VexiWiki:Articles/Similar national flags

For historical flags that were redesigned because of similarity, see VexiWiki:Articles/Similar historical flags.

Although there are a vast array of different flag designs, some national flags are interestingly similar to each other. This is an article about current national flags that look almost (or are) the same.

Identical[]

Chad and Romania[]

The flag of Chad (adopted 1959) is exactly the same as the flag of Romania (adopted 1989). There has been some discussion and dispute over this issue.

The flag of Romania was adopted after a communist dictator was overthrown, and a communist insignia was removed from the design.

In 2004, Chad once took Romania to the United Nations to discuss their national flags, but no change has been made yet. [1]

The flags of two other European nations, Andorra and Moldova, have the same tricolour but with national symbols in the centre of the yellow stripe.

Indonesia and Monaco[]

Both of these flags are equal horizontal bicolours of red and white. Their only difference is their official proportions.

The flag of Poland is also similar to these two, except the stripes in switched places.

Very similar[]

Australia and New Zealand[]

The flags of Australia and New Zealand both use Blue Ensigns of the Union Jack with a Southern Cross design in the fly. The only differences are:

the number of points on the stars
the number of stars
the colour of the stars
the arrangement of the stars

There are currently many organizations in both countries whose goal is to get their national flags redesigned to avoid future confusion. In Australia, there is Ausflag, and in New Zealand there is NZFlag.

El Salvador and Nicaragua[]

The official flags of El Salvador and Nicaragua are both equal blue-white-blue tricolours. Each flag has its nation's national emblem in the centre of the flag's white stripe.

The civil flag of each of these nations is identical to the other in design:

Along with these similarities, another Central American nation, Honduras, also has a blue-white-blue tricolour. The difference is more obvious on the Honduras flag, however, since it does not use its nation's national emblem. The symbols in the centre of the white stripe are five blue five-pointed stars.

Luxembourg, The Netherlands, and Russia[]

The flags of Luxembourg and Netherlands look very similar. One difference is that the blue on the Luxembourg flag is somewhat brighter. Another difference is that the height-width ratio of the Luxembourg flag is 1:2 or 3:5, the ratio of the Dutch flag is 2:3.

Jordan and Palestine[]

Identical in color and design, three equal horizontal bands of black, white and green, with a red isosceles triangle on the hoist (flagpole) side. The flag of Jordan differs from that of Palestine in having a seven-pointed star in the center of the red field. Though Palestine does not yet have internationally-agreed country status, its flag is accorded the same honors as any other national flag, and is displayed by the Palestine National Authority

Somewhat confusing[]

Bahrain and Qatar[]

Cameroon, Senegal, and Ghana[]

These flags have the same design elements, but the colours of them are slightly different from each other. The green stripe on the hoist is the same on both flags.

The Ghana flag has similar colors and symbols but the arrangement is horizontal.

Colombia and Ecuador[]

These two flags are similar in design, but the flag of Ecuador features its national coat of arms.

The flag of Colombia uses the same tricolour, but in a more distinguishable format:

Côte d'Ivoire and Ireland[]

These flags are both tricolours of orange, white, and green, but they are "flipped" horizontally, and the proportions are different. This has caused some confusion between the two nations.

Guinea and Mali[]

The flags of Guinea and Mali are both vertical tricolours of the Pan-African colours, but in two different arrangements. Since both of these arrangements place a yellow stripe in the centre, it can be difficult to distinguish between the two.

An addition to the similar colours and design, the proportions of both flags are 2:3.

Bolivia, Lithuania, Myanmar and Ghana.[]

Haiti and Liechtenstein[]

These countries actually once had identical flags: simple blue and red horizontal bicolours. Liechtenstein citizens greatly recognized the problem with this during the Parade of Nations at an Olympic Games opening ceremony. Liechtenstein added the crown to their flag after seeing Haitians with their flag (or so they thought).