The flag

Published January 2004, updated May 2009

© Finnish Tourist Board

The flag with "the blue of our lakes and the white snow of our winters", as a poet described these symbolic colours in 1870, was made official in a law enacted on May 29, 1918, less than six months after Finland had achieved independence.

The Finnish flag features a blue cross on a white background. It takes two forms, the national (civil) flag and the state flag.

The national flag

Dimensions

The national flag is rectangular in shape and its dimensions are: height l l and width 18 units of measurement; width of cross 3 units, colour PMS294C; height of fields 4 units, length of fields at the hoist 5 units and of fields at the fly 10 units. Every Finnish citizen enjoys the right to fly the national flag. With certain exceptions, the national flag is flown by Finnish vessels as their national ensign.

The state flag

The state flag is either rectangular or threepointed. The coat of arms of Finland is inset in the square formed by the intersecting arms of the cross. The square has a yellow border, the width of which is onefortieth of the width of the cross. State departments and establishments fly the rectangular state flag. The Defence Forces use the threepointed version of the flag, which is one unit of measurement longer than the national flag or the rectangular state flag. The President of the Republic uses a threepointed version of the state flag, in the canton of which a blue and yellow Cross of Freedom is featured.

 Links

The flag and arms
Finnish National Public Holidays