that give the country its name, as Guyana means "land of many waters."

One of only three national flags featuring a dragon, Bhutan’s banner has a meaning closely tied to the country’s name. In the Dzongkha language, Bhutan is called Druk Yul, meaning "The Thunder Dragon Kingdom," a title also bestowed upon its monarch, the Dragon King.

Bhutan’s flag is divided diagonally into two fields, one yellow and one orange, symbolizing the civil authority of the king and the country's Buddhist heritage. Over the dividing line, the white dragon (a symbol of purity) stretches across both fields, emphasizing the equal importance of civil and religious matters. The dragon holds jewels that represent the nation’s wealth and security, and its snarling mouth signifies the defense of the country by its deities.

The Kingdom of Eswatini and the Republic of Kenya are two distinct nations, so they naturally have different national flags. However, they share one notable feature: both flags display a traditional shield at the center.

Eswatini’s flag has three blue and red bands, separated by yellow strips. In the center, two spears are covered by a sideways Nguni shield, traditionally made from ox skin and reinforced with a staff. On the other hand, Kenya’s flag is divided into three bands of black, red, and green, separated by white stripes. A Masai shield over two crossed spears at its center represents the defense of the country and its traditions.

The flag of this Melanesian country contains several symbolic elements representing its people. It’s diagonally divided into red and black fields, two colors that Papua New Guinea tribes have used traditionally. On the lower black triangle, five white stars form the Southern Cross, one of the most important constellations in the Southern hemisphere.

The upper red triangle showcases the national bird, the Raggiana bird-of-paradise, in yellow. Fun fact: Papua New Guinea’s flag was designed through a national contest, and the winning entry was submitted by a 15-year-old girl.

This island’s flag has a unique element: it features the shape of the country at its center. The only other national flag to do this is Kosovo’s flag, though Kosovo is not recognized as a sovereign state by all countries.

Intended to represent the harmony between Cypriots of Greek and Turkish descent, the flag’s creators intentionally avoided colors and symbols associated with either group, opting instead for a white background with the island’s silhouette in copper over two green olive branches.

Who said that?

No, the queen didn't say "Let them eat cake": Oddly misattributed quotes

Image: Hannes Richter

Some of history’s most often repeated sayings were never actually said. At least not by the people we love to credit. You have probably read dozens of quotes wrongly attributed to Albert Einstein or Oscar Wilde, but Marilyn Monroe also made the list. As did Marie Antoinette! Today, we are setting the record straight on some of the most stubborn quote myths.

Image: Karina Kungla

Despite her reputation for extravagance, there’s no evidence that Marie Antoinette ever uttered these words. The quote "Qu'ils mangent de la brioche" is often pinned on her as a symbol of her indifference to the hardships of starving peasants.

However, the phrase first appears in Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s Confessions, which he started writing in 1765, when Marie was just about nine years old and still living in Austria.

Image: Maud Bocquillod

The famous story about young George confessing to chopping down a cherry tree is pure fiction, cooked up by biographer Mason Locke Weems after Washington’s death.

There’s no evidence Washington ever said this. Weems simply wanted to craft a moral and visually memorable legend for America’s first president.

Image: Pixabay

While "The Prince" does argue that rulers sometimes need to be ruthless, Niccolò Machiavelli never wrote "the ends justify the means."

The phrase is a simplified (and distorted) summary of much more complicated ideas he discussed about power and politics.

Image: Andrii Khrystian

The force of the Roman Inquisition fell upon Galileo, the father of modern astronomy who defended heliocentrism. He supposedly muttered this famous phrase after being forced to counter his views, defending that the Earth did move around the sun.

However, there’s no contemporary record of the defiant line being spoken. It first appeared decades later, in a biography written well after Galileo’s death.

Image: Ishant Mishra

Michael Jackson did sustain that he was starting by changing "the man in the mirror," and Mahatma Gandhi probably would have agreed. But the exact words of the famous line were never said by the real Gandhi.

His advice was much more nuanced about personal responsibility and social reform. The polished quote is a bit of a paraphrase meant to capture his philosophy in a nutshell.

Image: Martin Péchy

You can thank Marilyn Monroe for a lot, but not this quote. Although often typed on posters next to her iconic photos, the line was actually written by historian Laurel Thatcher Ulrich in a 1976 scholarly article.

She wasn’t encouraging rebellion either: She was observing that history tends to overlook women who "color inside the lines."

Image: Soyoung Han

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle wrote many lines spoken through his famous detective, Sherlock Holmes. But this one –perhaps the most often repeated line– wasn’t among them!

Yes, Watson was Holmes’ dear sidekick, and probably Sherlock used the word "elementary" at some point. Still, the straight line "Elementary, my dear Watson" cannot be found anywhere in the original texts.

Image: Lisa from Pexels

Oscar Wilde, a master of aphorisms, had wit to spare. Many lines can be attributed to him. This one, however, doesn’t ring like those by the author of The Picture of Dorian Gray.

The saying doesn't appear in any of his writings or documented conversations. It likely emerged around the end of the 20th century, stitched together by fans who loved the idea of Wilde’s spirit.

Image: Andrew George

"... and expecting different results." You might have read this quote and felt inspired by it. Although often attributed to Albert Einstein, there's no record of him saying it.

Some say that the earliest known appearance is in a 1980s Narcotics Anonymous pamphlet. The internet did its job and blurred the origins of the quote.

Image: Tom Wheatley

This one is only slightly incorrect. Thomas Hardy fans, take note: The correct line is "far from the madding crowd." And, in fact, Hardy borrowed it from Thomas Gray’s 1751 poem Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard, which read "Far from the madding crowd's ignoble strife." "Madding" meant frenzied, not "maddening."

Image: Giorgio Trovato

Vince Lombardi gets the credit, but even he said he was misquoted! The original line came from UCLA coach Red Sanders, who reportedly told his team this hard-hitting slogan in the 1950s. Lombardi’s version was similar but way less cutthroat: He said, "Winning isn't a sometime thing; it's an all the time thing."

Image: Pixabay

Paul Revere didn’t actually yell this because, back in 1775, that would have been confusing. Most colonial Americans still considered themselves British.

What he likely said was something closer to "The Regulars are coming out" or "The Redcoats are on the move." He also didn’t yell, since secrecy was key for his mission.