World’s Most Obscure Flags: Listed below are the eight most intriguing national flags across the globe.
The Olympics are a time for each country to showcase their national flags and one of the few times many people get to admire some of the lesser-known flags. Listed below are eight of the most obscure and intriguing flags across the globe.
#8: Mozambique
Mozambique strives to be different with their flag, by including an AK-47 assault rifle and a bayonet in its national emblem. In 2005, they held a design contest for a replacement flag but so far, the machine gun remains.
#7: Iran
What may appear as a standard tricolor flag at first, this flag has a hidden message. Upon close inspection, between each stripe is a stylized calligraphy that reads “Allahu Akbar” (God is Great) and is repeated 22 times in two rows of 11. The numerology 11/22 symbolizes the Persian calendar equivalent of February 11, the date of the 1979 Islamic revolution.
#6: Denmark
The oldest state flag legend says God drew up this design personally. During the Battle of Lyndanisse in 1219, a Danish priest supposedly defeated his enemies by praying for a miracle, after which this flag fell from the heavens. All Nordic flags today have designs based upon Denmark’s flag.
#5: Grenada
There is a yellow and red flame-spaced symbol on the left side of Grenada’s flag, which signifies a clove of nutmeg, the country’s most important export. Because of that, Grenada is sometime known as the “Spice Island.”
#4: Kyrgyzstan
In an ancient legend, the national hero Manas the Nobel united the land’s 40 tribes by waving a blood-red flag. Today, the red color still prevails with a 40-rays sun representing the tribes. The curved lines in the sun are supposed to mirror a bird’s-eye view of a yurt, the traditional tent of Kyrgyzstan’s nomadic people.
#3: Turkmenistan
Known for their world-famous craftsmanship of gorgeous carpets, the stripe at the left is an intricate stack of five traditional medallions used in local carpet design. This is the world’s only flag to wear a rug!
#2: Nepal
This mountainous land boasts the world’s only nonrectangular flag. The shape originates from two separate triangular flags, one displaying the sun and the other the moon that previously flew on top of each other. The bright crimson red color symbolizes the rhododendron, Nepal’s national flower.
#1: Nauru
Only this tiny Pacific island shows visitors how to find their country from space. The blue background represents the ocean, while the gold stripe signifies the equator. The country resides precisely where the twelve-pointed star is, just one degree below the equator.
Source: Huffington Post
