What does the flag of China mean? Flags of Ancient China (photo, history). Flag of China - History

Flags are very important symbols. They represent the face of the country, organization and society, which they express and can evoke strong feelings. Since the law of the People’s Republic of China on national flag   is formulated with respect to the existing flag of the NRC, its goal is to "increase the awareness of citizens of the country and strengthen the spirit of patriotism." If you live or work in China, you always see Chinese flagfluttering over public buildings and in other places, especially on Nation Day, Labor Day, and other important events. You will also see respect for the flags of other neighboring states and regions. Studying flags, known as “vexilology” from the Latin vexillum, meaning “flag,” can be a great way to explore the history of a country. In this article, we combined together: the types of flags that have been used in the last two hundred years in imperial China, during the republic and in the modern NRC, as well as some topics related to this issue.

The excellent “Flags of the world” website www.flagspot.net/flags helped us a lot on this article, information about China is available at www.crwflags.com/fotw/flags/

The original historical purpose of flags was always military, which in former times used either national forces, or rulers or less significant leaders. Flags were used to coordinate the actions of the warring parties during the fighting, as well as to tell the soldiers which way to move, where to gather. In addition, they were used for communication, for example, at sea. It is clear that in both cases they were colorful and easily recognizable. Currently, flags, of course, usually represent a country, part of a country, armed forces or organization: political, administrative, commercial or even sports. In Chinese, the flag sounds like a qui.

Imperial flags (until 1912) Until 1872, China did not have a national flag, although many official government units had flags and banners. One example dating back to approximately 1500g. BC , restored according to the World Encyclopedia on the flags of Znamersky. He says the number of stripes indicates a level, ranging from 12 reds for the emperor to one strip for the official low level. The flag was attached to a bamboo pole with a metal trident at the top. A red ribbon with a bifurcated end (dovetail) was used to signal the start of the battle.

From 1072 to 1890 the flag of the Qin empire, used as a national flag, looked like this: on a yellow triangular field there is a blue five-fingered dragon grabbing a red sun. Like many other flags that were created manually before machine production, their proportions and appearance sometimes differed from each other: all the copies presented on the World Flags website are hand-made.

This dragon flag is actually derived from the first proposal made by Mr. H.N. Lei, the first inspector general of Chinese Customs, when he arrived in England in 1861. At that time, he was engaged in the acquisition of cruisers for the Chinese government. Since China did not have a national flag at the time, and these ships, after they were acquired by China, should have any distinctive signs to avoid the risk of capture or detention, Mr. Lei suggested that the flag should have a yellow diagonal cross on a green background. (There was also a suggestion that the constructive element of the flag show the Scottish origin of the fleet under the leadership of Commander Charles Gordon - cells from yellow and green were his distinctive colors). The British military leadership refused, however, to recognize this flag before it was accepted by the Chinese authorities in Beijing, and for persuasiveness, Britain turned to Prince Kung, the emperor’s brother, whether the Chinese government would authorize the adoption of the flag in question.

This, in turn, led the imperial authorities in Beijing to decide that flag of china should be triangular, yellow, with the head of a dragon facing the top of the flag. An Imperial Decree was issued in October 1862, and Mr. Ley was instructed that cruisers fly under the flag with a diagonal cross on a green background, with a triangle in the center carrying an imperial blue dragon on a yellow background. A fictional flag, clearly based on this customs concept, can be seen as the flag of the Struan trading house in a film created based on James Clavel’s novel “Taipan”.
   In 1890 the shape of the imperial dragon flag became rectangular, its main features remained with minor changes.
   This flag was replaced by the first flag of the Republic of China in 1912.

Some units of the Chinese armed forces and governments also had their own flags. The first flag approved in 1867. for customs cruisers there was a yellow cross on a green background, returning to the original idea of \u200b\u200bMr. Leah, presented several years ago, but without a dragon in the center.

Flag of the period of the Republic of China (1912-1949).

After the revolution in 1912 a flag was introduced with five horizontal stripes: red, yellow, blue, white and black. Some researchers believe that each color represents a people, but there are at least two completely opposite theories for explaining the purpose of colors:

red - manchurian
   yellow - han people
   blue - mongols
   white - muslims
   black - Tibetans
   red - han people
   yellow - manchurian
   blue - mongols
   white - tibet
   black - muslims

In 1928 The Kuomintang Party took control of the government with a residence in Nanjing and adopted the flag of its party with some modifications as the national flag. This flag is still used in Taiwan, however, some disagree.

First flag of china   from 1912 to 1928

The last flag of the Republic of China

Flags of the People's Republic of China (from 1949 to the present)

National flag of the Republic of China

After graduation civil war   in October 1949, the People's Republic of China was established. She uses a red flag with five gold / yellow stars.
The official description on the People’s Daily website is: “The NRC’s national flag is a red rectangle adorned with five stars ... the red color of the flag symbolizes a revolution, the stars are yellow so that they stand out clearly against a red background. A large star symbolizes the Chinese Communist Party, four small - the Chinese people. This reflects the great alliance of the Chinese people under the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party. ” Some observers believe that the stars represent the workers, peasants, the petty bourgeoisie and the people's capitalists.

Many famous products are named for flag of chinasuch as, for example: the Red Flag limousine.

This flag was created by Zhen Liangsong - an amateur artist who was well versed in poetry, painting and calligraphy. He was one of many who accepted the tasks of the committee at the Communist Party of People’s Republics, which dealt with national symbols in 1949. Mention of them appeared in July and August. There were a total of 3012 proposals, of which 38 were selected in September for discussion and decision. The committee approved the sketch on September 27, and on October 1, on the day of the official formation of the NRC, President Mao Tse-tung first waved a flag over Tien-a-Myn Square.

Zhen Liangsong said he sought to create flag of chinawhich would be "modest and majestic, bearing the idea of \u200b\u200bthe state and reflecting the history, geography, national spirit and culture of China." The story of the design of the sketch was first told in an article published in the newspaper Zhefan Ribao on July 26, 1999, and reprinted in the newspaper Quignan Venjai in November 1999. and translated for the Flags of the World website. Below we provide some parts of this article, as well as illustrate some earlier ideas that were later abandoned in favor of the final version.

“Zhen Liangsong, the creator of the Chinese national flag, was ill for about 20 years ... but he wanted to live to see at least the 50th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic - October 1, 1999. The journalist visited him several times in past years and presents the history of the creation of the national flag.

Zhen Liangsong in 1949 lived in Shanghai shortly after the liberation of the city by the communist party. In July 1949 he read in the Zhefan Ribao newspaper that sketches are required to develop a new chinese flag   and coat of arms. Since he loved to draw, he decided that he could do the job; he also asked a friend if he believed that Zhen was capable of completing this work. A friend said he should try.
For the sketch, he took into account the famous symbols of communism: red, stars, hammer and sickle. As for the symbol of the sun, under which the Chinese people live after the liberation by the Communist Party, he decided to use gold stars as the main element of the flag. He presented a large star as a symbol of the leading role of the Communist Party, and four small stars as a symbol of four classes ...

In the first version of the sketch, he arranged five stars, as if strung on a string, along the edge of the flag, which is attached to the pole, but a friend did not like this option. Then he introduced a new version - one that was practically adopted; the only difference was that he added a red hammer and a sickle in the center of a large star.

3,012 proposals were submitted, of which 38 were selected (among them was the proposal of Zhen Liangsong) for consideration by the committee. Many options were rejected because they were too similar to the flags used by the Soviet Union and other communist parties. The three most preferred sketches depicted a red field with gold stars, and one, two or three narrow gold horizontal stripes dividing the flag into a large upper part and a smaller lower part. The bands were supposed to represent the Yellow River, the Yangtze and the Zhujang River, thereby indicating that the base is chinese culture and history. Two committee members were against precisely these sketches. Mr. Tian Han preferred the sketch of Zhen Liangsong ... Mr. Jean Zhizhong was against the sketches with golden stripes because they seemed to represent a division of the country. Chairman Mao Jie Dong asked him what he preferred; he also voted for the sketch of Zhen Liangsong, but without a hammer and a sickle. Thus, on September 27, the sketch of Zhen Liangsong (without hammer and sickle) was approved, and for the first time it waved on October 1 on Tien-a-Myn Square. ”

Due to its significance, flag of china   It has its own laws governing its use and its appearance (the full text is available at http://www.crwflafs.com/flags/cn_law.html) “People's Republic of China National Flag Law”

  National Flags of China

Flag of the People's Republic of China, adopted in October 1949, created by Zhen Liangsong

Other variations of the flag of China
   Some organizations within the Chinese Communist Party, such as the Communist Union of Youth and Pioneers, have their own flags. Different parts of the armed forces - the People’s Liberation Army, the People’s Liberation Naval and the People’s Liberation Air Force have their own flags.

Special Administrative Regions (SAR)

Hong Kong flag

Hong Kong and Macau have their own flags, which they widely use in their administrative regions.
   The Hong Kong flag represents a red flag with a white flower called the Hong Kong Orchid (Bauhinia Blakeana). It was adopted on February 16, 1990. and was officially first raised on July 1, 1997, when Hong Kong was returned to China by the UN. Other historical flags   Hong Kong can be seen on the Flags of the World website.

Macao accepted its flag before Portugal returned to China on December 20, 1999. The flag represents a light green field with a white lotus over a stylized bridge and water, at the bottom there is an arch of five stars, one large and four small, as on the flag of China. According to the 1998 Xinhua News Agency. the flag was designed by Xiao Hong, a professor of applied arts at Henan University, one of 1000 proposed. Obviously, he developed the flag after reading the tourist guide for Macau, out of 600 words, and further improved it until it was adopted in 1993.

  Other flags in China - former foreign concessions
   Many “international ports” and concessions occupied by foreign forces in the 19th and early 20th centuries had their own distinctive flags, often these flags were based on the forces that controlled them.
Shanghai International Settlement

According to North China Herald in 1916. the flag used in the international settlement was designed by Mr. Oliver, a municipal engineer and approved by the Shanghai Municipal Council in December 1868. It was first used in April 1869.
   At that time, 11 countries had agreements with China. In order of the conclusion of contracts by time, these are: Russia, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and England, the USA, France, Belgium, Sweden and Norway, Germany (at that time - Prussia), Denmark, the Netherlands, Spain and Italy. With the exception of (unexplained) Belgium, the flags of all other countries were included, Austria and Portugal were represented, although they obviously did not have any treaties.

The following flags are presented:
   The upper left part of the shield is the United Kingdom, USA, France, Germany.
   The upper right part of the shield is Russia, Denmark, Italy, Portugal.
   The lower part of the shield is Norway and Sweden (at that time united), Austria, Spain, and Holland.

Other countries had agreements with China at that time, but their flags were not represented on the billboard, such as Belgium, Japan, Cuba, and Brazil.
In 1916 the newspaper article said: “there is a significant amount of flag distortion, although this is obviously inevitable. This can be seen taking into account which side the flag is supposed to be hung from. The existing system is such that when viewed from the center, the flagpole is assumed to be on the left side of the flag. ”

The article continues to explain that there were many objections to the sketch of the flag, and in 1890. Mr. Oliver prepared another. It was in the shape of a four-quarter shield representing a train against a pagoda, a ship against a junka, and the word “priress” below (the meaning of this word remains unclear). This sketch “was presented along with various other sketches”, but at a meeting of taxpayers it was decided that not one of the sketches was completely satisfied, and it was left.

According to one of the comments of the website “ World flags”There was a slightly different version of the flag on which the German flag was missing, and there was just an empty space where it should be. This change was a protest against the aggression of Germany against Europe in the indicated period before the First World War.

  Other concessions
   We also present the flags of Commissioner Velhaywei (currently Velhai) of the British concession in Shandung from 1903 to 1930. and Qingtao (now Quindao) a German colony in Shandung 1898-1914. The latter, however, did not belong to Qingtao and was used by another German colony at that time.

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The national flag is one of the most important and respected symbols of the country. As a rule, the motif depicted on the flag is associated with the history or culture of the country. While most national flags include various geometric shapes, colors, and common symbols, there are flags with surprisingly bizarre things depicted on them. From a naked person decapitating another person, to a machete and assault rifles, be sure to check out these twenty-five bizarre symbols depicted on the flags different countries   of the world.

25. Mozambique

When it comes to national flags with weapons, nothing beats the Mozambique flag. The national flag of Mozambique is “decorated” with an AK-47 assault rifle, symbolizing the defense and vigilance of the country. An open book symbolizes the importance of education, and a hoe represents the country's agriculture.

Everyone knows that the dragon is a very important symbol in many Asian countries, but Bhutan is one of the few countries that decorated its national flag with this creature. The dragon depicted on the flag is Druk, the legendary thunder dragon of Bhutan, who holds in his paws a jewel called norbu. The yellow part indicates the peacefulness of the country, while the red half represents Buddhist spiritualism.

23. Kingdom of Swaziland

The national flag of Swaziland shows a black and white shield (showing that people of different races can live together) and two spears. The three blue items are the feathers of a long-tailed velvet weaver and banana-eater. The feather symbol is of great importance and can only be used by the king of the country.

22. Kyrgyzstan

What looks like a shining tennis ball is actually the sun, crossed by two sets of three lines - this is a stylized image of the top of a traditional Kyrgyz residential building called a yurt. The flag shows 40 identical rays located around the sun. According to folk tradition, they mean 40 Kyrgyz tribes united against the Mongols by an epic hero named Manas.

While most national flags contain a moderate number of characters and numbers, the design of the Belizean national flag is quite intricate. In the center of the flag are two lumberjacks (mestizo and black) armed with cutting tools and surrounded by 50 mahogany leaves. This is a reference to the logging industry, which is a large industrial sector of the country.

The Libyan national flag, which was used between 1977 and 2011, was the only flag in the world consisting of only one color. There were no drawings, symbols or other details on the flag. Purely green flag   was chosen by the then Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi. He symbolized his political philosophy and Islam. In 2011, after Gaddafi was killed, an earlier version of the flag was adopted.

The national flag of Nepal has one interesting championship - it is the only non-quadrangular state flag in the world. In fact, it is a simplified combination of two separate flags with the symbolism of the crescent and the sun. Until 1962, the flag was even stranger, since the emblems of the sun and moon had human faces that made them look like modern emoticons.

Kenya is another African country with spears on its national flag. Together with the dominant red color in the central part of the flag, they symbolize the defense of the country and the blood shed during the battles for independence. The black color in the upper part represents the Kenyan people, and the green bar indicates the country's landscape.

17. Isle of Man

The Isle of Man, located between the islands of Great Britain and Ireland, is a self-governing territory of the British crown, known for its unusual flag. Three armored legs with golden spurs joined together are located on a red background. This strange symbol, officially known as triskelion, was used by the ancient peoples of Mycenaeans and Lycians thousands of years ago. The Isle of Man has been using this symbol since 1932, but it is not entirely clear why they adopted it.

Since August 1960, Cyprus has been using the national flag, which depicts a map of the island with two olive branches. Olive branches as well as pure white background   symbolize the world, and the orange color of the map represents its large deposits of copper ore.

15. Uganda

The gray crane, endemic to the African savannah, is central to the flag of Uganda. Three colors represent the African people (black), the sun of Africa (yellow) and the African Brotherhood (red). The crane's raised leg symbolizes the movement of the country forward.

14. Grenada

The national flag of Grenada, used since 1974, is bordered by a rich red frame with 6 yellow stars, which symbolize the six counties of the country. The central star, surrounded by a red disk, is Saint George, the capital of Grenada. The strange little symbol on the left is nutmeg, one of the symbols of Grenada. The red color of the flag means courage and vitality, yellow - wisdom and warmth, and green - vegetation and agriculture.

13. Mongolia

The national flag of Mongolia includes three vertical stripes, one of which depicts the national symbol of Mongolia, Soyombo. If you look closely at the symbol, you will recognize the symbols of fire, the sun, the moon, earth, water and the Yin-Yang symbol. The central blue bar denotes the sky, and the red stripes represent the ability of Mongolia to flourish in harsh conditions.

12. Saudi Arabia

The world oil producer, Saudi Arabia, is another country with a state flag weapon. As in Libya and other countries, the green background is Islam, and the sword is a symbol of military power and the Saudi House, the dynasty that founded the country. The Arabic inscription above the sword is the Shahada, the Islamic Declaration of Faith.

11. Ecuador

The national flag of Ecuador consists of three colored stripes and an extremely complex and intricate coat of arms in the middle. It has a mountain (Mount Chimborazo, the highest mountain in Ecuador), a river, a steamboat, the sun, spears, bay leaves and palm leaves and several other objects related to the country. On top of all this is a condor, which symbolizes the power of Ecuador.

10. Angola

If the design of the national flag of Angola reminds you of the communist symbol of the former Soviet Union, you are not alone in your opinion. The symbol in the middle of the flag is a crossed gear (symbolizing industry) and a machete (which represents the peasantry and armed struggle). The flag was put into circulation in 1975, when Angola was ruled by the Marxist government. Therefore, it was recreated the image of the sickle and hammer, which was on the flag of the former Soviet Union.

9. Gibraltar

The flag of Gibraltar shows a red castle with three towers and a golden key. The castle symbolizes the Kingdom of Castile, a large and strong medieval kingdom, and the key signifies the fact that Gibraltar is considered the entrance to the Mediterranean Sea.

8. Papua New Guinea

On two identical triangles of the diagonal of the national flag of Papua New Guinea, strange objects are located. On the bottom are five stars in the shape of the Southern Cross (symbolizing the fact that the country is in the southern hemisphere), while the right side is decorated with a bird of paradise, the legendary bird of Papua New Guinea. The flag seems even more unusual because it was developed by a 15-year-old schoolgirl who won a nationwide competition for a new flag design in 1971.

7. Turkmenistan

The national flag of Turkmenistan boasts an impressive championship - it is the most detailed national flag in the world. The crescent moon (the symbol of Islam), five stars (representing five provinces of the country) and a red stripe containing five incredibly detailed and intricate carpet patterns (representing the five original large tribes of Turkmenistan) brought the flag a unique title.

6. Sri Lanka

The predominant symbol of the national flag of Sri Lanka is a large golden lion holding a kastane sword. The lion represents the people of Sri Lanka and its courage, while the sword indicates the country's ability to defend itself. Four small objects in the corners of the flag are the leaves of sacred ficus and represent the traditions of Buddhism and four virtues: kindness, goodwill, happiness and serenity. The two bars on the left represent Tamils \u200b\u200band Moors, the main ethnic groups in Sri Lanka.

From afar, the main symbol of the national flag of Wales is similar to the symbol on the flag of Sri Lanka, but in this case the creature depicted on the flag is not a lion, but a red dragon. The dragon, sometimes also known as the Welsh dragon, is a reference to the legendary king Cadwaladr ap Cadwaladr, who ruled Wales in the 7th century, who was often associated with the dragon.

4. Virgin Islands (Virgin Islands)

The national flag of the Virgin Islands, the island of which belongs to the United States, is a simplified version of the coat of arms of the United States. The arrows located in the left paw of the eagle represent three large islands of the archipelago, and the letters under the wings of the eagle are the initials of the country.

3. Barbados

If you think that the trident depicted on the national flag of Barbados is placed on the flag in honor of Neptune or Poseidon, then you are mistaken. The trident is listed on the flag in honor of the trident of Britain, the mythical patroness of then Roman Britain and represents the three principles of democracy.

2. Cambodia

Cambodia is one of the few countries in which the building is the main symbol on the national flag. In the case of this southeast Asian country, the building depicted on the flag is Angkor Wat, the legendary building in Cambodia and the largest religious monument in the world.

1. Kingdom of Benin

The modern national flag of Benin consists of three colored stripes and does not include any other symbols. However, the old flag of the Kingdom of Benin (before the colonial empire in today's Nigeria) was much more “interesting”. It depicted a naked man holding a sword that beheaded another person. The exact origin of the flag is a mystery, but it is generally believed that the image refers to the Itsekri people, an ethnic group that acted as an intermediary between the Bini people from Benin and the Europeans on the coast.

Despite the fact that China is one of the most ancient countries in the world, for a long time the state did not have its own flag. The legislation of the People’s Republic of China regarding state symbols indicates that the national flag is a symbol of increasing patriotism and Chinese consciousness.

The country has both a national flag and an old communist one. In some provinces, their own panels are used, hanging on government offices, schools, universities, public buildings. The first Chinese flag appeared only in the early 1860s, and was associated with important historical events. Therefore, to understand what does the flag of China meanit is worth studying the history of its appearance and features.

Ancient flags of China

According to entries in various chronicles and sources, the ancient Chinese used a wide variety of flag variations. Most often, it was a cloth with a different number of stripes, which was mounted on a bamboo pole, which had a trident at the end. The number of bands indicated the status of an official. Twelve is a symbol of the emperor’s power, and one is an employee of the lowest rank.

Other flags were used, for example, a red ribbon that had a forked end. Such a banner was used in order to give a signal to the start of military battles.

Flag of ancient China,starting from the 11th century and until 1890 it looked something like this:

• Yellow triangular field;
• Nearby is a blue dragon with five legs, which was grabbed by the red sun.

For a long time it was created manually, but with the development of technology, the flag began to be sewn. At the same time, the proportions and appearance of the banner were not respected.

The so-called dragon fact of China is closely connected with the inspector general of the country's customs, whose name was H. Lei. During his trip to England in 1861, he acquired cruisers for China. To distinguish ships from ships of other states, they needed identification marks, which had flags on cruisers. But China did not have its own national flag, so it had to be invented. Lei suggested using a rectangular banner with a green background on which the yellow diagonal cross was to be placed. It has been suggested that the flag of China can be made of yellow and green cells to emphasize the ships' belonging to Scotland. But the British military leadership refused, but to solve the problem, he turned to the Chinese government. The question was raised whether or not the emperor recognizes such a cloth. A refusal was received, but the Chinese came up with their own flag. It became a triangular-shaped banner with a yellow background, it depicted a dragon's head, turned to the top of the banner.

The emperor’s decision came into force in October 1862, after a special imperial decree was passed. After this, Lei was instructed to lead the cruisers under the flag, which had a rectangular shape, green color, a diagonal cross, and in the center was a triangle with the emperor’s blue dragon. The background of the triangle was yellow.

In 1890, the triangular shape was replaced by a rectangular one, and the main images remained almost unchanged. In this form, the banner existed until 1912, when it was replaced by the first official flag of the Republic of China.

In 1867, a special flag was also approved for customs ships, based on the concept of Leah. Only in the center there was no dragon.

China Old Flag: Republican Period

Chinese ruler Sun Yat-sen at the end of 1911 initiated the formation of the first Provisional Chinese government. It was she who was involved in the development, adoption and approval of the first official flag of China. It was rectangular, and was five-color, where each horizontal strip corresponded to the five main nationalities of the country:

• Red - symbolized the Manchus;
• Yellow - Chinese;
• Blue - the Mongols;
• White - Muslims;
• Black - Tibetans.

This is one of the versions, there is also a radical opposite, according to which red means the people of Han, yellow - the Manchu, blue - the Mongols, white - the Tibetans, and black designated Muslims.

After the coup of 1928 old flag of chinawas replaced by a red one that had the sun in a blue canton. Its approval took place in October 1928. This flag was used by the Kuomintang government, which lost the war to the Communists in 1949 and fled to the island of Taiwan. The People’s Republic was proclaimed in the main part of China, and the Republic of China, which is not a UN member, in Taiwan. Since 1971, its place has been occupied by the PRC, therefore it is prohibited to use this flag in sports competitions. Athletes from Taiwan must use a neutral flag that shows the mei hua flower. At the Olympics, Thais speak on behalf of Chinese Taipei, and apply a white banner with a flower. In its center is a white sun, taken in a blue circle, as well as Olympic rings.

Modern chinese flag

Since 1949, the People's Republic was proclaimed in China. The new government has adopted new state symbols, including the flag, which has the following characteristics:

• The red background is a symbol of the revolution that occurred in 1949;
• Rectangle;
• Five stars that are yellow, allowing them to stand out against a red background.

Not everyone knows how many stars on the flag of Chinaand what they mean. Stars on the Chinese flag are different:

• The big one symbolizes the communist party of the country;
• Four small - these are four social classes of the country - workers, peasants, the petty bourgeoisie, people's capitalists.

The union of big and small stars means the union of the party and the people.

The concept of the flag was developed by the artist Zhen Liangsong, who was well versed in calligraphy, painting and other arts. When the Communist Party of the People's Republic of China in July-August announced a competition to create a project national charactersThen Lyasong took up the development of the flag. The party received more than three thousand proposals, of which 38 options were selected. At the end of September 1949, the Committee on National Symbols finished the discussion, and on October 1, Mao Zedong, who was elected president, showed the flag on Tian-a-Myn Square.

For the first time, this story became public only in 1999, when the republic celebrated the 50th anniversary of its foundation. Then an article appeared in the media in which Lyasong gave a detailed interview on the concept he had chosen to create the flag. He noted that for a long time he chose between the symbols of communism, but he chose the stars. Deciding how many stars on the flag of China should be, he Zhen Lyasong chose five, focusing on the role of the Communist Party and the main working classes. At first he placed the stars along the length of the edge of the banner, but he did not like this image. Therefore, he placed them in the upper left corner, and added a hammer and sickle to a large star. The Lyasong project competed with sketches where there were several horizontal stripes. They were supposed to symbolize the three important Chinese rivers, the Zhuang, Yangtze and Yellow River, which were the culture, history and tradition of China. The final draft of Lyassong was adopted without a hammer and sickle, so as not to resemble the flag of the Soviet Union. So the red Chinese flag appeared, with a large golden star in the left corner, around which four smaller stars appeared. It is interesting to note that small stars are not parallel to each other, but touch the tops of a large star, as if pointing to it. At the 2016 Summer Olympics in Beijing, the organizers used flags where four stars were placed in parallel.

A similar design is used in other flags of the PRC:

• The banner of the Chinese Army is also red, only there is one big star with the Chinese character 8-1, which indicates the date of the founding of the Communist Party - August 1, 1949;
• The flag of the Communist Party itself is also red, only a sickle and a hammer are used instead of stars.

Flags of selected areas of the PRC

Numerous organizations and official structures of China have their own flags. Among them it is worth noting:

• The Union of Youth and Pioneers, which operates as part of the Communist Party;
• National liberation forces;
• People's Liberation Air Force.

Hong Kong and Macau, which are special administrative regions within the People's Republic of China, use their own flags. In particular, national flag   Hong Kong has become a red cloth with the Hong Kong orchid on it. Adopted and approved in February 1990, and the official rise took place only seven years later. On July 1, 1997, Hong Kong returned to China.

The Macau flag was approved by the local government at the end of December 1999, when Portugal decided to return its former colony to the PRC. It has a light green background, on which there is a white lotus located above the bridge and water, and at the bottom there is an arch of five stars. They look exactly the same as in the state banner of China. It was created by Professor Xiao Hong, a teacher of applied arts at Henan University.

International ports and concessions that were occupied by foreign states in the late 19th - early 20th centuries. have their own flags. These include:

• An international settlement in Shanghai, where the flag appeared in 1868. It is customary to consider engineer Oliver to be its author, the draft of which was adopted by the city's municipal council. They began to use it since 1869. The flag has a rather interesting concept based on how many countries signed trade agreements with China at the end of the 1860s. There were 11 such states, but only 10 images of countries are present on the flag. There is no Belgium, historians have not yet found an explanation for this. Not included were Japan, Brazil and Cuba;
• Flag of Commissioner Velhai, which was a British concession in Shandugh between 1903 and 1930;
• Qingtao / Quindao Concession, owned by Germany from 1898 to 1914