List of Chinese flags explained

This is a list of flags of entities named or related to "China".

People's Republic of China

Special administrative regions flags

See main article: Flag of Hong Kong and Flag of Macau.

Flag	Duration	Use	Description
	1 July 1997 – present	Flag of Hong Kong^[2]	A white, five-petal Bauhinia blakeana on a red field with 1 star on each of the petals. The Chinese name of Bauhinia × blakeana has also been frequently shortened as Chinese: 紫荊/紫荆 (Chinese: 洋 Chinese: yáng means "foreign" in Chinese, and this would be deemed inappropriate by the PRC government), although Chinese: 紫荊/紫荆 refers to another genus called Cercis. A statue of the plant has been erected in Golden Bauhinia Square in Hong Kong.
	20 December 1999 – present	Flag of Macau^[3]	A lotus flower above a stylized bridge and water in white, beneath an arc of five gold, five-pointed stars on a green field

Military flags

Duration	Use	Description
1948–present	Flag of the People's Liberation Army^[4]	A red field with a yellow star at the canton, and the Chinese numerals for "8" and "1", the date of the PLA's establishment on 1 August 1927.
1992–present		The PLA flag with a green stripe at the bottom.
1950s		The red flag with PLA emblem and a blue stripe in the center.
1992–present		The PLA flag with 5 horizontal lines, 3 blue and 2 white at the bottom, representing the sea.
1992–present		The PLA flag with a blue stripe at the bottom, representing the sky.
2016–present	Ensign of the People's Liberation Army Rocket Force^[5] ^[6]	The PLA flag with a gold yellow stripe at the bottom, representing the flare of missile launching.
2018–present	Flag of the People's Armed Police Force^[7]	The PLA flag with three green bars at the bottom.

Civil flags

Duration	Use	Description
1949–present	Flag of Young Pioneers of China^[8]	Red flag with yellow five-pointed star and torch in the middle.
1922–present	Flag of Communist Youth League of China^[9]	Red flag with encircled yellow five-pointed star.
1950s–present	Flag of the Customs of the People's Republic of China^[10]	The caduceus crossed with a golden key is added to flag of the People's Republic of China.
2018–present	Flag of the China Fire and Rescue Service^[11]	Bicolor flag in red and blue with the badge of the China Fire and Rescue Service at the top and the bilingual text "Flag of China Fire and Rescue" at the bottom.
2020–present	Flag of the People's Police of the People's Republic of China^[12]	Red flag with a blue stripe in the bottom and the badge of the People's Police in the canton.
?–present
2021–present	Flag of the National Immigration Administration of China^[13]	Red flag with the organization's logo and a blue wall.
1945–1979	Flag of Inner-Mongolian Autonomous Government ^[14]	A red five-pointed star above a hoe and a horse pole that are crossed, symbolizing the unity of farmers and herdsmen in Inner Mongolia to for equal autonomy under the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party.

City flags

Flag	Duration	Use	Description
	1997	Flag of Ningbo^[15]
	June 1988 – December 1997	Flag of Nanjing
	March 2006 – present	Flag of Kaifeng
	2009 – present	Flag of Shangrao

Political flags

Duration	Use	Description
1996–present	Flag of the Chinese Communist Party^[16]	A red flag with a golden Party emblem on it.
1921–1996	Flag of the Chinese Communist Party	Communist hammer and sickle.
1927–1964		Plough flag
1925–1953		Stylized "Chinese: 井" in canton

Flags of Political Groups and Separatist Movements

Duration	Use	Description
2008–2009		Red flag featuring a portrait of young Mao Zedong on the top left.
1989	Flag of the Beijing Students' Autonomous Federation^[17]	A flag created by students present during the 1989 Tiananmen Square Protests.
1997–present
1959–present		Same as the previous flag of Tibet.
1933–present		First adopted as the flag of the First East Turkestan Republic (1933-1934). Now also used by the East Turkistan Government-in-Exile.
1988–present

Proposed national flags of the People's Republic of China

In July 1949, a contest was announced for a national flag for the newly founded People's Republic of China (PRC). From a total of about 3,000 proposed designs, 38 finalists were chosen. In September, the current flag, submitted by Zeng Liansong, was officially adopted, with the hammer and sickle removed.^[18]

Selection of proposals

House flags

Flag	Duration	Use	Description
	1984–present
	1951–1984
	1960–1993

Historical socialist states

Duration	Use	Description
1931–34	Minxi Soviet Republic flag	A red star and black hammer and sickle on the top-left corner.
1931–34	Jiangxi Soviet republic flag	A red star and hammer and sickle along with Chinese characters for "Chinese Communists" (Zhonggong, 中共) written in classical word order, i.e., read from the right.
1931–34		Red flag with the national emblem in the center.
1933–34		A horizontal bicolour of red and blue and charged with a yellow five-pointed star in the center.
1928–41	Flag used in Qionghai Soviet^zh

Historical military flags

Duration	Use	Description
1931	Flag of the Northeast Righteous and Brave Army^[19]	Red flag with the text "東北義勇軍" and a star.
	Flag of the Third Army of the Shandong People's Anti-Japanese Salvation Army^[20]
1927–1928	Flag of the Chinese Workers' and Peasants' Red Army^[21]	Same as the 1928 version, but the left side reads "Chinese: 工農革命軍" (China Workers'/Peasants' Revolutionary Army). Divisions were added, for example "Chinese: 第二軍第一師" (Second Army, 1st Division).
1928–1930		Left side reads "Chinese: 中國工農紅軍" (Chinese Workers' and Peasants' Red Army).
1930	Flag of the Chinese Workers' and Peasants' Red Army	Same as the 1928 version, but the left side has no characters and the top reads "Chinese: 全世界無產階級聯合起來" ("Proletariats of the world, unite!").
1930–1931	Flag of the Chinese Workers' and Peasants' Red Army	Same as April 1930 version but top reads "Chinese: 全世界無產階級及被壓迫民族聯合起來" ("Proletariats and oppressed peoples of the world, unite!").
1931–1934	Flag of the Chinese Workers' and Peasants' Red Army	Same as 1934 version but with blank white left side and colored fringe around the edges (6 variants – red for infantry, yellow for cavalry, black for artillery, white for engineering, blue for logistics, green for medical).
1934–1937	Flag of the Chinese Workers' and Peasants' Red Army
1937–1947	Flag of the Eighth Route Army (18th Group Army) in use by communist forces in the Second United Front during the Second Sino Japanese War	National Revolutionary Army unit flag with text "Chinese: 國民革命軍第十八集團軍" (National Revolutionary Army 18th Group Army) on the side.

Republic of China

National flags

Duration	Use	Description
9 December 1928 – present	Flag of the Republic of China^[22]	Commonly known as "Taiwan". A red field, with a blue canton containing a 12-ray white sun. This flag flew over mainland China until 1949, and is presently flown on the island of Taiwan and other islands under the control of the ROC. This flag can sometimes be seen in Mainland China, for historical and unofficial use.
1950–present	Flag of the Republic of China (vertical)	Vertical red banner; in the canton, a Blue Sky with a White Sun pointing upward on a blue field.
1940–1943	Flag of the Reorganized National Government of the Republic of China.	Used by the Japanese puppet rebel government until 1943 when the pennant was removed and the regular ROC flag took its place. The pennant reads "Peace, Anti-Communism, National Construction".
1940–1943	Flag of the Reorganized National Government of the Republic of China.	Used by the Japanese puppet rebel government until 1943 when the pennant was removed and the regular ROC flag took its place. The pennant reads "Peace, Anti-Communism".
1940–1943	Flag of the Reorganized National Government of the Republic of China.	Used by the Japanese puppet rebel government until 1943 when the pennant was removed and the regular ROC flag took its place. The pennant reads "Peace, National Construction".
1912–1928	First flag of the Republic of China, or "Five-colored flag"	It was widely flown even before the Republic of China in Shanghai and eastern parts of north China until 1928. The stripe representation: red for Han Chinese, yellow for Manchus, blue for Mongols, white for Hui and black for Tibetans. Later used by the Japanese puppet states of the East Hebei Autonomous Government, the Chinese Provisional Government.
1938–1940	Flag of the Reformed Government of the Republic of China
1916	Flag of Empire of China.	The version with the red saltire was more commonly used than the version with the red centered cross.
1916	Variant flag of Empire of China.
1911–1912	Flag used during the 1911 revolution, in de facto independent Sichuan.^zh^[23]
1911–1912	Baguataiji flag used during the 1911 revolution, in de facto independent Shanxi Provincial Military Government,^zh led by Yan Xishan

Standards

Head of state

Flag	Duration	Use	Description
	1988–present
	1929–1988	Old standard of the president of the Republic of China
	1927–1928	Commander-in-chief flag of the Republic of China (Beiyang government)

Other high executive officials

Military flags

Flag	Duration	Use	Description
	1986–present	Flag of the Ministry of National Defense of the Republic of China (Republic of China Armed Forces)^[24]
	1986–present	Flag of the Chief of the General Staff (Republic of China Armed Forces)
	1924–present
	1945–present
	1946–2012
	1945–1992

Army

Duration	Use	Description
1924–present	Flag of the Republic of China Army (formerly National Revolutionary Army)	The Blue Sky with a White Sun with a red border.
	Flag of the Army commander
	Senior General's Flag
	General's Flag
	Lieutenant General's Flag
	Major General's Flag
	Colonel's Flag
1911–1928	Flag of the Wuchang uprising; army flag of the Republic of China	The banner of the Wuchang uprising of 10 October 1911, subsequently used as the flag of the army of the Republic of China, –28.

Navy

Duration	Use	Description

1912–present
1942–1945	Ensign of the Reorganized National Government of the Republic of China.	Used by the Japanese puppet government from 1 May 1942 until the end of the regime.
1911

1928–present		Identical to the Kuomintang flag (see below).
1940–1945	Naval jack of Reorganized National Government of the Republic of China	Used by the Japanese puppet government from 1940 until the end of the regime. The pennant reads "Kuomintang".
1912–1928	Naval jack of the Republic of China Navy

	Commanding General of Navy Flag
1912–	Senior Admiral's Flag
1912–	Admiral's Flag
1912–	Vice Admiral's Flag
1912–	Rear Admiral's Flag
	Captain's Flag
1912–	Flag of the Bordered Blue Banner of the Eight Banners
1924–	Battle Fleet Leader's Pennant
1962–	Navigating Battle Ship Pennant
1924–	Commission Pennant
1912–	Duty Pennant
1986–	ROCN Unit Flag

Air Force

Flag	Duration	Use	Description
	1981–present	Flag of the Republic of China Air Force
	1948–1981	Old flag of the Republic of China Air Force
	1937–1948	Old flag of the Republic of China Air Force
		Commanding General of Air Force Flag
		Senior General's Flag
		General's Flag
		Lieutenant General's Flag
		Major General's Flag
		Colonel's Flag
	1986–present	Air force units flag model
	1981-1986
	1962-1981
	1958-1962
	1948-1958

Marine Corps

Flag	Duration	Use	Description
		Flag of the Republic of China Marine Corps
		General's Flag
		Lieutenant General's Flag
		Major General's Flag
		Colonel's Flag
		Republic of China Marine Corps Unit Flag	In use since 1986

Combined Logistics Command

Flag	Duration	Use	Description
	1973–2012	Flag of the Republic of China Combined Service Force
	1964–1979
	1960–1964
	1958–1960
	1956–1958
	1952–1956

National Defense University

Flag	Duration	Use	Description
	2014–present	Banner of the Military College of the National Defense University
	2014–present	The banner of the Military College of Command and Staff of the National Defense University
	2014–present	Naval Command and Staff College Flag
	2014–present	Air Command and Staff College Flag
	2014–present	National Defense Medical Center Flag
	2014–present
	2014–present	Chung Cheng Institute of Technology Flag
	2014–present	Flag of the Higher School of Management of the National Defense University
	2000-2014	Old banner of the Military College of the National Defense University
	1968-2000	Old flag of the National Defense University

Coast Guard Administration

Flag	Duration	Use	Description
	2000–present	Flag of the Coast Guard Administration of the Republic of China
	2000–present	Flag of the Minister of Coast Guard of the Republic of China
	2000–present	Flag of the Director of Coast Guard of the Republic of China
	2000–present	Flag of the Nansha Commander of Coast Guard of the Republic of China
	2000–present	Flag of the Director General of Coast Guard of the Republic of China
	2000–present	Unit Flag of Coast Guard of Republic of China
	1925–1928	Ensign of Coastal Defense of Republic of China

Police

Duration	Use	Description
1974–present	Flag of police of the Republic of China
1947–1974	Flag of police of the Republic of China	Flag of the Republic of China defaced with the golden pigeon in the fly.
1932–1947	Flag of police of the Republic of China.
1912–1928	Flag of police of the Republic of China
1974–present
1974–present	Flag of Central Police University
1974–present	Flag of Volunteer Police of the Republic of China
1974–present	Flag of Director-General of ROC Police
1974–present	Flag of Commissioner of Direct-controlled municipality of ROC Police
1932–1949	Flag of Voluntary Police of the Republic of China

Water Police

Flag	Duration	Use	Description
	1928–1949	Ensign of the Chinese Water Police
	1912–1928	Ensign of the Chinese Water Police

Fire Service

Flag	Duration	Use	Description
	1996–present	Flag of fire service of the Republic of China
	1996–present	Unit Flag of Fire Service

Ministries

Flag	Duration	Use	Description



	2014–present
	1950–2014		Previously used as flag of the Inspector-General of Customs during 1929–50. Green background with yellow saltire superimposed by "Blue Sky with a White Sun" flag.

Agency

Flag	Duration	Use	Description
		Flag of Taiwan Area National Freeway Bureau of the Republic of China
		Flag of Civil Aeronautics Administration of the Republic of China
		Flag of Bureau of High Speed Rail of the Republic of China
		Flag of Taiwan Area National Expressway Engineering Bureau, MOTC, Republic of China
		Flag of Institute of Transportation of the Republic of China
	2014–present	Flag of Maritime and Port Bureau of the Republic of China
	2007–present	Flag of National Immigration Agency of the Republic of China

Civil and Merchant Ensign

Flag	Duration	Use	Description
	1929–1966		Four serrated yellow stripes are added to the flag of the Republic of China for use as a civil ensign at sea. Present civil ensign is national flag.
	1935 – around 1949	Ensign of Chinese Fishery Patrol & Fishery Investigation Test Vessels

Postal flags

Duration	Use	Description
1935–	Postal Ensign of the Republic of China
1929–1935	Postal ensign of China	The "Blue Sky with a White Sun" was placed in the canton.
1919–1929	Postal ensign of China	White flag with the Five-colored flag in the canton, bilingual text "Postes" in the lower hoist quarter, and a greylag goose in the fly half.

Chinese Maritime Customs Service

Duration	Use	Description
1977–present	Customs flag
1977–present	Flag of Director General of Customs
1929–1950	Flag of the Inspector-General, 1929–1950 and is still used by the ROC Minister of Finance until 2014	Green background with yellow saltire superimposed by "Blue Sky with a White Sun" flag.
1931–1950 (In use by vessels until 1976)	Ensign of Chinese Customs (Nanking Government)
1929–1931	Ensign of Chinese Customs (Nanking Government)
1911–1928	Ensign of Chinese Customs (Beiyang Government)

Salt Administration

Flag	Duration	Use	Description
	1929–1949	Ensign of the Chinese Salt Administration
	1912–1929	Ensign of the Chinese Salt Administration

Yacht Club Ensign

Flag	Duration	Use	Description
	1966–present	Yacht Club Ensign of the Republic of China	Four serrated yellow stripes are added to the flag of the Republic of China for use as a yacht club ensign. Previously used as civil ensign during 1928–66.
	1966–present	Yacht Club Burgee of the Republic of China	The Blue Sky with a White Sun in a burgee (pennant) form.

Sporting flags

Duration	Use	Description
1979–		The ROC is recognized as "Chinese Taipei" in the Olympics, due to the political status of Taiwan.
2019–	Flag of Chinese Taipei used in the Paralympic Games
	Flag of Chinese Taipei used in the Deaflympics
	Flag of Chinese Taipei used in the Universiade
	Chinese Taipei volleyball flag
	Chinese Taipei esports flag	Used in esports competitions organized by Blizzard Entertainment.
2004–2019	Chinese Taipei Paralympic Flag
pre-2004	Chinese Taipei Paralympic Flag
	Former Chinese Taipei Football Flag

City and county flags

As of 18 November 1997, the Chinese Government banned localities from making and using local flags and emblems.^[25] Despite the ban, some cities have adopted their own flag that often includes their local emblem as shown below. The ROC-controlled areas continues to use the respective flags.

Provinces

The PRC-controlled mainland does not have provincial flags, but the ROC-controlled area has a flag for one of its two provinces.

Flag	Administrative division		Adopted	Description
			2010–present	Stylized "Chinese: 高". The colors symbolize sunshine, vitality, environmental protection, and the ocean.^[26]
			2010–present	Stylized "Chinese: 北" in the form of four hearts arranged to resemble a four-leaf clover.
			2008–present
			2010–present
			2010–present
			2014–present

History

Duration	Use	Description
1922–1949	Flag of Kunming^[27]	The flag features the former city emblem which consists of two intersecting red circles which represent the harmony of sun and moon, as well as western and eastern ideas. In the middle is a golden stylized symbol of a Chinese: 市 character.
1981–2010	Old flag of Taipei City	Previous flag used by Taipei City, with its seal on top of 16 horizontal stripes of white and blue.
1999–2006
1980s–1999
2006–2010
?–2010 2018–2019
2010–2018
1951–2010
1978–2010
?–2010
1974–2009
?–1999
1999–2010
1984–2014

University flags

Flag	Duration	Use	Description
	1910s-?	Flag of the University of China
	1928–2010s	Flag of the Shanghai Jiao Tong University

Political flags

Flag	Duration	Use	Description

Link to file<	-- Do NOT display a non-free flag image here. See talk page for more information -->	2017–present
	2007–present	Flag of Taiwan Civil Government^zh
	2006–present
	2006–present	Flag of Sovereign State for Formosa & Pescadores Party^zh
Link to file<	-- Do NOT display a non-free flag image here. See talk page for more information -->	2005–present	Flag of Taiwan Independent Union^zh
Link to file<	-- Do NOT display a non-free flag image here. See talk page for more information -->	2004–present
	2003–present	Flag of Taiwan Labor Party^zh
	2000–present
	1993–present
	2010s–present
	1993–present
	1989–present		Red flag with green pile reversed and yellow star
Link to file<	-- Do NOT display a non-free flag image here. See talk page for more information -->	1989–present
Link to file<	-- Do NOT display a non-free flag image here. See talk page for more information -->	1986–present
	?–present
	1970–present
	1923–present
	1921–1949		Communist hammer and sickle. Used by the CPC during the Republic of China era.
	1895–present		Blue Sky with a White Sun

	2018–2020
	2014–2020	Flag of Alliance of military personnel, officials and teachers^zh
	2007–2019
	2018–2019	Flag of the Taiwan Military (Junta) Government, a self-declared government led by Gao Anguo.^zh
	2015–2019
	2009–2020
Link to file<	-- Do NOT display a non-free flag image here. See talk page for more information -->	2007–2019
Link to file<	-- Do NOT display a non-free flag image here. See talk page for more information -->	1996–2020
Link to file<	-- Do NOT display a non-free flag image here. See talk page for more information -->	1994–2020
	1991–2020	Flag of Chinese Social Democratic Party^zh
	1946–2020	China Democratic Socialist Party flag	Stylized "Chinese: 井" in center
	1933–1934
	1929–1931	Flag of Taiwanese People's Party (Active in Japanese Taiwan)
	1929		Influences:
	1925–?		Chinese national flag charged with yellow plough in fly.
	1925–1946
	1911–?		National flag (1889–1912)
	19th–20th century		Solid yellow flag

Cultural flags

Duration	Use	Description
2018–present		A white flag with the traditional "boat's eye" symbol and traditional triangular ornaments on the top and bottom.^[28]
2017–present		The "Lily Flag" composed of three colors: red, yellow and green, representing hope, love and peace. The lilies and eagle feathers represent the purity and fairness of the Rukai tribe, was designed by Jin Shaohua.^[29]
2017–present
2016–present	"National flag" of Amis people in the Amis Music Festival.^[30] ^[31]
?–present	Flag of Amis people in Taidong (Falangaw tribe^zh)
1984–1998	Flag of Taiwan Association for the Promotion of Aboriginal Rights^zh

Proposed flags

Republic of China

Flag	Duration	Use	Description
	1906	Teo Eng Hock and his wife's proposal 1 for the ROC flag
	1906	Proposal 2 for the ROC flag
	1906	Proposal 3 for the ROC flag, later adopted as the flag of the Republic of China Army
	1906
	1906

Taiwan Independence Movement

Flag	Duration	Use	Description
	1955	Republic of Taiwan Provisional Government Proposal
	1994	Donald Liu's Proposal
	2005	908 Taiwan Republic Campaign's Proposal
	2013	World Taiwanese Congress Proposal
	2016	"Taiwan the Formosa" by Chih-Hao Chen

Railway flags

Flag	Duration	Use	Description
		Railways Ensign of the Republic of China	Also the flag of the Taiwan Railways Administration.
	1919–1951	Railways Ensign of China	Used in Taiwan from 1947 to 1951.

House flags

Flag	Duration	Use	Description
	1942–1972	House flag of China Merchants Group^[32]
	1873–1942	House flag of China Merchants Group^[32]

Association flags

Flag	Duration	Use	Description
	1938–1947
	1952–present
	1937–present
		Flag of China Sailor's Union

Warlords

Duration	Use	Description
1933–1944	Flag of Xinjiang	Used by Sheng Shicai's provincial government in Xinjiang until 1944.
1929	Flag used by Zhang Xueliang's troops	Captured by Soviet soldiers in 1929.
1911
1911
1911
1911
1911	Flag after the victory of the Kunming uprising
1911

Pre-Qing States

Standards

Qing dynasty and other pre-1912 states

National flags

Duration	Use	Description
1862–90		Naval flag and quasi-national flag on international occasions.
1862–1890	Used on Qing Dynasty naval ships for identification	Same as national flag

Military flags

Duration	Use	Description
1644–1912		Flag of the Green Standard Army. A green recolouring of the Imperial Standard of the Qing Emperor.
1615–1911		The Eight Banners was created in the early 17th century by Nurhaci to unify the Jurchen people into the Manchu dynasty. The first three banners were under the direct command of the Emperor himself.
1615–1911	Flag of the Plain Yellow Banner of the Eight Banners
1615–1911	Flag of the Plain White Banner of the Eight Banners
1615–1911	Flag of the Plain Red Banner of the Eight Banners
1615–1911	Flag of the Bordered White Banner of the Eight Banners
1615–1911	Flag of the Bordered Red Banner of the Eight Banners
1615–1911	Flag of the Plain Blue Banner of the Eight Banners
1615–1911	Flag of the Bordered Blue Banner of the Eight Banners

Navy

Duration	Use	Description
1890–1912		Square version of above flag
1862–1890	Used on Qing Dynasty naval ships for identification	Same as national flag
1909–1911	Flag for the Imperial Chinese Navy Secretary.^[33]
1909–1911	The flag of the Admiral of the Beiyang Fleet from 1909 to 1911.
1909–1911	Command flag for Imperial Chinese Navy Vice Admiral.
1909–1911	Command flag for Imperial Chinese Navy Rear Admiral.
1909–1911	Command flag for Imperial Chinese Navy Commodore.
1909–1911	Command flag for Imperial Chinese Navy Senior Officer's/Fleet Leader.
1909–1911	Imperial Chinese Navy Duty Ship Pennant.
1909–1911	Imperial Chinese Navy Commission Pennant.
1890–1909	The flag of the Admiral of the Beiyang Fleet from 1890 to 1909.
1874–1890	The flag of the Admiral of the Beiyang Fleet from 1874 to 1890.
1890–1909	Flag of the Commander (Tongling) of Torpedo Boats
1905–1909	Flag of Provincial Commander-in-Chief of Beiyang Fleet
1890-1909	Flag of Commodore of Beiyang Fleet
1905–1909	Flag of High-ranking Official of Beiyang Fleet
1905–1909	Officer (Junguan) of the Beiyang Fleet
1905–1909	Flag of Minister of the Navy, or Admiral (de jure, probably not used)
1905–1909	Flag of the Admiral and Fleet Commander, or Vice Admiral (de jure, probably not used)
1905–1909	Flag of the Admiral and Squadron Commander, or Rear Admiral (de jure, probably not used)
1905–1909	Flag of the Commodore, or Commodore First Class (de jure, probably not used)
1890–1909	Flag of the Leader (Duizhang), or Commodore Second Class

Proposed in 1863	Proposed in 1863 ensign of Qing Navy
Proposed in 1863	Proposed in 1863 Commission Pennant of Qing Navy

Junk pennants	In addition to the typical flags, some Qing ships also used individual silk pennants.	The two pictures provided here are examples only.

House flags

Flag	Duration	Use	Description
	1873–1942
	1872–1873^[34]

Flags of localized regimes

Duration	Use	Description
1890s–1901		Flag used by the Yihetuan during the Boxer Rebellion. A red flag with a black square with a red inscribed 令 character, inspired by the flag of the Black Flag Army.
1860s–1885		Flag of the Black Flag Army, a Chinese-Vietnamese army and guerrilla force that fought against the French in the Sino-French War. A black flag with a white 令 character.
1895	Flag of the Republic of Formosa^[35]	Tiger on a plain blue filed with azure clouds below it.
1883		Flag of the Zheltuga Republic as seen on the photograph and as written in the description ("black and yellow" flag "symbolizing the union of land and gold".
1873–1877		Used by Yettishar until 1877.
1865–1873		Used by Yettishar until 1873.
1856–1873
1661–1683		The Chinese character "鄭" in a red circle outline on a plain white field.
1624–1668		Flag of the Dutch East India Company
1626–1642		Cross of Burgundy
?		Gold square in the middle of a white banner, as depicted in the Catalan Atlas.

Banners present in old paintings

Manchukuo

See main article: Flag of Manchukuo.

Manchukuo Imperial Army and Navy

Duration	Use	Description
1935–1945	War ensign of Manchukuo.	Used by the Manchukuo Imperial Army.
1935–1945	Flag of Navy Minister of Manchukuo
1932–1935	Flag of admiral of the Navy
1935–1945	Flag of admiral of the Navy
1932–1935	Flag of vice admiral of the Navy
1935–1945	Flag of vice admiral of the Navy
1932–1935	Flag of rear admiral of the Navy
1935–1945	Flag of rear admiral of the Navy
1932–1935	Flag of 1st class commodore of the Navy
1935–1945	Flag of 1st class commodore of the Navy
1935–1945	Flag of commander (2nd class commodore) of the Navy
1935–1945	Flag of superior commander of the Navy

Government flags

Duration	Use	Description
1935–1945	Flag of the Manchukuo Shipping Office.	Used by the Manchukuo Shipping Office.
1935–1945	Flag of the Manchukuo Coast Guard.	Used by the Manchukuo Coast Guard.
1935–1945	Flag of Manchukuo Marine Transport.

Police flags

Duration	Use	Description
1932–1945	Flag of the Manchukuo Marine Police	Used by the Manchukuo Marine Police.
1932–1945	Flag of the Chief of Civil Administration
1932–1945	Flag of the Chief of Police Civil Administration	Used by the Manchukuo Marine Police.
1932–1945	Flag of the Chief of Marine Police
1932–1945	Flag of the Marine Police Senior Officer at Present Afloat

Political flags

Flag	Duration	Use	Description
	1931–1945	Flag of the Concordia Association.	Used by the Concordia Association of Manchukuo. Contains the Chinese characters 協和.
	1931–1943	Flag of the Russian Fascist Party.	Minor Russian émigré movement that was based in Manchukuo.

Other

Duration	Use	Description
1932–1945	Flag of the Manchukuo Post	Postal flag of Manchukuo.
1932–1945	Flag of the Boy Scouts of Manchukuo.	Used by the Boy Scouts of Manchukuo.
1906–1945	Flag of the South Manchuria Railway.

Other Japanese puppet states

Duration	Use	Description
1937–1938	Flag of the Great Way Government.
1943	Flag of the New Peoples' Society.	(新民會, "Xinminhui"), a collaborationist, quasi-political-party organization in northern China under Japanese occupation.
1938–1940	Flag of the Reformed Government of the Republic of China.
1936–1939	Flag of the Mongol Military Government, which became the Flag of the Mongol United Autonomous Government in 1937.	A vertical pattern of red, yellow, white as a canton on a blue field.
1937	Flag of the Mongol United Autonomous Government (alternate reconstruction).	Reconstruction of the flag of the Mongol United Autonomous Government based on The Airpost Journal's description. It mentions "a square of horizontal red, yellow, white and black stripes".^[37]
1938–1939		A vertical pattern of red, white, blue as a canton on a yellow field.
1938–1939		A vertical pattern of red, blue, white as a canton on a yellow field.
1939–1945		A horizontal pattern of yellow, blue, white, red, white, blue, and yellow again.

Foreign concessions and colonies

Dalian

Flag	Duration	Use	Description
	1905–1945		Flag of Japan
	1898–1905		Flag of Russia

Tianjin

Flag	Duration	Use	Description
	1901–1917		Flag of the Habsburg Monarchy
	1902–1931		Flag of Belgium
	1860–1943		Union Jack
	1901–1943		Flag of Italy
	1900–1924		Flag of Russia

Chinese Eastern Railway

Flag	Duration	Use	Description
	1932–1935		A combination with the flag of Manchukuo at the top and the flag of Soviet Union at the bottom.
	1928–1932		A combination with the Flag of the Republic of China at the top and the flag of Soviet Union at the bottom.
	1925–1928		A combination with the Five Races Under One Union flag at the top and the flag of Soviet Union at the bottom.
	1915–1925		A combination of the triangular version of the Five Races Under One Union flag and the flag of Russia, with the text "East Provinces' Railway Company of China" in Chinese.
	1897–1915		A combination of the triangular version of the flag of the Qing dynasty and the flag of Russia, with the text "East Provinces' Railway of Great Qing" in Chinese.

Hong Kong

See main article: List of Hong Kong flags.

Macau

See main article: List of Macanese flags.

Shanghai

Flag	Duration	Use	Description
	c. 1917–1941
	1863–c. 1917
	1849–1943		Flag of France
	1845–1863		Union Jack
	1848–1863		Flag of the United States

Weihai

Duration	Use	Description
1903–1930		A British Blue Ensign with two Mandarin ducks standing on a beach. Flag of Weihaiwei
1899–1903	Flag of the Commissioner of Weihaiwei
1903–1930	Flag of the Commissioner of Weihaiwei

Zhanjiang

Secessionist states

Tibet

Flag	Duration	Use	Description
	1958–1974		Used by Chushi Gangdruk, a Tibetan guerrilla group, until 1974. The group still exists among the Tibetan exiles and still uses the sword emblem.
	1959–present		Currently used by the Tibetan Government in Exile located in Dharamshala, India
	1916–1951		Used by Tibet until 1951.
	?–1951

Misattributed flags

This is a list of incorrect or fictitious flags which have been reported on as being factual and/or historical flags by contemporary or otherwise reputable sources or popularized on the Internet.

Date	Use	Description

19th century	Incorrect image of the Qing flag in the Western publication.	The dragon bears a resemblance to the one on the Flag of Wales.
20th century	Alleged pre-1912 Tibetan flag	Fictitious flag appearing on a collector card from a chocolate manufacturer featuring the palace of the Dalai Lama in Lhasa in the early 20th century. Identical to Chinese Merchant Group flag.
1935–1938	Alleged flag of the East Hebei Autonomous Government	Erroneous flag appearing in a postcard published by Parliamentary Secretary Yin of the Jitong Defense Joint Self-Government in Hebei. The blue and yellow banners are switched due to erroneous coloring. Identical to Provincial Commander-in-Chief of Beiyang Fleet flag.

7th Century (de facto 1990s)		A modern interpretation of an uncertain standard of the Tibetan Emperor, Songtsen Gampo.
21st century	Flag allegedly representing the Tang dynasty on the internet. Similar flags are attributed to other dynasties.
	Flags allegedly representing the Mongol Empire or Yuan dynasty on the internet.
		A white Soyombo on a blue background.

		Improperly used both on the internet and in real life.^[38]
	Another variant of the Ming Dynasty Flag
1931–1945 (de facto 21st century)	Flag of the Concordia Association.	Contains the Manchu text ᠰᡳᡝᡥᠣᡥᡠᡳ. The Mandzurian version has never been used.
?	Alleged flag of the pirate Gan Ning.	Various flags containing a bell are assigned to a pirate on the Internet.
?	Alleged flag of the pirate Ching Shih.

around 2012	Flag of the Zhuang people. The project was created by Leonardo Piccioni de Almeida and gained some popularity among Internet users criticizing the PRC. PRC law does not allow the use of cultural flags. Some websites use this flag to represent the Zhuang language.
around 2012	Flag of the Yi people. The project was created by Leonardo Piccioni de Almeida and gained some popularity among Internet users criticizing the PRC. PRC law does not allow the use of cultural flags. Some websites use this flag to represent the Yi language.
21st century	Flag of the Salar people. Tamga of the Salur tribe is actually used, but there is no evidence that it is used as a flag. PRC law does not allow the use of cultural flags. Some websites use this flag to represent the Salar language.


?	Proposed tricolour flag for Chaoshan (East Cantonia), China, to be used by autonomist activists
20th–21st century	Xiang separatist movement flag.	Used by the Hunan independence movement.

In 2012, Vietnam mistakenly used the 6-star flag for China (1 big and 5 small stars) during the visit of the President of China.^[39] ^[40] ^[41] ^[42]

External links

- China: Index of Pages at Flags of the World

Notes and References

Web site: 中华人民共和国国旗. 29 July 2022. 29 July 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220729200836/http://www.gov.cn/guoqing/guoqi/index.htm. live.
News: Hong Kong leaders attend flag-raising marking 25th anniversary under China. Business Standard India. July 2022. 25 July 2022. 12 September 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220912232649/https://www.business-standard.com/article/international/hong-kong-leaders-attend-flag-raising-marking-25th-anniversary-under-china-122070100157_1.html. live.
Web site: 澳门特别行政区区旗. 29 July 2022. 12 September 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220912232659/https://openstd.samr.gov.cn/bzgk/gb/newGbInfo?hcno=FA24A8D82C41D0C05D6C12E8A8A8F26F. live.
Web site: 中国人民解放军军旗、军徽、军歌 . xinhuanet.com . 2012-11-28 . 2016-07-11 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160711142438/http://news.xinhuanet.com/ziliao/2004-06/23/content_1542456.htm . live .
Web site: 导弹绿，我们为你自豪——火箭军换发军种服装侧记. 2017-10-12. 裴希婷. 2016-07-01. china.com.cn. 2020-08-23. https://web.archive.org/web/20200823022227/http://www.china.com.cn/newphoto/news/2016-07/01/content_38787558.htm. live.
Web site: 火箭军官兵身着新式军装亮相人民大会堂. 2017-10-12. 2016-07-01. 人民网. 2020-11-04. https://web.archive.org/web/20201104131431/http://military.people.com.cn/n1/2016/0701/c1011-28516063.html. live.
Web site: 国防部新闻发言人吴谦就武警部队旗寓意答问. 25 July 2022. 20 July 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200720104300/http://www.mod.gov.cn/shouye/2018-01/10/content_4802156.htm. live.
Web site: 中国少年先锋队队旗、队徽、红领巾、队干部标志规范. 25 July 2022. 12 September 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220912232659/http://tqwqq.com/detail_3_4188.html. live.
Web site: 中国共产主义青年团团旗、团徽国家标准发布. 25 July 2022. 25 July 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220725191932/http://qnzz.youth.cn/tqth/. live.
Web site: 海关关徽、关旗式样. customsmuseum.cn. 25 July 2022. 4 April 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190404142729/http://www.customsmuseum.cn/CollectionDetail.aspx?id=164. live.
Web site: 领袖嘱托、使命召唤，这个八一，让我们一起盘点总书记授予的旗帜、发布的训词训令. 浙江新闻.
Web site: 中国人民警察警旗样式已根据《人民警察警旗管理规定（试行）》. 26 July 2022. 12 September 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220912232658/https://app.mps.gov.cn/gdnps/pc/content.jsp?id=7612099&mtype=3. live.
Web site: 国家移民管理机构启用队旗和标志. 27 July 2022. 15 July 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210715120428/https://www.nia.gov.cn/n897453/c1397527/content.html. live.
Web site: 6×8×8，一枚方印里的历史记忆. 内蒙古新闻网. 29 July 2022. 29 July 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220729211046/https://www.thepaper.cn/newsDetail_forward_11976070. live.
Web site: 长沙泽信LOGO设计-中国大陆城市的市旗. 29 July 2022. 2 January 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220102072300/http://www.cszexin.com/show/399.html. live.
Web site: CONSTITUTION OF THE COMMUNIST PARTY OF CHINA . 18 April 2022 . 18 October 2007 . https://web.archive.org/web/20071018054320/http://www.china.org.cn/english/features/49109.htm . live .
Web site: 那一年的五四大游行 . 墙 . 外楼 . May 3, 2015.
《中华人民共和国国旗国徽国歌档案》,中央档案馆编，中国档案出版社出版, 2009。
Web site: 历史：抗日战争时期的那些英雄的旗帜.
Web site: 山东人民抗日救国军第三军军旗｜红色百宝云上展 . 4 February 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220204145203/http://share.ytcutv.com/folder700/folder717/folder741/folder742/2021-09-06/0eS1CEvPAgbgKgx0.html . 4 February 2022 . dead .
Web site: 军旗简史你知道吗？从这一天起我军才有了统一军旗式样. 26 July 2022. 26 July 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220726124630/https://www.jfdaily.com/wx/detail.do?id=98277. live.
Web site: National flag. 29 July 2022. 10 November 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20201110191928/https://english.president.gov.tw/Page/96. live.
Web site: 华西书信 - 启尔德_四川. 2022-12-31. www.sohu.com.
Web site: 陸海空軍軍旗條例. 29 July 2022. 2 February 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220202012229/https://law.moj.gov.tw/LawClass/LawAll.aspx?PCode=F0060005. live.
[s:zh:中共中央办公厅、国务院办公厅关于禁止自行制作和使用地方旗、徽的通知|中共中央办公厅、国务院办公厅关于禁止自行制作和使用地方旗、徽的通知]
Web site: 市徽市旗 . 高雄市政府 . 13 May 2021 . 30 September 2016 . zh-TW . 22 October 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20211022155943/https://www.kcg.gov.tw/CP.aspx?n=1FA00AF1B01EEB41&s=B5FC50A1C806D74A . live .
Web site: "昆明"的由来与释义. 26 April 2020. zh-CN. 13 November 2020. 15 November 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20201115114057/https://m.yunnan.cn/system/2020/04/26/030657257.shtml. live.
Web site: Tao Tribe of Orchid Island (Taiwan) . 29 May 2022 . 11 May 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220511183045/https://www.fotw.info/flags/tw_tao.html . live .
Web site: 升起「百合族旗」魯凱族原住民族議會今成立 – 生活 . 3 April 2017 . 29 May 2022 . 29 May 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220529163400/https://news.ltn.com.tw/news/life/breakingnews/2024961 . live .
Web site: 旗飄揚、歌高唱：阿米斯音樂節如何形塑都蘭的部落認同. 2022-12-31. theinitium.com. zh.
Web site: 「不要放棄自己，生命不會重來。」阿美族創作鬼才舒米恩Suming，質樸歌聲傳遞溫暖力量 . 18 October 2019 .
Web site: 招商局与新中国（14）:招商局历史上的一面公司旗. https://web.archive.org/web/20141006105439/http://www.cmhk.com/n13/n24/c13615/content.html . 6 October 2014 .
Web site: 《海军旗式及章服图说》. 29 July 2022. 9 January 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140109074616/http://www.dpm.org.cn/shtml/117/@/7744.html. live.
Web site: 旗帜局标. 2022-12-31. 1872.cmhk.com.
Web site: The Tiger Flag – surrogate, replica or 'real thing'?. 29 July 2022. 29 July 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220729213139/https://www.gla.ac.uk/media/Media_276749_smxx.pdf. live.
Web site: Flag or hanging depicting Ziwei Dadi | Royal Museums Greenwich . 1 August 2022 . 12 September 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220912232700/https://www.rmg.co.uk/collections/objects/rmgc-object-554 . live .
Web site: https://web.archive.org/web/20170107010250/http://www.americanairmailsociety.org/APJbackissues/Volume%208/APJ,%20Issue%2085,%20Vol%20ViII,%20No%208,%20Mayl%201937f.pdf . 2017-01-07. The Airpost Journal.
Web site: Daming's symbol "Sun Moon Flag". 2023-10-06 .
https://www.ibtimes.com/vietnam-shows-chinese-flag-one-too-many-stars-387086
https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/sdut-too-many-stars-vietnam-in-flag-gaffe-with-china-2011dec23-story.html
https://sg.news.yahoo.com/vietnam-chinese-flag-faux-pas-073237777.html
https://www.crwflags.com/fotw/flags/cn!var.html

List of Chinese flags explained

People's Republic of China

Special administrative regions flags

Military flags

Civil flags

City flags

Political flags

Flags of Political Groups and Separatist Movements

Proposed national flags of the People's Republic of China

Selection of proposals

House flags

Historical socialist states

Historical military flags

Republic of China

National flags

Standards

Other high executive officials

Military flags

Water Police

Fire Service

Ministries

Agency

Civil and Merchant Ensign

Postal flags

Yacht Club Ensign

Sporting flags

City and county flags

History

University flags

Political flags

Cultural flags

Republic of China

Taiwan Independence Movement

Railway flags

House flags

Association flags

Warlords

Pre-Qing States

Standards

Qing dynasty and other pre-1912 states

National flags

Military flags

House flags

Flags of localized regimes

Banners present in old paintings

Manchukuo

Manchukuo Imperial Army and Navy

Government flags

Police flags

Political flags

Other

Other Japanese puppet states

Foreign concessions and colonies

Secessionist states

Misattributed flags

See also

External links

Notes and References