Flags of the world with names

How many flags are there in the world?

The answer depends on what you count. The United Nations has 193 member states. Two more, the Vatican City and Palestine, hold observer status, which brings the number most lists use to 195. Other places have flags and a distinct identity but are not UN members or are disputed, including Taiwan and Kosovo.

On top of that come territories and dependencies, from Puerto Rico and Hong Kong to the Faroe Islands and Gibraltar, plus the nations of the United Kingdom. Counting all of them gives the 254 flags on this page. Use the continent pages to see how they split: Africa, Asia, Europe, North America, South America and Oceania.

Which colors are used most on flags?

Red and white are the most common colors in the world, followed by blue, green and yellow. Red appears on a large majority of national flags, often for blood, courage or revolution. Black is less common, and purple is extremely rare: Dominica is the best-known flag that uses it. Use flags by color to find flags with a specific mix.

Some color sets spread across whole regions. Green, yellow and red connect many African states, red, white, black and green mark Arab countries, and red, white and blue link Slavic nations. Many tricolors in Europe, Africa and Latin America copy the French design.

Two-color flags are rarer than they look, but they include some famous ones: Japan, Poland, Indonesia, Monaco and Bangladesh. At the other end, flags such as Belize and Ecuador carry detailed coats of arms with many colors.

The oldest flag and unusual designs

Denmark's Dannebrog, a white cross on a red field, is generally regarded as the oldest national flag still in use, with roots in the 13th century. Several others, including the flags of the Netherlands and United Kingdom, go back centuries, while many in Africa, Asia and Oceania date from the decades after 1945.

Almost every flag is a rectangle. Nepal is the one exception, a double pennant made of two stacked triangles. Switzerland and Vatican City have square flags. Mozambique puts a rifle on its flag, Cambodia the temple of Angkor Wat, and Paraguay shows different emblems on the front and back. Libya flew a plain green flag from 1977 to 2011, the only national flag with a single color at that time.

You can test what you learn with the flag quiz, or check the flag emoji for each country on the emoji page.