At One Place

The flag of South Korea

The flag of South Korea
A white field with a red-over-blue circular taegeuk at the centre and four black trigrams, one in each corner.
Ratio 2:3 · current design adopted 1948
South Korea

Field and colours only. Not shown: the red and blue taegeuk with four black trigrams.

Each trigram is the opposite of the one diagonally across from it, so the whole flag is a statement about balance rather than four separate emblems. The original 1882 design carried eight trigrams; four were dropped for legibility. The exact shades and geometry were only standardised in 1997 — before that, official Taegukgi varied enough that two flags side by side at a state event could visibly differ. The flag was used by the Korean Empire and by the independence movement, which is why both Koreas trace their symbols to the same 1882 design even though the North abandoned it in 1948.

What the colours mean

  • White #FFFFFF Peace and purity; the traditional colour of Korean dress
  • Red #CD2E3A The yang half of the taegeuk — positive cosmic forces
  • Blue #0047A0 The yin half — negative cosmic forces, in balance with the red
  • Black #000000 The four trigrams

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.

The symbols on it

What What it stands for
Taegeuk The balance of opposing forces; the same concept as the Chinese taiji
☰ Geon Heaven, spring, east, justice — upper hoist
☷ Gon Earth, summer, west, vitality — lower fly
☵ Gam Water, winter, north, wisdom — lower hoist
☲ Ri Fire, autumn, south, fruition — upper fly
Ratio
2:3
Current design adopted
1948
Colours
white, red, blue, black

Common questions

What does the flag of South Korea look like?
A white field with a red-over-blue circular taegeuk at the centre and four black trigrams, one in each corner.
What do the colours of the South Korea flag mean?
White: peace and purity; the traditional colour of Korean dress. Red: the yang half of the taegeuk — positive cosmic forces. Blue: the yin half — negative cosmic forces, in balance with the red. Black: the four trigrams.
When was the South Korea flag adopted?
The current design dates from 1948, and its official ratio is 2:3.

Related pages

Sources

  1. Official vendor product documentation — At One Place

How these figures are compiled and checked