The flag of

Trondheim Trondheim ( , , ; sma, Tråante), historically Kaupangen, Nidaros and Trondhjem (), is a city and municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. As of 2020, it had a population of 205,332, was the third most populous municipality in Norway, and ...

is one of the official symbols of the city and municipality of Trondheim in

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

. Most Norwegian municipalities have a banner of their respective coats of arms as a flag. Trondheim has no modern heraldic coat of arms, but a seal unsuitable as a banner of arms, a yellow "Trondheim rose" on a red field was chosen for the flag of Trondheim. The designer of the flag was professor Arne E. Holm, whose proposal was approved by the municipal council in 1989, and confirmed by royal order the same year.

Symbolism

The four-petal

dog rose ''Rosa canina'', commonly known as the dog rose, is a variable climbing, wild rose species native to Europe, northwest Africa, and western Asia. Description The dog rose is a deciduous shrub normally ranging in height from , though sometimes it ...

is the official flower of the city and its stylized form is related to the

Tudor rose The Tudor rose (sometimes called the Union rose) is the traditional floral heraldic badge, heraldic emblem of England and takes its name and origins from the House of Tudor, which united the House of Lancaster and the House of York. The Tudor ...

. It is found as a symbol in medieval sources among other things representing St. Olav. This flower has been used as a symbol of the city at least since the 16th century. It is earliest preserved in the seal of the church chapter of Trondheim used in the 16th century. In the 17th century, it was used on a green field in the city's citizen guard banner. It has also been used as a symbol of several

guild A guild ( ) is an association of artisans and merchants who oversee the practice of their craft/trade in a particular area. The earliest types of guild formed as organizations of tradesmen belonging to a professional association. They sometimes ...

s such as the

masons Mason may refer to: Occupations * Mason, brick mason, or bricklayer, a craftsman who lays bricks to construct brickwork, or who lays any combination of stones, bricks, cinder blocks, or similar pieces * Stone mason, a craftsman in the stone-cutt ...

baker A baker is a tradesperson who bakes and sometimes sells breads and other products made of flour by using an oven or other concentrated heat source. The place where a baker works is called a bakery. History Ancient history Since grains ha ...

goldsmith A goldsmith is a Metalworking, metalworker who specializes in working with gold and other precious metals. Nowadays they mainly specialize in jewelry-making but historically, goldsmiths have also made cutlery, silverware, platter (dishware), pl ...

s and smiths. In the 18th century, the flower replaced the three heads in the seal of Trondheim. The idea of the rose as a symbol of Trondheim may originally have come into being because of a misinterpretation of the last syllable of the city's old name

Nidaros Nidaros, Niðarós or Niðaróss () was the medieval name of Trondheim when it was the capital of Norway's first Christian kings. It was named for its position at the mouth (Old Norse: ''óss'') of the River Nid (the present-day Nidelva). Althou ...

Reception

The flower has been so closely connected to Trondheim that the Norwegian heraldic authority denied other municipalities the use of it in their coats of arms. The flag of Trondheim has been highlighted as an example of a good city flag design by Roman Mars in his radio show "99% invisible", a radio show focused on design and architecture.

References

Sources

Trondheim municipality page on the Trondheim roseTrondheim municipality page on the flag

Flag A flag is a piece of fabric (most often rectangular or quadrilateral) with a distinctive design and colours. It is used as a symbol, a signalling device, or for decoration. The term ''flag'' is also used to refer to the graphic design empl ...

Flags of Norway Flags of cities {{europe-flag-stub

Symbolism

Reception

See also

References

Sources