Wednesday 12 October 2016

By Rodger Frank


Norwegians, like the Danes and Swedes, are of Teutonic origin. The Norsemen, also known as Vikings, ravaged the coasts of northwest Europe from the 8th to the 11th century and were ruled by local chieftains. Olaf II Haraldsson became the first effective king of all Norway in 1015 and began converting the Norwegians to Christianity.

Within the 16th century up until 1841, the flag of Denmark has been used by Norway as its national flag. Such use represents the union of both countries. However, in 1814, Norway tried to obtain independence by adopting the Danish flag and incorporating the Norwegian lion at the upper square of the flag.

The Norwegian flag was first adopted on July 17, 1821, and is based on the Danish flag, with a blue cross placed within the white cross of the Danish flag. Norway was ruled by Denmark from the mid-15th century until 1814 when it joined a union with Sweden until 1905.

The official flag of Norway which was designed by Fredrik Meltzer is composed of three colors. These colors include bright red, dark blue and white. The colors were influenced by French Tricolore which is known as a sign of liberty. The flags of the United States and the United Kingdom are also among the major influences of the design of the Norwegian flag.

The colors of the Norwegian flag are believed to have been influenced by the flags of France, the United States and Britain and are considered the colors of liberty and independence. The cross is common to most Scandinavian flags and represents Norway's link to the other Scandinavian countries.

The Norwegian national flag is red, with a navy blue cross, off-center slightly toward the hoist side. The blue cross, which stretches from top to bottom and left to right across the flag, is outlined with a white border.These colors may represent freedom, drawing from the flags of France, the Netherlands, the USA, and the UK. The red and blue also reflect the shared history with Denmark and Sweden.




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