heraldry Heraldry is a discipline relating to the design, display and study of armorial bearings (known as armory), as well as related disciplines, such as vexillology, together with the study of ceremony, rank and pedigree. Armory, the best-known bran ...

and

vexillology Vexillology ( ) is the study of the history, symbolism and usage of flags or, by extension, any interest in flags in general.Smith, Whitney. ''Flags Through the Ages and Across the World'' New York: McGraw-Hill, 1975. Print. The word is a synthe ...

, fimbriation is the placement of small stripes of contrasting colour around common charges or ordinaries, usually in order for them to stand out from the background, but often simply due to the designer's subjective aesthetic preferences, or for a more technical reason (in

only) to avoid what would otherwise be a violation of the

rule of tincture The most basic rule of heraldic design is the rule of tincture: metal should not be put on metal, nor colour on colour ( Humphrey Llwyd, 1568). This means that the heraldic metals or and argent (gold and silver, represented by yellow and white) ...

. While fimbriation almost invariably applies to both or all sides of a charge, there are very unusual examples of fimbriation on one side only. Another rather rare form is double fimbriation (blazoned "double fimbriated"), where the charge or ordinary is accompanied by two stripes of colour instead of only one. In cases of double fimbriation the outer colour is blazoned first. The municipal flag of Mozirje, in

Slovenia Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, and ...

, show an example of fimbriation that itself is fimbriated. Fimbriation may also be used when a charge is the same colour as the field on which it is placed. A red charge placed on a red background may be necessary, for instance where the charge and field are both a specific colour for symbolic or historical reasons, and in these cases fimbriation becomes a necessity in order for the charge to be visible. In some cases, such as a fimbriated cross placed on a field of the same colour as the cross, the effect is identical to the use of

cross voided A number of cross symbols were developed for the purpose of the emerging system of heraldry, which appeared in Western Europe in about 1200. This tradition is partly in the use of the Christian cross an emblem from the 11th century, and increasi ...

, i.e. a cross shown in outline only. According to the

, one of the fundamental rules of heraldic design, colour may not be placed on colour nor metal on metal. (In heraldry, "metal" refers to gold and silver, frequently represented using yellow and white respectively. "Colour" refers to all other colours.) Sometimes, however, it is desired to do something like this, so fimbriation is used to comply with the rule. Flag of South Africa

In vexillology that is not specifically heraldic, the rules of heraldry do not apply, yet fimbriation is still frequently seen. The reason for this is largely the same as the reason for the heraldic rule of tincture: that is, the need for visibility — the separation of darker colours by white or yellow is an aid to the visual separation of the darker colours. A good example of a flag which uses fimbriation is the national

flag of South Africa The flag of South Africa was designed in March 1994 and adopted on 27 April 1994, at the beginning of South Africa's 1994 general election, to replace the flag that had been used since 1928. The flag has horizontal bands of red (on the top) ...

which is fimbriated in white above and below the central green area, and in yellow between it and the triangle at the hoist. Though fimbriation is, heraldically, intended to be used to separate areas that are both colours (by the use of a metal) or both metals (by the use of a colour), occasionally flags may be found which use fimbriation in non-standard ways. One example of this is the flag of the

Faroe Islands The Faroe Islands ( ), or simply the Faroes ( fo, Føroyar ; da, Færøerne ), are a North Atlantic island group and an autonomous territory of the Kingdom of Denmark. They are located north-northwest of Scotland, and about halfway bet ...

, which separates a red cross from a white field with blue fimbriation. Another example of this non-standard fimbriation is the flag of the

United Tribes of New Zealand The United Tribes of New Zealand ( mi, Te W(h)akaminenga o Ngā Rangatiratanga o Ngā Hapū o Nū Tīreni, lit=) was a confederation of Māori tribes based in the north of the North Island, existing legally from 1835 to 1840. It received dipl ...

, which separates areas of blue and red with black fimbriation. The

flag of Uzbekistan The flag of Uzbekistan ( uz, Oʻzbekiston davlat bayrogʻi / Ўзбекистон Республикасининг давлат байроғи) consists of three horizontal azure, white and green bands separated by two thin red fimbriations, ...

also uses this form of "pseudo-fimbriation" - it adds a thin red band between a colour and a metal, separating blue (above) and green (below) from a central white

stripe Stripe, striped, or stripes may refer to: Decorations *Stripe (pattern), a line or band that differs in colour or tone from an adjacent surface *Racing stripe, a vehicle decoration *Service stripe, a decoration of the U.S. military Entertainment ...

. Some 15 to 20 countries use fimbriation on their national flags. National flags that use fimbriation include those of

Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago (, ), officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean. Consisting of the main islands Trinidad and Tobago, and numerous much smaller islands, it is situated south of ...

North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korean Peninsula and shares borders with China and Russia to the north, at the Yalu (Amnok) and T ...

Botswana Botswana (, ), officially the Republic of Botswana ( tn, Lefatshe la Botswana, label= Setswana, ), is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat, with approximately 70 percent of its territory being the Kal ...

Kenya ) , national_anthem = " Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi , ...

and - most famously - the British

Union Flag The Union Jack, or Union Flag, is the ''de facto'' national flag of the United Kingdom. Although no law has been passed making the Union Flag the official national flag of the United Kingdom, it has effectively become such through precedent. ...

. On this last flag the fimbriation is unusual, as a white fimbriation separates a blue field from a red cross (representing England) but also from a divided red and white saltire (the red representing Ireland and the white representing Scotland). The white fimbriation along the white part of the saltire - possibly unique in

- is responsible for the famous "lopsidedness" of the Union Jack, giving it the appearance of having a red saltire fimbriated more widely on one side than the other.

Flags using fimbriation

File:Flag of Åland.svg, Flag of the Åland Islands (Finland) File:Flag of American Samoa.svg,

Flag of American Samoa The flag of American Samoa is a flag consisting of a red-edged white triangle pointing towards the hoist charged with a bald eagle clutching a war club and fly-whisk, with dark blue upper and lower triangles. Adopted in April 1960 to replace the " ...

(United States) File:Flag of Botswana.svg,

Flag of Botswana The national flag of Botswana ( Setswana: ''folaga ya Botswana'') consists of a sky blue field cut horizontally in the centre by a black stripe with a thin white frame. Adopted in 1966 to replace the Union Jack, it has been the flag of the Repu ...

File:Flag of Burundi.svg,

Flag of Burundi 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 emplo ...

File:Flag of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.svg,

Flag of the Democratic Republic of the Congo The national flag of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (french: drapeau de la république démocratique du Congo) is a sky blue flag, adorned with a yellow star in the upper left canton and cut diagonally by a red stripe with a yellow fimb ...

File:Flag of Eswatini.svg,

Flag of Eswatini The flag of Eswatini was adopted on October 6, 1968 after Eswatini (formerly known as Swaziland) gained independence from the British Empire one month before. The design by King Sobhuza II Sobhuza II, (; also known as Nkhotfotjeni, Mona; 2 ...

File:Flag of the Faroe Islands.svg,

Flag of the Faroe Islands The flag of the Faroe Islands (in faroese: ''Merkið'') is an offset cross, representing Christianity. It is similar in design to other Nordic flags – a tradition set by the ''Dannebrog'' of Denmark, of which the Faroe Islands are an auto ...

(Denmark) File:Flag of The Gambia.svg,

Flag of the Gambia The flag of the Gambia is the national flag of the Gambia. It consists of three horizontal red, blue and green bands separated by two thin white lines. Adopted in 1965 to replace the British Blue Ensign defaced with the arms of the Gambia Colon ...

File:Flag of Iceland.svg,

Flag of Iceland The flag of Iceland ( is, íslenski fáninn) was officially described in Law No. 34, set out on 17 June 1944, the day Iceland became a republic. The law is entitled "The Law of the National Flag of Icelanders and the State Arms" and describes ...

File:Flag of Kenya.svg,

Flag of Kenya The Flag of Kenya () is a tricolour of black, red, and green with two white edges imposed with a red, white and black Maasai shield and two crossed spears. The flag is based on that of Kenya African National Union and was officially adopted o ...

File:Flag of Mississippi.svg, Flag of Mississippi (United States) File:Flag of Mozambique.svg,

Flag of Mozambique The flag of Mozambique is the national flag of the Republic of Mozambique that was adopted on 1 May 1983. It is a tricolor flag with white fimbriations and a red triangle. Teal stands for the riches of the land, the white fimbriations signify ...

File:Flag of Namibia.svg, Flag of Namibia File:Flag of New Zealand.svg, Flag of New Zealand File:Flag of North Korea.svg,

Flag of North Korea The flag of North Korea, also known as the Ramhongsaek Konghwagukgi ( ko, 람홍색공화국기; literally "blue and red-coloured flag of the republic"), sometimes known as the flag of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, consists of a ce ...

File:Flag of Norway.svg,

Flag of Norway The national flag of Norway ( nb, Norges flagg; nn, Noregs flagg; ) is red with a navy blue Scandinavian cross fimbriated in white that extends to the edges of the flag; the vertical part of the cross is shifted to the hoist side in the style ...

File:Flag of Saint Kitts and Nevis.svg,

Flag of Saint Kitts and Nevis The flag of Saint Kitts and Nevis consists of a yellow-edged black band containing two white stars that divides diagonally from the lower hoist-side corner, with a green upper triangle and red lower triangle. Adopted in 1983 to replace the fl ...

File:Flag of the Solomon Islands.svg,

Flag of the Solomon Islands The flag of Solomon Islands consists of a thin yellow diagonal stripe divided diagonally from the lower hoist-side corner, with a blue upper triangle and green lower triangle, and the canton charged with five white stars. Adopted in 1977 to ...

File:Flag of South Africa.svg,

Flag of South Africa The flag of South Africa was designed in March 1994 and adopted on 27 April 1994, at the beginning of South Africa's 1994 general election, to replace the flag that had been used since 1928. The flag has horizontal bands of red (on the top) ...

File:Flag of South Sudan.svg,

Flag of South Sudan The flag of South Sudan was adopted following the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement that ended the Second Sudanese Civil War. A similar version of the flag was previously used as the flag of the Sudan People's Liberation Movement. The ...

File:Flag of Suriname.svg,

Flag of Suriname The Flag of Suriname was legally adopted on 25 November 1975, upon the independence of Suriname. The flag was designed as a result of a national competition. It was raised for the first time on the Independence Day of the Republic of Surina ...

File:Flag of Tanzania.svg,

Flag of Tanzania The flag of Tanzania ( sw, bendera ya Tanzania) consists of a yellow-edged black diagonal band, divided diagonally from the lower hoist-side corner, with a green upper triangle and light blue lower triangle. Adopted in 1964 to replace the indiv ...

File:Flag of Trinidad and Tobago.svg, Flag of Trinidad and Tobago File:Flag of the United Kingdom.svg,

Flag of the United Kingdom The national flag of the United Kingdom is the Union Jack, also known as the Union Flag. The design of the Union Jack dates back to the Act of Union 1801 which united the Kingdom of Great Britain and the Kingdom of Ireland (previously in per ...

File:Flag of Uzbekistan.svg,

Flag of Uzbekistan The flag of Uzbekistan ( uz, Oʻzbekiston davlat bayrogʻi / Ўзбекистон Республикасининг давлат байроғи) consists of three horizontal azure, white and green bands separated by two thin red fimbriations, ...

File:Flag of Vanuatu.svg,

Flag of Vanuatu The flag of Vanuatu (Bislama: ) was adopted on 18 February 1980. In 1977 a flag of almost the same colours and symbolism as the future national flag was designed by local artist Kalontas Malon and adopted by the Vanua'aku Pati. When the part ...

References

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