Russia Flag

How to identify it

Three equal horizontal bands: white, blue, red. Compare with the Netherlands, which is red on top, and with Luxembourg and Serbia, which reverse or recolour the order.

Design and construction

Proportions

2:3

Adoption and legal status

11 December 1993 in its current legal form; restored in 1991

Construction

Three horizontal bands of equal height.

Commonly repeated interpretation

Not official: Several colour readings circulate, including nobility, faith and courage. None is established in the federal constitutional law, which describes only the design.

History of the design

The tricolour is associated with Peter the Great's late-17th-century merchant ensign, modelled on Dutch practice. It was replaced by Soviet red in 1918 and restored in August 1991.

Similar flags

Compare the details that separate these designs.

• 
  Netherlands

  The Netherlands puts red at the top and white in the middle.

• 
  Serbia

  Serbia is red, blue, white and carries a coat of arms toward the flagpole side.

Sources