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 ...

of the United Nations consists of the emblem depicting the white

azimuthal equidistant projection The azimuthal equidistant projection is an azimuthal map projection. It has the useful properties that all points on the map are at proportionally correct distances from the center point, and that all points on the map are at the correct azimut ...

of the world map, centred on the North Pole, with two white olive branches placed on to its right and left, located on the sky blue background. The emblem was officially adopted on 7 December 1946, and the flag, on 20 October 1947.

Design

The flag of the United Nations consists of the white emblem on the sky blue background. The emblem depicts a

of the world map, centred on the North Pole, with the globe being bisected in the centre by the Prime meridian and the

International Date Line The International Date Line (IDL) is an internationally accepted demarcation on the surface of Earth, running between the South and North Poles and serving as the boundary between one calendar day and the next. It passes through the Pacific O ...

, thus ensuring that no country is at prominence within the flag. The projection of the map extends to 60 degrees south latitude, and includes five concentric circles. The map is inscribed in a wreath consisting of crossed conventionalized branches of the olive tree.General Assembly A/107, Official Seal and Emblem of the United Nations, 15 October 1946
/ref> The size of the emblem on the flag is one half the width of the flag itself. The flag proportions of the aspect ratio of the flag height to its width, are equal 2:3, 3:5 or to the same proportions as the national flag of any country in which the UN flag is flown. White and blue are the official colours of the United Nations. The light blue background colour code is Pantone Matching System 2925. It approximates sky blue. The olive branches are a symbol for peace, and the world map represents all the people and the countries of the world.

History

The organizers of the 1945 United Nations Conference on International Organization in San Francisco, California wanted an insignia that could be made into a pin to identify delegates. United States Secretary of State

Edward Stettinius, Jr. Edward Reilly Stettinius Jr. (October 22, 1900 – October 31, 1949) was an American businessman who served as United States Secretary of State under Presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt and Harry S. Truman from 1944 to 1945, and as U.S. Ambassador ...

was chairperson of the U.S. delegation, and realized that a temporary design might become the permanent symbol of the United Nations. He formed a committee headed by

Oliver Lundquist Oliver Lincoln Lundquist (September 20, 1916 – December 28, 2008) was an American architect and industrial designer who headed the team which was responsible for the design of the United Nations logo and who himself designed the Q-Tip box. B ...

that developed a design consisting of a world map surrounded by leaves from a design created by

Donal McLaughlin Donal McLaughlin (July 26, 1907 – September 27, 2009) was an American architect who played a major role in the design of the flag of the United Nations. Early life and education McLaughlin was born on July 26, 1907, in Manhattan and was ra ...

. McLaughlin had previously worked as chief of graphics for the

Office of Strategic Services The Office of Strategic Services (OSS) was the intelligence agency of the United States during World War II. The OSS was formed as an agency of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) to coordinate espionage activities behind enemy lines for all branc ...

that preceded the

CIA The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian intelligence agency, foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gat ...

. The

used in his design was heavily influenced by the maps created during World War II by Richard Edes Harrison, a popular cartographer working for ''Fortune'' and ''Life.''''''. The blue that appears in the background of the insignia was chosen to be "the opposite of red, the war colour", although the exact shade has never been officially specified by the United Nations. The original colour the group chose in 1945 was a gray blue that differs from the current United Nations flag. The globe used in the original design was an

azimuthal projection In cartography, map projection is the term used to describe a broad set of transformations employed to represent the two-dimensional curved surface of a globe on a plane. In a map projection, coordinates, often expressed as latitude and longitud ...

focused on the North Pole with the United States, the host nation of the conference, at the centre. The projection that was used cut off portions of the Southern Hemisphere at the latitude of Argentina, which was acceptable at the time, as Argentina was not planned to be an original member of the United Nations.Heller, Steven
"Oliver Lincoln Lundquist, Designer, Is Dead at 92 "
'' The New York Times'', 3 January 2009. Accessed 4 January 2009. The projection was later altered so that no country will be at prominence within the flag. The new logo was now designed so that the globe is bisected in the centre by the Prime Meridian and the

. The earlier version of the emblem had the globe 90 degrees turned eastward compared with the present flag, which has the Prime Meridian and the

forming the vertical diameter. According to press statements, the change was made to move

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

away from the centre of the emblem. In 1946, a UNO committee got the task of making a definite design, which was presented 2 December 1946. The emblem was adopted by the plenary session of the UNO on 7 December 1946, and the flag was officially adopted on 20 October 1947.

Use

According to the Convention on the Safety of United Nations and Associated Personnel, the emblem and the flag of the United Nations can be used by the personnel and material of UN

peacekeeping Peacekeeping comprises activities intended to create conditions that favour lasting peace. Research generally finds that peacekeeping reduces civilian and battlefield deaths, as well as reduces the risk of renewed warfare. Within the United N ...

missions as a protective sign to prevent attacks during an

armed conflict War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, destruction, and mortality, using regular ...

. The United Nations flag may also be flown as a garrison flag with other country flags. Garrison size is 10 feet by 30 feet.

Derived flags

Agencies and organizations

National flags

The UN flag is the origin of a family of national flags. Because of the UN's association with peace and cooperation, UN-inspired flags are often adopted by nations experiencing conflict or instability. Many nations with UN-inspired flags either were or were a part of United Nations trust territories.

Use outside UN

* The UN flag is depicted in the background of former UN Secretary-General Dag Hammarskjöld on Sweden's 1,000 SEK banknote, the currency's highest denomination. The banknotes have been in circulation since October 2015.

Notes

References

External links

UN Flag Code, 20 November 2020

United Nations Flag Code
* {{United Nations United Nations United Nations United Nations