Flag of Nova Scotia
Created in 1858,[1] the flag of Nova Scotia is a banner of the coat of arms of Nova Scotia, which were granted to the Scottish colony by King Charles I in 1625.
Use | Civil and state flag |
---|---|
Proportion | 1:2 |
Adopted | 1858 |
Design | A white field with the blue diagonal cross that extends to the corners of the flag and the Shield of Arms of Scotland superimposed at the centre of the cross. |
The flag of the modern Canadian province, a blue saltire on a white field (background), is a simple figure-ground reversal of the flag of Scotland (a white saltire, Saint Andrew's cross, on a blue field), charged with an inescutcheon bearing the royal arms of Scotland, a gold shield with a red lion rampant surrounded by a loyal double tressure (a double border decorated with fleurs de lis).
The similarity to the Scottish flag reflects the province's name, which is Latin for "New Scotland". Nova Scotia was one of the few British colonies to be granted its own coat of arms, and the flag is the only one of the original Canadian provinces dating back to before confederation.
Despite continuous usage of the flag to represent Nova Scotia since 1858, the flag was recognized by the provincial government of Nova Scotia as the official provincial flag only in May 2013, by the Provincial Flag Act,[2] after an eleven-year-old girl researching a project realized that no one had recognized the flag officially in 155 years of usage.[3]
The flag was ranked #12 in a 2001 survey by the North American Vexillological Association of North American state and provincial flags.[4]
- The flag of Nova Scotia.
- The flag of Scotland.
- The arms of the Kingdom of Scotland (pre-Union of the Crowns).
- The arms of the Scottish colony of Nova Scotia, granted in 1625.
- Red Ensign with the 1868 shield. There is no evidence that this was ever flown.
- Standard of the Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia (1870-1929)
- Unofficial flag of Cape Breton Island, often seen flown on private residences.
References
- Fraser, Alistair B. The Flags of Canada n.d. n.p.
- Bill 82 The Provincial Flag Act
- "Nova Scotia's provincial flag confirmed 155 years later". CBC News. 8 May 2013. Retrieved 7 December 2020.
- "2001 State/Provincial Flag Survey". North American Vexillological Association. 10 June 2001. Archived from the original on February 23, 2015.
External links
- Arms and flag of Nova Scotia in the online Public Register of Arms, Flags and Badges