Vexillology

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Flag of the Fédération internationale des associations vexillologiques.

Vexillology is the scholarly study of flags. The word is a synthesis of the Latin word vexillum and the suffix -logy, meaning "study of". The vexillum was a particular type of flag used by Roman legions during the classical era; its name is a diminutive form of the word vela meaning sail, and thus literally means "little sail". Unlike most modern flags, which are suspended from a pole or mast along a vertical side, the square vexillum was suspended from a horizontal crossbar along its top side, which was attached to a spear.

The term was coined in 1957 by the American scholar Whitney Smith[citation needed], the author of many books and articles on the subject. It was originally considered a sub-discipline of heraldry, and is still occasionally seen as such. It is sometimes considered a branch of semiotics. [1] It is formally defined in the FIAV (Fédération internationale des associations vexillologiques) constitution as "the creation and development of a body of knowledge about flags of all types, their forms and functions, and of scientific theories and principles based on that knowledge." A person who studies flags is a vexillologist, and a person who designs flags is a vexillographer.

Every second year FIAV organizes the International Congress of Vexillology (ICV). The 2007 ICV was in Berlin, Germany; the 2009 ICV will be in Yokohama, Japan. Internet activity of vexillologists is centered on the Flags of the World website and mailing list.

Contents

[edit] Flag Identification Symbols (FIS)

The Flag Identification System was created by Whitney Smith and adopted by FIAV.

The first row represents use on land and the second use on water, each divided into private (civil), government (state), and military (war) use.

Usage Private Use Government Use Military Use
Land Use Civil Flag State Flag War Flag
Sea Use Civil Ensign State Ensign War Ensign

There are 63 representing symbols that can describe the flag, including:

FIS Text mode Description Usage
C**/*** Civil Flag by private persons on land
*S*/*** State Flag by state institutions on land
**W/*** War Flag by military on land (army)
***/C** Civil Ensign on private vessels (merchant ensign)
***/*S* State Ensign on state owned vessels
***/**W War Ensign by navy
CS*/*** Civil and State Flag by private persons and state on land
*SW/*** State and War Flag by state services and military on land
CSW/*** National Flag for all purposes on land
***/CSW National Ensign for all purposes on vessels
CSW/CSW National Flag and Ensign for all purposes on land and sea

Other symbols are used to describe other aspects of the usage of the flag, such as official status and which side of the flag is being shown. The ones in general use are:

  • Image:IFIS Normal.svg Normal or de jure version of flag, or obverse side
  • Image:IFIS Proposed.svg Design proposed but not officially adopted
  • Image:IFIS Reconstruction.svg Design is a reconstruction based on observations
  • Image:IFIS Reverse.svg Reverse side of flag
  • Image:IFIS Variant.svg Design is an acceptable variant
  • Image:IFIS Alternate.svg Alternative version of flag
  • Image:IFIS De facto.svg De facto version of flag
  • Image:IFIS Two-sided.svg Flag has different designs on its obverse side and its reverse side
  • Image:IFIS Sinister.svg Obverse side meant to be hoisted with pole to the observer's right
  • Image:IFIS Authorised.svg Design officially authorized to represent nation by government of that nation
  • Image:IFIS Historical.svg Design used in the past, but now abandoned (not part of Smith's original set)
  • Image:IFIS Mirror.svg Reverse side is mirror image of obverse side
  • Image:IFIS Equal.svg Reverse side is congruent with obverse side
  • Image:IFIS No reverse info.svg Information on reverse side is not available
  • Image:IFIS Vertical normal.svg Flag can be hung vertically by hoisting on a normal pole, then turning the pole 90°
  • Image:IFIS Vertical rotated.svg Flag can be hung vertically by rotating the design first
  • Image:IFIS Vertical unknown.svg Vertical hoist method of flag is unknown
  • Image:IFIS Vertical inapplicable.svg Design has no element that can be rotated
  • Image:IFIS Vertical exclusive.svg Flag can be hoisted vertically only

[edit] Principles of flag design

Flag designs exhibit a number of regularities, arising from a variety of practical concerns, historical circumstances, and cultural prescriptions that have shaped and continue to shape their evolution.

First among the practical issues confronting a vexillographer is the necessity for the design to be manufactured (and often mass produced) into or onto a piece of cloth, which will subsequently be hoisted aloft in the outdoors to represent an organization, individual or idea. In this respect, flag design departs considerably from logo design: logos are predominantly still images to be read off a page, screen, or billboard, while flags are alternately draped and fluttering images to be seen from a variety of distances and angles. The prevalence of simple bold colors and shapes in flag design attests to these practical issues.

Flag design is also a historical process in which current designs often refer back to previous designs, effectively quoting, elaborating, or commenting upon them. Families of current flags may derive from a few common ancestors as in the cases of the Pan-African colours, the Pan-Arab colors, the Pan-Slavic colours, the Nordic Cross and the Ottoman flag.

Certain cultures prescribe the proper design of flags, through heraldic or other authoritative systems. Prescription may be based on religious principles: see, for example, Islamic flags. As a discipline, vexillology is beginning to promote design principles based on a body of research on flag history and design. Prominent examples are Ted Kaye's five Good Flag, Bad Flag principles published and endorsed by the North American Vexillological Association:

  1. Keep It Simple: the flag should be so simple that a child can draw it from memory.
  2. Use Meaningful Symbolism: the flag’s images, colors, or patterns should relate to what it symbolizes.
  3. Use 2–3 Basic Colors: limit the number of colors on the flag to three, which contrast well and come from the standard color set.
  4. No Lettering or Seals: never use writing of any kind or an organization’s seal.
  5. Be Distinctive or Be Related: avoid duplicating other flags, but use similarities to show connections.

[edit] Vexillologists

  • Graham Bartram, Chief Vexillologist of the Flag Institute, and Secretary-General for Congresses of FIAV
  • Bruce Berry, founder member of the Southern African Vexillological Association (SAVA), editor of the SAVA Journal and SAVA Newsletter, and collector of Rhodesian and South African flags
  • William Crampton (deceased), founder of the Flag Institute and author of many editions of Flags of the World
  • Marc Leepson, author of Flag: An American Biography
  • Michel Lupant, Belgina, current president of the FIAV
  • Ottfried Neubecker (deceased), the most important German vexillologist, author of the German navy Flaggenbuch of 1939
  • George H. Preble, author in 1872 of the influential, if lore-filled, History of the American Flag
  • Rudolf Siegel, author of the influential book Die Flagge, published in 1912
  • Whitney Smith, founder of the Flag Research Center, editor of the Flag Bulletin, and coiner of the word "vexillology" in 1957
  • David B. Martucci, president of NAVA 1998–2004, principal of Vexman Consulting, and expert in U.S. historical flags
  • Devereaux D. Cannon, Jr. (deceased), author of The Flags of the Confederacy andThe Flags of the Union, founder of the Confederate States Vexillological Association
  • Ted Kaye, editor of NAVA's Raven, a Journal of Vexillology 1996–present and compiler of Good Flag, Bad Flag
  • Kevin Harrington, president of the Canadian Flag Association and editor of Flagscan
  • John M. Purcell, president of NAVA 1981–1983, principal author of American City Flag
  • Don Healy, foremost researcher of U.S. tribal flags and author (with Peter Orenski) of Native American Flag
  • Alfred Znamierowski, founder of the Flag Design Center and author of The World Encyclopedia of Flag.
  • Prof. Scot Guenter, a prominent academic vexillologist and author of The American Flag 1777–1924
  • Roman Klimes, founder of the World Vexillological Research Institute and author of Freie Stadt Danzig - Flaggen, Wappen und Siegel (1920–1939)

[edit] Vexillographers

[edit] References

  1. ^ [1]

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

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Heraldry
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