Flags That Look Alike

In a world with nearly 200 countries, it's inevitable that some flags look alike. Sometimes it's pure coincidence, other times it reflects historical ties, and occasionally it has caused diplomatic confusion. Let's explore the most interesting cases.

Monaco and Indonesia: The Most Famous Case

The flags of Monaco and Indonesia are practically identical: two horizontal stripes, red on top and white below. The only technical difference is in the proportions: Monaco uses 4:5 and Indonesia 2:3.

However, their origins are completely independent. Monaco's flag dates from 1339, based on the heraldic colors of the House of Grimaldi. Indonesia's was adopted in 1945, based on the standard of the 13th-century Majapahit Empire.

Indonesia protested when Monaco wanted to register its flag, but since Monaco's is older, the tiny principality maintained its rights.

Chad and Romania: Almost Indistinguishable

These two flags cause confusion even among experts. Both have three vertical stripes of blue-yellow-red, and the shades are almost identical (Chad's blue is slightly darker).

Chad adopted its flag in 1959, combining Pan-African colors with the French tricolor design. Romania has used these colors since 1848, inspired by the French Revolution.

In 2004, Chad asked the UN to intervene, but Romania refused to change a flag it had been using for over 150 years. The dispute was never officially resolved.

Netherlands and Luxembourg: Close Cousins

Both flags have horizontal red-white-blue stripes. The main difference is that Luxembourg uses a lighter blue (sky blue) while the Netherlands uses cobalt blue.

This is no coincidence: Luxembourg was ruled by the House of Orange-Nassau (Dutch) for centuries. However, the flags gradually differentiated and today the proportions are also different.

Australia and New Zealand: Pacific Confusion

Both flags have a blue background, the Union Jack in the canton, and the Southern Cross constellation. The differences are:

• Australia: 6 white 7-pointed stars, plus a large star (the Commonwealth) under the Union Jack.
• New Zealand: 4 red stars with white border, 5-pointed, without the large star.

The confusion is so common that New Zealand held a referendum in 2016 to change its flag, though they ultimately voted to keep it.

Ireland and Ivory Coast: The Mirror

Both are green-white-orange tricolors, but reversed. Ireland has green at the hoist (left), Ivory Coast has orange at the hoist.

The origins are different: the Irish flag symbolizes peace (white) between Catholics (green) and Protestants (orange). The Ivorian represents the northern savanna (orange), peace (white), and southern forests (green).

Slovenia, Russia, and Slovakia: The Slavic Family

These three flags share the horizontal white-blue-red design, the traditional Pan-Slavic colors. They are distinguished by their coats of arms:

• Russia: No coat of arms (the simplest).
• Slovenia: Coat of arms with Mount Triglav and three yellow stars.
• Slovakia: Coat of arms with a double cross over three blue mountains.

Poland, Indonesia, and Monaco: The Tripartite Confusion

Poland uses the same colors as Indonesia and Monaco but reversed: white on top, red below. The three flags together cause maximum confusion.

Why So Many Similarities?

Several factors explain the similarities:

1. Colonial heritage: Many African flags use Pan-African colors or French-style tricolors.
2. Unity movements: Pan-Arab, Pan-Slavic, and Pan-African colors were adopted by multiple countries.
3. Practical limitations: There are only a finite number of easily distinguishable colors and simple designs to reproduce.
4. Historical coincidence: Sometimes, cultures without contact independently developed similar symbols.

More Similar Flags

Bahrain and Qatar

Similar in concept (white with serrated red/maroon), but Qatar is longer and uses maroon instead of red.

Liechtenstein and Haiti (before 1937)

They were identical (horizontal blue-red) until Liechtenstein added the crown in 1937 after discovering this at the 1936 Olympics.

Senegal and Mali

They were identical when they formed the Mali Federation. Senegal added the green star when separating in 1960.