The

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 ...

that serves as the symbol of the historical and geographical region of the

Upper Silesia Upper Silesia ( pl, Górny Śląsk; szl, Gůrny Ślůnsk, Gōrny Ślōnsk; cs, Horní Slezsko; german: Oberschlesien; Silesian German: ; la, Silesia Superior) is the southeastern part of the historical and geographical region of Silesia, located ...

, and as one of the symbols of the Silesian people, is divided horizontally into two stripes: yellow on the top and blue on the bottom. It originated as the flag of the

Province of Upper Silesia The Province of Upper Silesia (german: Provinz Oberschlesien; Silesian German: ''Provinz Oberschläsing''; szl, Prowincyjŏ Gōrny Ślōnsk; pl, Prowincja Górny Śląsk) was a province of the Free State of Prussia from 1919 to 1945. It comprise ...

adopted in 1920, with its colours based on the coat of arms of Upper Silesia. The flag is also popular symbol used by the

Silesian Autonomy Movement The Silesian Autonomy Movement ( szl, Ruch Autōnōmije Ślōnska, pl, Ruch Autonomii Śląska, german: Bewegung für die Autonomie Schlesiens), abbreviated as RAŚ, is a movement officially declaring its support for the autonomy of Silesia as pa ...

Design

The flag is a rectangle divided horizontally into two stripes: yellow on the top and blue on the bottom. The aspect ratio of its height to its width is equal 2:3. The version depicting the coat of arms of Upper Silesia in centre is also used. Such coat of arms depicts a yellow eagle in blue escutcheon (shield).

History

The

adopted its flag in 1920. It was rectangle divided horizontally into two stripes: yellow on top, and dark blue on the bottom. The aspect ratio of its height to its width was equal 2:3. Its colours had been based on the coat of arms of Upper Silesia. It was used until 1935, when

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

forbid its provinces from flying its flags, ordering them to replace them with the

national flag A national flag is a flag that represents and symbolizes a given nation. It is flown by the government of that nation, but usually can also be flown by its citizens. A national flag is typically designed with specific meanings for its colours ...

On 23 April 1920, the Union of Upper Silesians, an independence movement for

, proposed a design for a flag of the potential Upper Silesian independent state. The flag would be divided horizontally into three stripes, that were, from top to bottom: black, white, and yellow. The movement operated until 1924. Currently, the yellow and blue flag is used as one of the symbols of the Silesian people, especially those inhabiting the area of Upper Silesia. The flag is also popular symbol used by the

, a movement established in 2001, supporting the autonomy of

Silesia Silesia (, also , ) is a historical region of Central Europe that lies mostly within Poland, with small parts in the Czech Republic and Germany. Its area is approximately , and the population is estimated at around 8,000,000. Silesia is split ...

within

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

. Since 2011, on 15 July, in the

Silesian Voivodeship Silesian Voivodeship, or Silesia Province ( pl, województwo śląskie ) is a voivodeship, or province, in southern Poland, centered on the historic region known as Upper Silesia ('), with Katowice serving as its capital. Despite the Silesian ...

is celebrated the Silesian Flag Day.

Derived flags

Opole Voivodeship

On 21 December 2004, the

Opole Voivodeship Opole Voivodeship, or Opole Province ( pl, województwo opolskie ), is the smallest and least populated voivodeship (province) of Poland. The province's name derives from that of the region's capital and largest city, Opole. It is part of Upper S ...

adopted its

, that was based on the flag of Upper Silesia. The civil flag of the voivodeship is a rectangle, with an aspect ratio of its height to its width eqal 5:8. It is divided into two horizontal stripes, with yellow on the top, and blue at the bottom. The top stripe is twice the size of the bottom one. The state flag of the voivodeship uses the design of the civil flag, with the

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central ele ...

of the voivodeship placed in the right corner, within the yellow stripe. The coat of arms depicts a yellow (golden)

eagle Eagle is the common name for many large birds of prey of the family Accipitridae. Eagles belong to several groups of genera, some of which are closely related. Most of the 68 species of eagle are from Eurasia and Africa. Outside this area, just ...

on the blue background within the Old French style escutcheon. Both flags were designed by Michał Marciniak-Kożuchowski. POL województwo opolskie flag.svg, The

civil flag A civil flag is a version of the national flag that is flown by civilians on nongovernmental installations or craft. The use of civil flags was more common in the past to denote buildings or ships not crewed by the military. In some countries, t ...

of the

. POL województwo opolskie flag formal.svg, The

state flag In vexillology, a state flag is either the flag of the government of a sovereign state, or the flag of an individual federated state (subnational administrative division). Government flag A state flag is a variant of a national flag (or occas ...

of the Opole Voivodeship.

Silesian Voivodeship

On 11 June 2001, the

adopted its

civil Civil may refer to: *Civic virtue, or civility *Civil action, or lawsuit * Civil affairs *Civil and political rights *Civil disobedience *Civil engineering *Civil (journalism), a platform for independent journalism *Civilian, someone not a membe ...

and

s, based on yellow and blue colours of the coat of arms of Upper Silesia. The civil flag is a triband rectangle, with an aspect ratio of its height to its width equal 5:8. It is divided into three stripes, that are from top to bottom: blue, yellow, and blue. The blue stripes are twice the size of the yellow middle stripe. Their proportion of the flag is each, while the yellow stripe is . The state flag of the voivodeship is a blue rectangle, with an aspect ratio of its height to its width equal 5:8. In its centre is placed a yellow

, adopted from the

of the voivodeship.
ZASADY UŻYWANIA HERBU I FLAG WOJEWÓDZTWA ŚLĄSKIEGO
'. Both flags were designed by Barbara Widłak. POL województwo śląskie flag.svg, The

of the

. POL województwo śląskie flag formal.svg, The

of the Silesian Voivodeship.

References

External links

* {{German flags Upper Silesia

1920 establishments in Germany Province of Upper Silesia