Flag of the Czech Republic

Meaning and history of the flag of the Czech Republic

The flag of the Czech Republic consists of two horizontal stripes, white on top and red below, with an isosceles blue triangle at the hoist reaching to the flag's center. The design was originally adopted in 1920 for Czechoslovakia and was retained by the Czech Republic after its peaceful separation from Slovakia in 1993.

White and red are Bohemia's traditional colors, appearing on its coat of arms since the Middle Ages as a white lion on a red field. The blue triangle was added in 1920 to distinguish the Czechoslovak flag from Poland's, since both shared the same white and red stripes; the blue originally stood for Slovakia and Moravia. After Czechoslovakia dissolved, the Czech Republic kept the full flag even though Slovakia adopted an entirely new design, a choice that caused some diplomatic friction. The triangle-over-bicolor-stripes layout is similar to that of the flag of the Philippines, though with different colors and orientation.

You can view the flag of the Czech Republic in high resolution above and download it in several sizes for personal, educational or reference use. To explore more, visit the full the Czech Republic profile, its map, or the current local time in Prague.