Norway vs Iceland
Both fly a Nordic cross outlined in white. Norway is a red field with a blue cross (8:11). Iceland is a blue field with a red cross (18:25). The colors swap: Norway's field is red, Iceland's field is blue.
Field color: Norwegian Red and Iceland Blue
- Proportion
- 8:11
- Adopted
- 1899
Colors
- Red #BA0C2F
- White #FFFFFF
- Blue #00205B
- Proportion
- 18:25
- Adopted
- 1944
Colors
- Blue #02529C
- White #FFFFFF
- Red #DC1E35
Look foron Norway
Look foron Iceland
- Red field, white-bordered blue Nordic crossBlue field, white-bordered red Nordic cross
- 8:11 ratio18:25 ratio
- Designed by Fredrik Meltzer in 1821; current civil flag from 1899Territorial flag from 1915; national flag of the republic from 1944
Which flag is Norway?
Danish Cross, Two Color Swaps
Denmark's Dannebrog (red field, white cross) is the parent of both designs. Fredrik Meltzer added a blue cross inside Norway's white cross in 1821, combining Danish red-white with Swedish blue. The union mark with Sweden left civil ensigns in 1899; December 15, 1899 is the civil flag date used here.
Iceland flew a territorial Nordic-cross flag from June 19, 1915 while still tied to Denmark: blue field, white-edged red cross. That layout became the national flag when Iceland became a republic in 1944 (adoption date recorded as June 17, 1944).
Read the field first. A red cloth with a blue cross is Norway. A blue cloth with a red cross is Iceland. Sweden (blue and yellow) and Finland (white and blue) stay in the same Nordic-cross family without this red-blue swap.
Telling them apart
- Both crosses reach the edges. The white fimbriation sits between field and inner cross on each flag.
- Norway 8:11, Iceland 18:25. The color swap is the practical tell at a distance.
- Iceland's blue stands for the Atlantic and mountains; white for ice and snow; red for volcanic fire. Norway's red and white nod to Denmark; blue to Sweden.
Questions
Which flag is older in its current colors?
Norway's Meltzer design is from 1821 (civil use without the union mark from 1899). Iceland's blue-white-red cross was a territorial flag in 1915 and the republic's flag from 1944.
Do Denmark, Sweden, or Finland use the same swap?
Denmark is red with a plain white cross. Sweden is blue with a yellow cross. Finland is white with a blue cross. Only Norway and Iceland invert red and blue around a white-edged cross.
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