FLAG OF FINLAND: HISTORY AND MEANING - CULTURE VOCABULARY - 2024

The flag of Finland is the most important national symbol of this northern European republic. The flag consists of a white cloth with a dark blue Nordic cross. This cross places its vertical part in the left half of the flag, and is a symbol shared by the Scandinavian countries.

The Finnish national flag has been in effect for a hundred years without having suffered any variation, beyond the darkening of the blue color. Although today the Nordic cross is a symbol of Scandinavian unity, at the time it was erected as a representation of the Christianity of those nations.

Flag of Finland. (SVG drawn by Sebastian Koppehel, via Wikimedia Commons).

Although there is no legal meaning of the components of the flag, the color blue has been related to the thousands of lakes that the country has, in addition to the sky. Meanwhile, the color white has been identified with the snow that covers Finnish soils much of the year.

History of the flag

The history of Finland and its flag is linked to that of its Scandinavian neighbors, as well as to Russia, a country with which it has been linked for more than a century.

The conception of Finland as an independent state is just over a hundred years old, as is its current flag. However, different symbols were already waving in the Finnish skies.

Swedish dominance

Since the 13th century there is documentation that indicates that Sweden occupied the territory of present-day Finland. The Swedish colonization of Finnish territory was violent. In this process, she confronted the Christianized culture of the colonists with the Norse traditions still present.

The colonization incorporated the Finnish territory into the Kingdom of Sweden. Even the Swedish language began to be spoken in Finland, and Finnish adopted the Latin alphabet.

The flags that were used in Sweden did not acquire an official national status, but a naval one. These incorporated blue along with a triangular tip.

Russian dominance

The Swedish colonization of Finland was replaced in 1809 by another invading country: Russia. Through the Finnish War, the Kingdom of Sweden lost control of Finland to the Russian Empire. With the figure of the autonomous Grand Duchy of Finland, Russian rule over the territory was established.

Despite the fact that the territory had autonomy from Moscow, the Russification process had important consequences for the Finnish population. One of the things that prevailed was the Russian flag, made up of a tricolor of three horizontal stripes of white, blue and red.

Flag of the Russian Empire. (Zscout370, via Wikimedia Commons).

Origin of the Finnish flag

During Russian rule, the first Finnish flag of its own emerged. This was a consequence of the loss of Finnish autonomy. Many of the new symbols used the colors of the shield that already existed: red and yellow.

In 1848 an anthem for the country was composed at a spring festival, and there arose a feeling for the design of a new flag of Finland.

The writer and historian Zacharias Topelius proposed a flag design. This consisted of a white background on which a blue Nordic cross was imposed.

This design, or any similar one, was not discussed or adopted by government institutions. However, the first recorded use was at the Nyländska Jaktklubben, a yacht club founded in Helsinki.

First design of the Finnish flag in yacht clubs. (Whoiswho, via Wikimedia Commons).

Russification period

At the end of the 19th century, a new process of Russification began to take place that tried to mimic Finnish society. This had the opposite effect, and one of the forms of signification was through symbols.

In these years, a flag with horizontal stripes and the shield of the lion and the red background became popular in the canton. There were two versions: the first was used by Swedish speakers.

Flag used by Swedish speakers in Russian Finland. (Str4nd, via Wikimedia Commons).

The other version was used more by Finnish speakers. The difference is that it incorporated blue and white stripes.

Flag used by Finnish speakers in Russian Finland. (Str4nd, via Wikimedia Commons).

Finnish independence

The Russian Revolution of February 1917 deposed the monarchy, so that the relationship that Finland had with the royal government was dissolved.

Later the October Revolution took place, led by the Bolsheviks, who formed the Russian Soviet Socialist Republic. This fact was what produced the declaration of independence of Finland, which was signed on December 6, 1917.

The first flag to be used consisted of a red flag with the lion's shield in the central part. This was the de facto flag that was used in the first months of independence.

Flag of Finland. (1917-1918). (Ningyou, via Wikimedia Commons).

Finnish Workers' Socialist Republic

The Soviet movement in Moscow also encouraged socialist and communist groups in Finland. In this way, the Socialist Workers' Republic of Finland was formed, which only occupied small urban portions of the territory and were defeated after Russia could no longer support them economically.

The creation of this republic is part of the emergence of the Finnish Civil War, which occurred between January and May 1918. Its flag consisted of a completely red cloth.

Flag of the Socialist Workers' Republic of Finland. (1918). (burts, from Wikimedia Commons).

Kingdom of Finland

After independence, Finland was established in the form of a kingdom. Once the pacification of the country and the end of the civil war had been achieved, on May 28, 1918 the parliament approved the new design of the Finnish flag.

After multiple proposals, the design proposed by Eero Snellman and Bruno Tuukkanen was approved. This is the same as the current one, but with a sky blue color.

Flag of the Kingdom of Finland (1918). (Public domainPublic domainfalsefalseThis file is in the public domain in Finland because it is a part of a decision or a statement issued by a public authority or other public body in Finland. Section 9 of the Finnish Copyright Act specifies that no copyright exists in such material. (Link to the Act) Deutsch - English - suomi - français - македонски - Plattdüütsch - Nederlands - português - русский - slovenščina - svenska - +/−, via Wikimedia Commons).

Darkening of the blue color

The only color changes that the Finnish flag has had since its establishment have been to the color blue. In the same year 1918, a medium blue was approved for the flag, which made it more noticeable.

Flag of Finland. (1918-1920). (Flag_of_Finland_ (state).svg: Axel Gallén-Kalleladerivative work: Fry1989 (talk) 00:04, 20 June 2011 (UTC), via Wikimedia Commons).

This design was maintained in 1919 after the establishment of the republic, but in 1920 the blue color was darkened again. This is the one that is still valid today.

Meaning of the flag

The Finnish flag does not have an official explanation of its components. However, the cross, which is its most prominent symbol, is a Christian reference. However, over time, the Nordic cross has become a symbol of unity among the Scandinavian peoples.

In the initial conception of Zachris Topelius, the blue of the flag represented the blue lakes, while the white, the winter snow. Popularly, this is the meaning that is still installed in the thinking of many Finns.

References

1. Arias, E. (2006). Flags of the world. Editorial Gente Nueva: Havana, Cuba.
2. Ministry of the Interior. (sf). History of the flag. Ministry of the Interior. Finland. Recovered from intermin.fi.
3. Singleton, F., and Upton, A. (1998). A short history of Finland. Cambridge University Press. Recovered from books.google.com.
4. Smith, W. (2001). Flag of Finland. Encyclopædia Britannica, inc. Recovered from britanica.com.
5. Tepora, T. (2007). Redirecting violence: the Finnish flag as a sacrificial symbol, 1917–1945. Studies in Ethnicity and Nationalism, 7 (3), 153-170. Recovered from academia.edu.