The
city flag
The list of city flags lists the flags of cities. Most of the city flags are based on the coat of arms or emblems of its city itself, and city flags can be also used by the coat of arms and emblems on its flag. Most of the city flags are flown out ...
of
Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...
was designed by Idyl King Sorsby for the occasion of the
semicentennial of the city of Birmingham in 1921.
The flag was officially adopted as the city's flag on August 18, 1925.
Design
The flag consists of a vertical
triband of red-white-red stripes in proportion 4:7:4. Escutcheoned in the center of the flag is a red star, surrounded by a ring of 67 tiny golden stars. Radiating out of these stars are 85 golden rays, forming another circle. Within the large red star is the official seal of the city of Birmingham in gold and black. Surrounding the seal are seven golden notches.
Symbolism
The seal of the city includes a depiction of
Vulcan, the Roman god of smiths and metalworkers. By the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Birmingham was the center of industry and ironworking in the southern states of the US.
The designer of the flag provided a number of explanations for the colours used in the flag:
* White: reflected the purity of the women of the city.
* Red: symbolic of the valour of the men of Birmingham.
* Gold: points towards the mineral wealth of the city as well as the high standard of its citizens.
The large red star was included to represent the city, whilst the golden notches reflect Birmingham being a 'hub' of commerce and industry in the region.
The 67 golden stars were included to represent the 67
counties of Alabama, whereas the 85 golden rays suggest that 'All roads lead to Birmingham'; a play on the proverb
'All roads lead to Rome.'
NAVA survey
In 2004, the
North American Vexillological Association
The North American Vexillological Association (NAVA) is a membership organization devoted to vexillology, the study of flags. It was founded in 1967 by American vexillologist Whitney Smith, and others. Its membership of 1,100+ comprises flag s ...
conducted a survey of 450 members and visitors to its website to identify the best- and worst-designed city flags in the
United States
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
. Birmingham's flag ranked 39th out of 150 with a mean rating of 4.97 on a scale of 0 to 10.
Notes
References
Further reading
*
*Norton, Bertha Bendall. (1970) ''Birmingham's First Magic Century: Were You There?''. Birmingham: Lakeshore Press. p. xi
{{DEFAULTSORT:Birmingham, Alabama, Flag of
Flag
A flag is a piece of textile, fabric (most often rectangular) with distinctive colours and design. It is used as a symbol, a signalling device, or for decoration. The term ''flag'' is also used to refer to the graphic design employed, and fla ...
Flags of cities in Alabama
Flags introduced in 1921
1925 establishments in Alabama
Flags with stars