The Oxfordshire flag is the flag of the historic county of

Oxfordshire Oxfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the north west of South East England. It is a mainly rural county, with its largest settlement being the city of Oxford. The county is a centre of research and development, primarily ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. It was registered with the

Flag Institute The Flag Institute is a UK membership organisation headquartered in Kingston upon Hull, England, concerned with researching and promoting the use and design of flags. It documents flags in the UK and internationally, maintains a UK Flag Registr ...

on 9 October 2017. __TOC__

Design

The flag originates as the coat of arms of the former County Council of Oxfordshire and was created in 1949. Following reorganisation of local government in 1974, the arms ceased to be used by any organisation but the design was later adapted as a flag and widely used across the county. The basic field colour is the dark blue long associated with

Oxford University Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

; against this two broad, white, wavy stripes symbolise the

River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the The Isis, River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, se ...

, and against this sits a red ox head, the combination of which alludes to the origin of the county town of

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

. At the lower left and upper right corners, a golden oak tree and wheatsheaf or garb represent the county's woodland and agriculture.

Previous proposals

St Frideswide Cross

A previous proposal for county flag was called the St Frideswide Cross, honouring a local saint. The green background represents the fields and woodlands of the county; the blue symbolises the

. It was designed by Edward Keene and Michael Garber of the Oxfordshire Association, in conjunction with the Flag Institute's

Graham Bartram The Flag Institute is a UK membership organisation headquartered in Kingston upon Hull, England, concerned with researching and promoting the use and design of flags. It documents flags in the UK and internationally, maintains a UK Flag Regis ...

. In March 2011, the standard was flown for a week alongside the Union Flag outside the Eland House headquarters in Victoria of the

Department for Communities and Local Government The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC), formerly the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG), is a department of His Majesty's Government responsible for housing, communities, local government ...

Armorial banner

An alternative commercially available flag exists, based on a banner of the coat of arms of the Oxfordshire County Council.

Gallery

File:Proposed_Flag_of_Oxfordshire.jpg, St Frideswide Cross File:County_Flag_of_Oxfordshire.svg, Banner of the County Council coat of arms

References

External links

br>British County Flags – Oxfordshire FlagThe Oxfordshire Association – The County Flag Promotion
{{DEFAULTSORT:Flag of Oxfordshire Culture in Oxfordshire