Flag of South Korea
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| Name | Taegeukgi 태극기 太極旗 |
|---|---|
| Use | National flag and ensign |
| Proportion | 2:3 |
| Adopted | March 6, 1883 (Original version) July 12, 1948 (Current version) |
| Flag of South Korea | |
|---|---|
| Hangul | 태극기 |
| Hanja | 太極旗 |
| Revised Romanization | Taegeukgi |
| McCune–Reischauer | T'aegŭkki |
The flag of South Korea, or Taegeukgi (also spelled Taegukgi in convention) has three parts: a white background; a red and blue taegeuk (also known as Taiji and Yinyang) in the center; and four black trigrams, one in each corner of the flag. These trigrams are carried over from the eight trigrams (Ba gua), which are of Daoist origin. Taiji, Trigrams and Taoism are parts of the Korean Culture which originated in China.
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Design [edit]
The white background symbolizes "cleanliness of the people". The Taegeuk represents the origin of all things in the universe; holding the two principles of yin and yang in perfect balance; the former being the negative aspect rendered in blue, and the latter as the positive aspect rendered in red. Together, they represent a continuous movement within infinity, the two merging as one.
The four trigrams are described in this table:
| Name in Korean | Nature | Seasons | Cardinal directions | Four virtues | Family | Four elements | Meanings | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
geon (건 / 乾) |
sky (천 / 天) |
spring (춘 / 春) |
east (동 / 東) |
humanity (인 / 仁) |
father (부 / 父) |
heaven (천 / 天) |
justice (정의 / 正義) |
 |
ri (리 / 離) |
sun (일 / 日) |
autumn (추 / 秋) |
south (남 / 南) |
justice (의 / 義) |
daughter (녀 / 女) |
fire (화 / 火) |
fruition (결실 / 結實) |
 |
gam (감 / 坎) |
moon (월 / 月) |
winter (동 / 冬) |
north (북 / 北) |
intelligence (지 / 智) |
son (자 / 子) |
water (수 / 水) |
wisdom (지혜 / 智慧) |
 |
gon (곤 / 坤) |
earth (지 / 地) |
summer (하 / 夏) |
west (서 / 西) |
courtesy (예 / 禮) |
mother (모 / 母) |
earth (토 / 土) |
vitality (생명력 / 生命力) |
History [edit]
The earliest surviving depiction of the flag was printed in a U.S. Navy book Flags of Maritime Nations in July 1882.[4]The flag was designed by King Gojong[5] or Pak Yeong-hyo[6] in 1882 by the deletion of four of these trigrams, and Taegeukgi was adopted as the national flag of Joseon Dynasty on March 6, 1883.
After independence, both North and South Korea adopted versions of the Taegeukgi, but North Korea changed its national flag to a more Soviet-inspired design after three years (see article Flag of North Korea).[7]
The Constituent Assembly of the Republic of Korea (South Korea) adopted the Taegeukgi as the national flag on July 12, 1948. After the establishment of the government of the Republic of Korea, "The Rules for the Flag of the Republic of Korea" were first enacted.
Specifications [edit]
Dimensions [edit]
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Colors [edit]
The colors of Taegukgi are specified on the "Ordinance Act of the Law concerning the National Flag of the Republic of Korea (대한민국국기법시행령).[8][9] There was no specification for shade of colors until 1997, when South Korean government decided to provide standard specification for the flag. On October, 1997, Presidential ordinance on the standard specification of the flag of the Republic of Korea was promulgated,[10] and that specification was acceded by the National Flag Law in 2007.
The colors are defined in legislation by the Munsell and CIE color systems:
| Scheme | Munsell[11] | CIE (x, y, Y)[11] | Pantone[12] | Hex triplet[13] |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| White | N 9.5 | N/A | N/A | #FFFFFF |
| Red | 6.0R 4.5/14 | 0.5640, 0.3194, 15.3 | 186 Coated | #C60C30 |
| Blue | 5.0PB 3.0/12 | 0.1556, 0.1354, 6.5 | 294 Coated | #003478 |
| Black | N 0.5 | N/A | N/A | #000000 |
Early Taegeukgi [edit]
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Taegeukgi of the Joseon Dynasty (before 1800) -
Taegeukgi of the Joseon Dynasty, King Jeongjo (ca. 1800) -
Flag of the Joseon Dynasty (Qing Empire tributary, March 1883) -
Flag of the Joseon Dynasty (Qing Empire tributary, March 1883) -
Flag of the Joseon Dynasty (Qing Empire tributary, March 1883) -
Taegeukgi by Park Yeong-hyo (September 1882) -
Taegeukgi (November 1882) -
Taegeukgi (1910) -
Taegeukgi on a U.S. postage stamp (1944)
See also [edit]
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Flags of South Korea |
- South Korea
- List of South Korean flags
- Korean Unification Flag
- Flag of North Korea
- Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag of South Korea
- Taegeuk, Taiji, Yinyang
- Yijing, Bagua, Bagua zhang
- Daoism, Daoism in Korea
- Fu Xi & Nüwa
References [edit]
- ^ "Oldest Flags Pictures found" (in Korean). chosun.com. 2004.01.26.
- ^ "Discovery of Old Flag Discredits 'Taegukgi' Legend". chosun.com. 26, January 2004.
- ^ "Discovery of Old Flag Discredits 'Taegukgi' Legend". chosun.com. 26, January 2004. Editor's note: The captions of images are wrong and should be interchanged each other.
- ^ United States. Navy Dept. Bureau of Navigation (1882). Flags of maritime nations: from the most authentic sources. Bureau of Navigation. p. 16.
- ^ Taegeukgi, Naver Encyclopedia
- ^ Korea Observer (Academy of Korean Studies) 27: 322. 1996. ISSN 0023-3919.
- ^ History of the South Korean flag at FOTW.
- ^ 대한민국국기법시행령 (Ordinance Act of the Law concerning the National Flag of the Republic of Korea), Article 6–9.
- ^ 대한민국국기법시행령 별표2 (Ordinance Act of the Law concerning the National Flag of the Republic of Korea, Table 2)
- ^ Standard specification of Tagukgi
- ^ a b "깃면" [Geometry of the National Flag] (in Korean). Ministry of Public Administration and Security. 2009. Retrieved 2010-02-16.
- ^ [1][dead link]
- ^ edigita. "eDigita Web Design - Pantone to Hex Color Conversion". Edigita.com. Retrieved 2012-12-19.
External links [edit]
- http://english.president.go.kr/warp/en/korea/symbols/flag/ Accessed 6 February 2006. Source of colour specifications.
- http://www.opm.go.kr/warp/en/korea/symbols/ Accessed 6 February 2006
- http://www.korea.net/korea/kor_loca.asp?code=L05 Accessed 27 July 2008
- http://www.songpr.com/
- Chosun Ilbo article on history of flag
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