List of Estonian flags
The national flag of Estonia is a tricolour featuring three equal horizontal bands of blue (top), black, and white. The normal size is 105 × 165 cm. In Estonian it is colloquially called the "sinimustvalge" (literally "blue-black-white"), after the colours of the bands. The flag became associated with Estonian nationalism in the beginning of the 20th century and was used as the national flag (riigilipp) when the Estonian Declaration of Independence was issued on 24 February 1918. The flag was formally adopted on 21 November 1918. On 12 December 1918 the flag was raised for the first time as the national symbol atop of the Pikk Hermann tower in Tallinn.[1]
The following is a list of flags of Estonia.
National flag
| Flag | Date | Use | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
1918–1940 1944 1988/1990–present |
Flag of Estonia (State flag and civil ensign) | Dimensions are 7:11. |
.svg) |
1918–1940 1944 1988/1990–present |
Flag of Estonia (vertical) |
Standards
Head of state
| Flag | Date | Use | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
1992–present 1927[2]–1940 |
Presidential standard | National tricolour with the greater coat of arms in the center |
.svg)
|
?–present | Presidential standard (maritime use) | Swallow-tailed tricolour with the greater coat of arms in the center |
Ministers
| Flag | Date | Use | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
?–present | Defence Minister | National tricolour with the lesser coat of arms off-set to hoist |
| Flag | Date | Use | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
2008–present | Flag of the Estonian Defense Forces | Coat of arms of Estonia in banner form |
|
| Flag | Date | Use | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
?–present | Flag of the Estonian Land Forces |
| Flag | Date | Use | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
|
1991–present 1926–1940 |
Naval ensign | Swallow-tailed tricolour with the lesser coat of arms in the center |
 |
1991–present 1926–1940 |
Naval jack | Dimension: 7:11 (the saltaire equals 1 part, the George's cross 2 parts) It resembles the Union Jack of the United Kingdom |
|
1991–present 1926–1940 |
Flag of Commander in Chief | |
|
?–present | Rear admiral’s Flag | Flag similar to CinC Armed Forces but without any yellow borders |
|
?–present | Lieutenant general’s Flag | Flag similar to CinC Armed Forces but with yellow edge only at the top |
|
?–present | Major general’s flag | Flag similar to CinC Armed Forces but with yellow edge only along the lower edge |
|
?–present | Chief of Naval Forces | White triangular swallow tailed pennant (broad pennant) with blue "chevron" rising from the hoist and with yellow anchor near the hoist |
|
?–present | Chief of division | The same flag as Chief of Naval Forces, but without the anchor |
|
?–present | Senior Officer Afloat | White triangular pennant with horizontal blue stripe through the middle |
 |
?–present | General Agent of the Navy | National flag with a white square with two crossed anchors in the top canton |
|
?–present 1923–1940 |
Presidential pennant | |
|
?–present | Masthead pennant | White pennant tapering toward the point in the fly from about the half of the length with the national tricolour at hoist |
Air Force
| Flag | Date | Use | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
.png) |
?–present | State flag of the Estonian Air Force | |
.png) |
?–present | Flag of the Estonian Air Force |
| Flag | Date | Use | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
?–present | Flag of the Defence League (obverse) | |
 |
?–present | Flag of the Defence League (reverse) |
Government flags
| Flag | Date | Use | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
|
?–present | Minister of Internal Affairs pennant | |
|
?–present | Border Guard pennant | |
 |
?–present | Police and Border Guard flag | Coat of arms of Police and Border Guard Board in banner form |
 |
1993–present | Flag of the Estonian Internal Security Service | Dark blue field with its coat of arms in the middle, "VIRTUTE ET CONSTANTIA" at the top, and "KAITSEPOLITSEIAMET" (historical), "1993" at the bottom.[3][4] |
 |
1923–present[5] | Border Guard | The letters PV are visible on the national flag which is defaced with green and yellow markings |
| |||
 |
2004–present | Customs flag | |
.svg) |
1923[6]–2004 | Customs flag | National flag with red square bearing caduceus and letter T in the top canton |
Sporting Flags
| Flag | Date | Use | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
Flag of Estonian Olympic Committee | A white flag with the logo of Estonian Olympic Committee in the middle. |
Postal Flag
| Flag | Date | Use | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
1994–2009[7] | Postal flag | Flag of Estonia defaced with a post horn |
| Flag | Administrative division | Adopted | Description | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
 |
Harju | 1939[8]–present | |
 |
 |
Hiiu | 1996–present | |
 |
 |
Ida-Viru | 1997–present | |
 |
 |
Jõgeva | 1996–present | |
 |
 |
Järva | 1939[8]–present | |
 |
 |
Lääne | 1939[8]–present | |
 |
 |
Lääne-Viru | 1996–present | |
 |
 |
Põlva | 1996–present | |
 |
 |
Pärnu | 1939[8]–present | |
 |
 |
Rapla | 1996–present | |
 |
 |
Saare | 1939[8]–present | |
 |
 |
Tartu | 1939[8]–present | |
 |
 |
Valga | 1939[8]–present | |
 |
 |
Viljandi | 1939[8]–present | |
 |
 |
Võru | 1939[8]–present | |
History
-
![Petseri County (1939[8]–1940)](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1e/Flag_of_Petserimaa.svg/120px-Flag_of_Petserimaa.svg.png)
Petseri County (1939[8]–1940)
![Petseri County (1939[8]–1940)](/wiki/File:Flag_of_Petserimaa.svg)
Municipal flags
Political flags
| Flag | Date | Party | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
1994–present | Estonian Reform Party | |
 |
1991–present | Estonian Centre Party | |
 |
2006–present | Isamaa | |
 |
2012–present | Conservative People's Party of Estonia | |
 |
1917-1935 | Farmers' Assemblies |
Ethnic groups flags
| Flag | Date | Use | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
?–present | Flag of Setos | |
  |
2003–present ?–present |
Flags of Votes | |
 .svg) |
2013–present ?–present |
Flags of Võros | |
 |
?–present | Flags of Mulgi peopleet | |
 |
1918–present | Flag of the Baltic German | |
 |
1996–present | Flag of the Estonian Swedes | [9] |
Historical flags
| Flag | Date | Use | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
1219–1346 1559–1645 |
Flag of Duchy of Estonia | Flag of Denmark |
 |
1237–1561 | Banner of State of the Teutonic Order | |
 |
1456-1537 | Flag of Kalmar Union | "Banner of the realms" as described by Eric of Pomerania in 1430 |
.svg) |
1561–ca. 1650 | Flag of Duchy of Estonia | Flag of Sweden |
 |
1569–1629 | Flag of Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth (Duchy of Livonia) | A tailed tricolour in red, white and red with royal coat of arms in the middle. See also Banner of Poland. |
 |
1705–1917 and 1896–1917 | Merchant flag of Russia Flag of Russia |
|
 |
1858–1896 | State flag of Russia | |
.svg) |
1914–1917 | Flag of Russia (for private use) | |
 |
1721–1918 | Flag of Governorate of Livonia | A tricolour with horizontal bends of red, green and white. |
 |
1721–1918 | Flag of Governorate of Estonia | A tricolour with horizontal bends of green, purple and white. |
 |
1913–1918 | Flag of Rotalia | A tricolour with horizontal bends of blue, black and green. |
 |
1917–1918 | Soviet Republic of Naissaar | The republic’s flag, which reads “Death to the bourgeoisie” |
 |
1917–1918 | Bolshevik flag | A red flag |
.svg) |
1918 | Flag of German Empire (Ober Ost) | The German Empire flag |
|
|
1918-1940
1944 |
Flag of Republic of Estonia | Flag used by Estonia from its independence war to soviet occupation in 1940 |
 |
1918–1919
(50 days) |
Flag of the Estonian Workers' Commune | A red flag with a golden canton. Inside the canton, the texts meaning "Estonian Workers' Commune", separated by a red line: Estonian: "Eesti Töörahva Kommuun"; Russian: "Эстляндская трудовая коммуна" ("Estlyandskaya Trudovaya Kommuna"). On the red filed there are also white Russian inspections "НА БАРИКАДЫ ЭСТОНСКИЙ ПРОЛЕТАРИАТ" "ЗА СОВЕТСКУЮ ЭСТЛЯНДИЮ ВЕЛИКУЮ ВОЛГУ, УРАЛ, СИБИРЬ ЗА ИМЯ III КОММУНИСТИЧЕСКАГО ИНТЕРНАЦИОНАЛА" which means "On the barricades is the Estonian proletariat. For Soviet Estonia the great Volga, Ural and Siberia In the name of the third Communist International".[10] |
.svg) |
1940–1941 1944–1953 |
Flag of the Estonian SSR | A red flag with a golden hammer and sickle in the top-left corner. Above the hammer and sickle were the gold Latin upper case characters "ENSV" (Eesti Nõukogude Sotsialistlik Vabariik - "Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic") in a sans-serif font. |
.svg) |
1941-1944 | Flag of the 3rd Reich | A red field, with a white disc with a black swastika at a 45 degree angle. Disk and swastika are slightly off-centre. |
.svg) |
1953–1990 | Flag of the Estonian SSR obverse |
A red flag with a golden hammer and sickle and outlined star above them in the top-left corner. In the lower half of the flag was a band of blue and white water waves. |
.svg) |
1953–1990 | Flag of the Estonian SSR reverse |
A red flag with a band of blue and white waves in the lower half of the flag. |
Proposed flags
| Flag | Date | Use | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
|
1918 | Flag of the United Baltic Duchy | |
 |
1919 | - |  A black-bordered white cross offset to left defacing a blue field.
|
 |
- | A black-bordered blue cross offset to left defacing a white field.
| |
 |
- |
| |
 |
- |
| |
|
1922 | Proposed flag, former flag of the Governorate of Estonia |
See also
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Flags of Estonia.
References
- ^ "Estemb.org becomes MoneyAustralia.net".
- ^ "VAU - Sisene". www.ra.ee.
- ^ "Eesti". De Rode Leeuw. Retrieved September 29, 2022.
- ^ "Symbols and traditions". Kaitsepolitseiamet. Retrieved September 29, 2022.
- ^ "VAU - Sisene". www.ra.ee.
- ^ "VAU - Sisene". www.ra.ee.
- ^ Postilipu kasutamise korra kinnitamine
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j "Riigi Teataja 15 august 1939 — DIGAR Eesti artiklid". dea.digar.ee.
- ^ Flag of Noarootsi Parish, because most of the remaining Estonian Swedes in Estonia live in this parish and this flag reflects the Swedish heritage of the region.
- ^ "Estonia in the Soviet Union (early flags)". Flag of the World. Retrieved October 9, 2022.
