Flag of Ireland
Europe
Quick Facts
- Capital
- Dublin
- Flag adopted
- 1919
- Population
- 5,458,600
- Area
- 70,273 km²
- Languages
- English, Irish
- Currency
- euro (€) — EUR
- Demonym
- Irish
- Government
- parliamentary republic
- Subregion
- Northern Europe
- Driving side
- Left
- Timezones
- UTC
- Independence
- 1921
Religions
- Roman Catholic 69.2%
- None 14.5%
- Unspecified 6.7%
- Protestant 4.6%
- Orthodox 2%
- Muslim 1.6%
- Other 1.4%
- Agnostic 0.1%
About This Flag
The flag of Ireland consists of three equal vertical bands of green on the hoist side, white in the center, and orange on the fly side. The green represents the Irish Catholic and nationalist tradition, the orange represents the Protestant (Orange Order) tradition, and the white in the center symbolizes the aspiration for peace and unity between the two communities.
The tricolor was first introduced by Thomas Francis Meagher in 1848, inspired by the French tricolor and a gift from French women sympathetic to the Irish cause. It was prominently used during the 1916 Easter Rising and was officially adopted when the Irish Free State was established in 1919.
What the colors & design mean
Green represents the Catholic and Gaelic nationalist tradition. Orange represents the Protestant community, named after William of Orange. White symbolizes the hope for lasting peace and unity between the two traditions on the island of Ireland.
Pattern: Vertical Stripes
Bordering countries (1)
Fun Facts
- The flag was first brought to Ireland in 1848 by Thomas Francis Meagher, a Young Irelander who later became a Union general in the American Civil War and acting governor of the Montana Territory.
- The orange color specifically references William of Orange (William III), the Protestant king who defeated the Catholic King James II at the Battle of the Boyne in 1690.
- The flag flew over the General Post Office during the 1916 Easter Rising in Dublin, one of the key events that led to Irish independence from Britain.
- Ireland's flag is sometimes confused with the Ivory Coast flag, which has the same colors in reverse order — orange, white, and green from hoist to fly.
Similar looking flags
These flags share similar colors and patterns:
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