Flag: Åland Islands 🇦🇽
Copy & Meaning

The flag of the Åland Islands, an autonomous archipelago of Finland with a unique cultural identity. The flag features a blue field with a yellow Nordic cross, and within the yellow cross is a smaller red cross. The blue represents the sea and sky, the yellow cross signifies Åland's status as part of Finland, and the red cross symbolizes the islands' deep historical and cultural connection to Sweden. The flag was officially adopted on April 3, 1954.

Located in the Baltic Sea between Finland and Sweden, the Åland Islands consist of approximately 6,500 islands of which only about 60-80 are inhabited. The islands are part of Finland but Swedish-speaking (about 90% of the 30,000 residents speak Swedish as their first language), demilitarized, and have extensive autonomy with their own parliament, postal system, and internet domain (.ax). When Finland gained independence in 1917, the people of Åland voted with over 96% support to rejoin Sweden, but the League of Nations ruled in 1921 that the islands would remain part of Finland with special protections.