Flag Research

A flag's meaning comes from the emotion is inspires. 'Old Glory', as the Americans know it speaks to them in a way non-Americans cannot share; but we can understand this, because many of us will have similar feelings about our own symbols of nationhood and belonging, which is why when three FDNY firefighters raised the American flag over the ruins of the twin towers on 9/11, it illicited such a strong reaction from the American people, serving as a symbol of hope to Americans, and perhaps helping them to cope with the other deeply disturbing images emerging from New York City that day.

You may have overtly positive, or negative, feelings as to what you think your flag stands for, but the fact remains; that simple piece of cloth is the embodiment of a nation. A country's history, geography, people and values- all are symbolised in the cloth, it's shape and the colours in which it is printed. It is invested with meaning, even if the meaning is different for different people.

Flags are a relatively recent phenomenon in mankind's history. Standards and symbols painted on cloth predate flags and were used by the ancient Egyptians, the Assyrians and the Romans, but it was the invention of silk by the Chinese that allowed flags as we know them today to spread. Traditional cloth was too heavy to be held aloft, unfurled and fluttering in the wind, especially if painted, silk was much lighter and meant banners could, for example, accompany armies into battlefields.

The new fabric and custom spread along the Silk route. Arabia was the first to adopt it and the Europeans followed suit, having come into contact with them during the Crusades. It was likely these military campaigns, and the large Western armies involved, that confirmed the use of symbols of heraldry and armorial markings to help identify the participants. These heraldic bearings came to be linked with the rank and lineage, particularly for royal dynasties, and this is one of the reasons why European flags evolved from being associated with battlefield standards and maritime signals to becoming symbols of the nation state.

Every nation is now represented by a flag, a testament to Europe's influence on the modern world as its empires expanded and ideas spread across the globe.

What does it mean to try to encapsulate a nation in a flag? It means trying to unite a population behind a homogeneous set of ideals, aims, history and beliefs - an almost impossible task. But when passions are aroused, when the banner of an enemy is flying high, that's when people flock to their own symbol. Flags have much to do with our traditional tribal tendencies and notions of identity - the idea of 'us versus them'. Much of the symbolism in flag design is based on that concept of conflict and opposition - as seen in the common theme of red for the blood of the people, for example. But in a modern world striving to reduce conflict and promote a greater sense of unity, peace and equality, where population movements have blurred those lines between us and them' what role do flags play now?

What is clear is that these symbols can still wield a great deal of power, communicating ideas quickly and drawing strongly on emotions. There are now more nation states than ever before, but non-state actors also use flags as a kind of visual sound bite to convey concepts ranging from the banality of cheap commercial goods to the depravity of religious and racial violence. This is something we've continually witnessed in recent history, from Hitler and the Nazi swastika - an image which even today evokes a powerful reaction - to the emergence of Islamic State (IS) and its emphasis on religious or prophetic symbols that can grab attention and, sometimes, garner support.

They go back to antiquity, and yet show no signs of going out of fashion. The most up-to-date consumer technology, the smart phone, can now provide you with the national flag emoji of your choice, and when there is a national tragedy, people from all over the globe will post messages along with the nation's emoji flag as a mark of solidarity.

Flags are powerful symbols, and there are plenty of other organisations that have used them to great effect - they may embody messages of fear, peace or solidarity, for example, becoming internationally recognisable in the shifting landscapes

of identity and meaning.

We wave flags, we burn them, they fly outside parliaments and palaces, homes and showrooms. They represent the politics of high power and the power of the mob. Many have hidden histories that inform the present.

We appear to be in the midst of a resurgence of identity politics at the local, regional, national, ethnic and religious levels. Power shifts, old certainties fall away and at such times people reach for familiar symbols as ideological anchors in a turbulent, changing world. The reality of a nation does not necessarily live up to the ideals embodied in its flag; nevertheless the flag can, as Secretary of the Interior Franklin K. Lane 'quoted' the Stars and Stripes as saying, be "all that you believe I can be’.

This is the emotion-charged emblem that is a flag. It has the power to evoke and embody sentiments so strong that sometimes people will even follow their coloured cloth into gunfire and die for what it symbolises.

Source: Worth Dying For: The Power and Politics of Flags by Tim Marshall

Graphic Design: Wave Your Flag

Confirm copying