Flag of Latvia
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Flag ratio: 1:2
The National Flag of Latvia was re-adopted on February 27, 1990. The same flag was used by the independent Latvia from 1918 till the occupation in 1940.
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History
The red-white-red Latvian flag was first mentioned in the chapters of The Rhyme Chronicle of Livonia (Ditleb von Alnpeke’s Livländische Reimchronik). This historical evidence places the Latvian flag among the oldest flags in the world. The chronicle tells about a battle that took place around 1280, in which ancient Latvian tribes from Cēsis, a city in the northern part of Latvia, went to war against ancient Estonian tribes, bearing a red flag with a white stripe, which was also the banner of a castle there.
Another legend refers to a deadly wounded leader of a Latvian tribe who was wrapped in a white sheet. The part of the sheet on which he was lying remained white, but the two edges were stained in his blood. In the next battle the blood stained sheet was used as a flag. According to the legend this time the Latvian warriors attacked and drove the enemy away. Ever since then Latvian warriors have been using this flag.
Based on the aforementioned historical record, the present day flag design was adapted by artist Ansis Cīrulis in May 1917. The red colour of the Latvian flag is a particular dark red tone that is referred to as Latvian red in the rest of the world. The flag's colour proportions are 2:1:2 (the upper and lower red bands are always twice as wide as the white band in the middle), and the correlation of the width and length of the flag is fixed as 1:2. The Latvian national flag, together with the national coat of arms was affirmed in this format by a special parliamentary decree of the Republic of Latvia that was passed on June 15, 1921.
Presidential Flag of Latvia
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Flag of the Prime Minister of Latvia
Flag_of_the_Prime_Minister_of_Latvia.gif
Colours
Colour definition of the white colour of the flag:
- PANTONE White
Colour definition of the red colour of the flag:
- PANTONE 1807C
Pantone "Latvian red" CMYK:
- Version 1 - C: 0%; M: 100%; Y: 65%; K: 47%;
- Version 2 - C: 27%; M: 97%; Y: 81%; K: 27%;
See also
External Links
- The Rhyme Chronicle of Livonia - Ditleb’s von Alnpeke Livländische Reimchronik in Latvian, German and Russian (http://www.historia.lv/alfabets/A/AT/atskanu_hronika/atskanu_hronika.htm)
- The Latvian Flag factsheet at the Latvian Institute website (http://www.li.lv/en/?id=37)
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de:Flagge Lettlands he:דגל לטביה it:Bandiera lettone lt:Latvijos vėliava pl:Flaga Łotwy pt:Bandeira da Letónia