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The flag of Denmark

The flag of Denmark
A red field with a white Nordic cross whose vertical arm is offset toward the hoist.
Ratio 28:37 · current design adopted 1748
Denmark

The Dannebrog is the oldest continuously used national flag in the world, attested in armorials from the 1370s, and Denmark celebrated its 800th anniversary in 2019 on the strength of a legend that it fell from the sky at the Battle of Lyndanisse in 1219. The off-centre cross is the origin of the entire Nordic cross family — Norway, Sweden, Finland, Iceland and the Faroes all copy the geometry. Danish law limits who may fly a swallow-tailed version, which is reserved for the state and the military. Uniquely, Danes fly the flag domestically for private celebrations, including on birthday cakes, in a way most countries reserve for national days.

Flags it gets confused with

Denmark
Switzerland

Drawn at each flag’s own official ratio, which is itself the difference in some of these pairs.

Flag How to tell them apart
Switzerland Switzerland's cross is centred, square-fielded and does not reach the edges.

What the colours mean

  • Red #C8102E The field; known as Dannebrog red
  • White #FFFFFF The cross

Flag laws usually specify a Pantone chip, a CMYK mix or just a colour name. Converting any of those to sRGB is lossy, which is why published hex values disagree.

Ratio
28:37
Current design adopted
1748
Colours
red, white

Common questions

What does the flag of Denmark look like?
A red field with a white Nordic cross whose vertical arm is offset toward the hoist.
What do the colours of the Denmark flag mean?
Red: the field; known as Dannebrog red. White: the cross.
How do you tell the Denmark flag from the Switzerland one?
Switzerland's cross is centred, square-fielded and does not reach the edges.
When was the Denmark flag adopted?
The current design dates from 1748, and its official ratio is 28:37.

Related pages

Sources

  1. Wikidata — Wikimedia Foundation (CC0 1.0)

How these figures are compiled and checked