---
title: "Flag of Denmark: colours and meaning"
description: "What every colour and symbol on the Denmark flag stands for, its official 28:37 ratio, and the year the current design was adopted."
url: https://atoneplace.net/flag/denmark/
site: "At One Place"
---

# 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

*[Flag drawn on the page: 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

*[Flag drawn on the page: 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

*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.*

- **Red** (#C8102E) — The field; known as Dannebrog red
- **White** (#FFFFFF) — The cross

- **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

- [Denmark](https://atoneplace.net/country/denmark/)
- [The flag of Switzerland](https://atoneplace.net/flag/switzerland/)
- [Every flag with red in it](https://atoneplace.net/flag/colour/red/)
- [The flag of United States](https://atoneplace.net/flag/united-states/)
- [The flag of United Kingdom](https://atoneplace.net/flag/united-kingdom/)
- [The flag of Canada](https://atoneplace.net/flag/canada/)
- [The flag of France](https://atoneplace.net/flag/france/)
- [The flag of China](https://atoneplace.net/flag/china/)
- [The flag of Germany](https://atoneplace.net/flag/germany/)
- [The flag of Russia](https://atoneplace.net/flag/russia/)
- [The flag of Italy](https://atoneplace.net/flag/italy/)

## Sources

- Wikidata — Wikimedia Foundation (https://www.wikidata.org/) [CC0 1.0]