A rainbow flag is a multicolored

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 ...

consisting of the colors of the rainbow. The designs differ, but many of the colors are based on the

spectral color A spectral color is a color that is evoked by ''monochromatic light'', i.e. either a single wavelength of light in the visible spectrum, or by a relatively narrow band of wavelengths (e.g. lasers). Every wavelength of visible light is percei ...

s of the

visible light spectrum The visible spectrum is the portion of the electromagnetic spectrum that is visible to the human eye. Electromagnetic radiation in this range of wavelengths is called ''visible light'' or simply light. A typical human eye will respond to wav ...

. The

LGBT flag The rainbow flag, also known as the (gay) pride flag, is a symbol of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) pride and LGBT social movements. The colors reflect the diversity of the LGBT community and the spectrum of human sexuality ...

introduced in 1978 is the most recognized use of a rainbow flag.

History

In the 18th century,

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

writer

Thomas Paine Thomas Paine (born Thomas Pain; – In the contemporary record as noted by Conway, Paine's birth date is given as January 29, 1736–37. Common practice was to use a dash or a slash to separate the old-style year from the new-style year. In th ...

proposed that a rainbow flag be used as a maritime flag to signify neutral ships in time of war. Contemporary international uses of a rainbow flag dates to the beginning of the 20th century. The

International Co-operative Alliance The International Co-operative Alliance (ICA) is a non-governmental co-operative federation or, more precisely, a co-operative union representing co-operatives and the co-operative movement worldwide. It was founded in 1895 to unite, represent an ...

adopted a rainbow flag in 1925. A similar flag (ca. 1920) is used in Andean indigenism in

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = Seal (emblem), National seal , national_motto = "Fi ...

and

Bolivia , image_flag = Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg , flag_alt = Horizontal tricolor (red, yellow, and green from top to bottom) with the coat of arms of Bolivia in the center , flag_alt2 = 7 × 7 square p ...

to represent the legacy of the

Inca Empire The Inca Empire (also known as the Incan Empire and the Inka Empire), called ''Tawantinsuyu'' by its subjects, (Quechua for the "Realm of the Four Parts", "four parts together" ) was the largest empire in pre-Columbian America. The admin ...

. Since 1961, the international peace flag, also known as the PACE flag, has been especially popular in Italy and to a lesser extent Europe and the rest of the world. The pride flag has represented gay pride since 1978 and evolved into a symbol of the

LGBT movement Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) movements are social movements that advocate for LGBT people in society. Some focus on equal rights, such as the ongoing movement for same-sex marriage, while others focus on liberation, as in the ...

. There are several independent rainbow flags in use today.

Rainbow flags in various cultures and movements

Reformation (1525)

The reformer Thomas Müntzer (1489–1525) connected socially revolutionary claims with his preaching of the gospel ( Genesis 9:11-17, Isaiah 40:8, 1 Peter 1:25). He is often portrayed with a rainbow flag in his hand. The Thomas Müntzer statue in the German town of Stolberg also shows him holding a rainbow flag in his hand. In the

German Peasants' War The German Peasants' War, Great Peasants' War or Great Peasants' Revolt (german: Deutscher Bauernkrieg) was a widespread popular revolt in some German-speaking areas in Central Europe from 1524 to 1525. It failed because of intense oppositio ...

of the 16th century, the rainbow flag together with the peasants' boot ("

Bundschuh The Bundschuh movement (German: ''Bundschuh-Bewegung'') refers to a series of localized peasant rebellions in southwestern Germany from 1493 to 1517. They were one of the causes of the German Peasants' War (1524–1526). The Bundschuh movement wa ...

") was used as the sign of a new era, of hope and of

social change Social change is the alteration of the social order of a society which may include changes in social institutions, social behaviours or social relations. Definition Social change may not refer to the notion of social progress or sociocult ...

. The choice of the rainbow in the form of a flag harkens back to the rainbow as a symbol of

biblical The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts of a ...

promise. According to the Bible, God first created the rainbow as a sign to

Noah Noah ''Nukh''; am, ኖህ, ''Noḥ''; ar, نُوح '; grc, Νῶε ''Nôe'' () is the tenth and last of the pre-Flood patriarchs in the traditions of Abrahamic religions. His story appears in the Hebrew Bible (Book of Genesis, chapters 5– ...

that there would never again be a worldwide flood, also known as the

Rainbow covenant The Hebrew Bible makes reference to a number of covenants ( he, בְּרִיתוֹת) with God (YHWH). These include the Noahic Covenant (in Genesis), which is between God and all living creatures, as well as a number of more specific covenants ...

Armenian Republic proposed flag (1919)

A rainbow flag was proposed for

Armenia Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ''Ox ...

when it regained independence after World War I. It was designed by Armenian artist Martiros Saryan. It was not adopted as the country instead went with three stripes using the colors used in a past Armenian kingdom. The artist used muted, richer colors reflecting Armenian fabrics and carpets.

Cooperative movement (1921)

A seven-colour rainbow flag is a common symbol of the international

cooperative A cooperative (also known as co-operative, co-op, or coop) is "an autonomous association of persons united voluntarily to meet their common economic, social and cultural needs and aspirations through a jointly owned and democratically-control ...

movement. The rainbow flag has been the cooperative emblem since 1921 when the International Co-operative Congress of World Co-op Leaders met in Basel, Switzerland to identify and define the growing cooperative movement's common values and ideals to help unite co-ops around the world. In Essen, Germany in 1922, the

(ICA) designed an international co-op symbol and a flag for the first "Co-operators' Day," which was held in July 1923. After some experiments with different designs, a famous French cooperator, Professor Charles Gide, suggested using the seven colours of the rainbow for the flag. He pointed out that the rainbow symbolized unity in diversity and the power of light, enlightenment and progress. The first co-op rainbow flag was completed in 1924 and was adopted as an official symbol of the international cooperative movement in 1925. In 2001, the ICA's official flag was changed from a rainbow flag to a rainbow logo flag on a white field, to clearly promote and strengthen the cooperative image, but still use the rainbow image. Other organizations sometimes use the traditional rainbow flag as a symbol of cooperation. Like the rainbow, this flag is a symbol of hope and peace. The seven colours from flags around the world fly in harmony. Each of the seven colours in the co-operative flag have been assigned the following meaning: The ICA has been flying a flag with its official logo since April 2001, when its Board decided to replace the traditional rainbow flag. Its use by a number of non-cooperative groups led to confusion in several countries around the world.

Peace movement (1961)

This rainbow flag in Italy was first used in a peace march in 1961, inspired by similar multi-coloured flags used in demonstrations against

nuclear weapon A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission (fission bomb) or a combination of fission and fusion reactions ( thermonuclear bomb), producing a nuclear explosion. Both bom ...

s. It became popular with the ''Pace da tutti i balconi'' ("peace from every balcony") campaign in 2002, started as a protest against the impending war in Iraq. The most common variety has seven colours, purple, blue,

azure Azure may refer to: Colour * Azure (color), a hue of blue ** Azure (heraldry) ** Shades of azure, shades and variations Arts and media * ''Azure'' (Art Farmer and Fritz Pauer album), 1987 * Azure (Gary Peacock and Marilyn Crispell album), 2013 ...

, green, yellow, orange and red, and is emblazoned in bold with the Italian word ''PACE'', meaning "peace". Common variations include moving the purple stripe down below the azure one, and adding a white stripe on top (the original flag from the 60s had a white stripe on top). This flag has been adopted internationally as a symbol of the

peace movement A peace movement is a social movement which seeks to achieve ideals, such as the ending of a particular war (or wars) or minimizing inter-human violence in a particular place or situation. They are often linked to the goal of achieving world peac ...

Andean indigenism (1973, 2009)

The Flag of Cusco was introduced in Peru in 1973, and became used as the official emblem of the city of

Cusco Cusco, often spelled Cuzco (; qu, Qusqu ()), is a city in Southeastern Peru near the Urubamba Valley of the Andes mountain range. It is the capital of the Cusco Region and of the Cusco Province. The city is the list of cities in Peru, seventh m ...

. In 2007, the municipality decided to modify the flag design so that it would not be confused with the Gay Pride flag. The new flag design was implemented in 2021. In Ecuador, a rainbow emblem is used by the '' Pachakutik'' political party (1995), which is composed mostly of left-wing indigenous people. A seven-striped rainbow flag design is used in

and

Ecuador Ecuador ( ; ; Quechua: ''Ikwayur''; Shuar: ''Ecuador'' or ''Ekuatur''), officially the Republic of Ecuador ( es, República del Ecuador, which literally translates as "Republic of the Equator"; Quechua: ''Ikwadur Ripuwlika''; Shuar: ''Eku ...

as a symbol of native ethnic groups and culture, and is anachronistically associated with the

Tawantin Suyu The Inca Empire (also known as the Incan Empire and the Inka Empire), called ''Tawantinsuyu'' by its subjects, ( Quechua for the "Realm of the Four Parts", "four parts together" ) was the largest empire in pre-Columbian America. The adm ...

, or Inca territory. Although commonly believed in Peru to be a flag of the

Incan Empire The Inca Empire (also known as the Incan Empire and the Inka Empire), called ''Tawantinsuyu'' by its subjects, (Quechua for the "Realm of the Four Parts", "four parts together" ) was the largest empire in pre-Columbian America. The admin ...

, the oldest known rainbow flag dates back only to the 18th century and was used by

Túpac Amaru II José Gabriel Condorcanqui ( – May 18, 1781)known as Túpac Amaru II was an indigenous Cacique who led a large Andean rebellion against the Spanish in Peru. He later became a mythical figure in the Peruvian struggle for independence and in ...

during his indigenous revolt against the Spanish.

María Rostworowski María Rostworowski Tovar de Diez Canseco (8 August 1915 – 6 March 2016) was a Peruvian historian known for her extensive and detailed publications on Peruvian Ancient Cultures and the Inca Empire. Biography Rostworowski was born in the Barra ...

, a Peruvian historian known for her extensive and detailed publications about Peruvian Ancient Cultures and the Inca Empire, said about this: "I bet my life, the Inca never had that flag, it never existed, no chronicler mentioned it". The National Academy of Peruvian History has stated on the topic: "The official use of the wrongly called 'Tawantinsuyu flag' is a mistake. In the pre-Hispanic Andean world the concept of flags did not exist, it did not belong to their historic context".

LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender) Pride (1978)

The rainbow flag was popularized as a symbol of the gay community by

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

artist Gilbert Baker in 1978. The different colors are often associated with "diversity" in the gay community (but actually have literal meanings). The flag is used predominantly at gay pride events and in

gay village A gay village is a geographical area with generally recognized boundaries that is inhabited or frequented by many lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBT) people. Gay villages often contain a number of gay-oriented establish ...

s worldwide in various forms including banners, clothing and jewelry. Since the 1990s, its symbolism has been transferred to represent the extended "

LGBT ' is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. In use since the 1990s, the initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender identity. The LGBT term is a ...

" (

lesbian A lesbian is a Homosexuality, homosexual woman.Zimmerman, p. 453. The word is also used for women in relation to their sexual identity or sexual behavior, regardless of sexual orientation, or as an adjective to characterize or associate n ...

, gay,

bisexual Bisexuality is a romantic or sexual attraction or behavior toward both males and females, or to more than one gender. It may also be defined to include romantic or sexual attraction to people regardless of their sex or gender identity, whi ...

and

transgender A transgender (often abbreviated as trans) person is someone whose gender identity or gender expression does not correspond with their sex assigned at birth. Many transgender people experience dysphoria, which they seek to alleviate through tr ...

) community. In 1994, for the 25th anniversary of the

Stonewall riots The Stonewall riots (also known as the Stonewall uprising, Stonewall rebellion, or simply Stonewall) were a series of spontaneous protests by members of the gay community in response to a police raid that began in the early morning hours of Ju ...

in New York city, a mile-long rainbow flag was created by Baker which he later cut into sections that were distributed around the world. The flag was originally created with eight colors, but

pink Pink is the color of a namesake flower that is a pale tint of red. It was first used as a color name in the late 17th century. According to surveys in Europe and the United States, pink is the color most often associated with charm, politeness, ...

and

turquoise Turquoise is an opaque, blue-to-green mineral that is a hydrated phosphate of copper and aluminium, with the chemical formula . It is rare and valuable in finer grades and has been prized as a gemstone and ornamental stone for thousands of yea ...

were removed for production purposes, and since 1979 it has consisted of six colored stripes. It is most commonly flown with the red stripe on top, as the colors appear in a natural rainbow. Aside from the obvious symbolism of a mixed

LGBT community The LGBT community (also known as the LGBTQ+ community, GLBT community, gay community, or queer community) is a loosely defined grouping of lesbian, gay men, gay, bisexuality, bisexual, transgender, and other queer individuals united by a comm ...

, the colors were determined to symbolize: * life (red), * healing (orange), * sunlight (yellow), * nature (green), * harmony/peace (blue), * spirit (purple/violet). The removed colors stood for sexuality (pink) and art/magic (turquoise). During the 1980s, a black stripe representing

AIDS Human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) is a spectrum of conditions caused by infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a retrovirus. Following initial infection an individual m ...

victims was added to the bottom of a rainbow flag as a seventh color and named the "Victory Over AIDS" flag. At various times other colors have been introduced to modify the flag design by Gilbert Baker, including black-and-brown for people of color in 2017, and white-pink-blue for transgender and queer people in 2019.

Basque nationalism (1978)

The leftist Herri Batasuna party used a rainbow version of the

Ikurriña The ikurrina flag (in Basque)EuskaltzaindiaDictionary of the Standard Basque retrieved 2010-10-04. or ikurriña (Spanish spelling of the Basque term) is a Basque symbol and the official flag of the Basque Country Autonomous Community of Spain ...

(Basque national flag) from 1978 until it was dissolved in 2001.

Jewish Autonomous Oblast (1996)

Another variation of rainbow flag is used by Jewish Autonomous Oblast, situated in the Far Eastern Federal District of Russia, by the Chinese border. Proportions 2:3. Adopted first of October 1996. The Jewish Autonomous Oblast has a flag with a seven-colour rainbow. The number of colours is meant to symbolize the seven-branched Jewish Menorah. Its colours are slightly different from the basic spectral colours, with gold in place of yellow, vivid blue instead of light blue, and indigo as dark blue. In 2013, the flag was checked according to the

Russian gay propaganda law The Russian federal law "for the Purpose of Protecting Children from Information Advocating a Denial of Traditional Family Values", also referred to in English-language media as Russia's gay propaganda law or anti-gay law, is a bill that was una ...

. JAO flag was confirmed as safe because of white background, white stripes and the seventh (light blue) colour.

Support for the NHS (2020)

During the

2020 coronavirus pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identified ...

in the United Kingdom, the rainbow symbol has been used to signify support and gratitude for the

National Health Service The National Health Service (NHS) is the umbrella term for the publicly funded healthcare systems of the United Kingdom (UK). Since 1948, they have been funded out of general taxation. There are three systems which are referred to using the " ...

(NHS). However, the increasing association of the six-color Pride rainbow flag with the NHS has caused concern among some members of the LGBT community that it is being disassociated "as a symbol of LGBT equality" and may lead to the erasure of identity.

Other rainbow flags

File:Flag of Buddhism.svg, Buddhist flag File:Gay flag 8.svg, Gay pride flag
(original eight-color version, June 1978) File:Gay flag 7.svg, Gay pride flag
(seven-color version, November 1978) File:GreekRainbowPeaceFlag.svg, Greek peace flag File:Flag of Lingua Franca Nova.svg,

Lingua Franca Nova Lingua Franca Nova (), abbreviated as LFN and known colloquially as Elefen, is an auxiliary constructed language originally created by C. George Boeree of Shippensburg University, Pennsylvania, and further developed by many of its users. Its voc ...

flag File:Flag of South Africa.svg,

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

flag (referred to as the "rainbow flag") File:PACE flag (without text).svg, PACE flag without text File:Bandeira de Foz do Jordão PR.svg,

Foz do Jordão Foz do Jordão is a municipality in the state of Paraná in the Southern Region of Brazil. See also *List of municipalities in Paraná This is a list of the municipalities in the state of Paraná (PR), located in the South Region of Brazil. Pa ...

municipality flag, Brazil

Use of rainbow flag in various settings

File:Christopher Street Day 1997.jpg, Marchers carry the LGBT pride flag at the

pride parade A pride parade (also known as pride march, pride event, or pride festival) is an outdoor event celebrating lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer culture, queer (LGBTQ) social and self-acceptance, achievements, LGBT rights by country o ...

Christopher Street Day Christopher Street Day (CSD) is an annual European LGBTQ+ celebration and demonstration held in various cities across Europe for the rights of LGBTQ+ people, and against discrimination and exclusion. It is Germany's and Switzerland's counterp ...

, Berlin, Germany (1997) File:Warszawa.ParadaRówności2006.5432.jpg, Parada Równości, Warsaw, Poland (2006) File:Bandiere della pace a Milano 2003.jpg, "Pace da tutti i balconi": peace flags hanging from windows,

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...

, Italy, (March 2003) File:2007-04 Stolberg (Harz) 58.jpg, Statue of Thomas Müntzer waving a rainbow flag, Stolberg, Germany (2007) File:Gay Beach-Ipanema-Rio de Janero Brazil.jpg, LGBT flag at

Ipanema Beach Ipanema () is a neighbourhood located in the South Zone of the city of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, between Leblon and Arpoador. The beach at Ipanema became known internationally with the popularity of the bossa nova jazz song, "The Girl from Ipane ...

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...

, Brazil (2006) File:Gilbert Baker-Paris.jpg, French official Memorial to Gilbert Baker (artist), Place des Emeutes de Stonewall, Paris, Le Marais, France File:Rainbow flag finishes its walk across America for the Equality Act.jpg, Finish line of "Civil Rights Walk Across America" by Richard Noble, Jacksonville, Florida (2012)

Use of rainbow flag colors in different designs

File:Патриоты России.jpg, Patriots of Russia, 2005–2013 File:Stockholm Pride 2015 - Pride Park 21 by Jonatan Svensson Glad.JPG, Jewish Gay Pride flag ( Stockholm Pride, Sweden, 2015) File:USA Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender flag.svg, American flag in Gay Pride colors File:Lgbt healthcare symbol.jpg, LGBT health awareness File:Rainbow Gathering welcome road sign.jpg,

Rainbow Family The Rainbow Family of Living Light is a counter-culture, in existence since approximately 1970. It is a loose affiliation of individuals, some nomadic, generally asserting that it has no leader. They put on yearly, primitive camping events on ...

of Living Light banner File:Wu-Wo_Rainbow.jpg, Circular Rainbow Flag of Wu-Wo Tea Ceremony File:We the People Say No to the Bush Agenda by David Shankbone.jpg, Rainbow protest flag used by

Not in Our Name Not in Our Name (NION) was a United States organization founded on March 23, 2002 to protest the U.S. government's course in the wake of the September 11, 2001 attacks; it disbanded on March 31, 2008. Two key documents Early in their existence ...

References

{{Portal bar, Heraldry, LGBT Activism flags Peace symbols Types of flags