A red building, a mountain and a kayak paddle: the flag of Nuuk, the capital of Greenland, carries in its coat of arms the teachers’ college of 1907.
Every fact about the flag, each with what it means.
Normal flagFIAV symbol: the form of the flag.
CivilFIAV symbol: who may fly the flag.The flag in the words of vexillology and heraldry.
It is a rectangular field with a 2:3 ratio, white, with the coat of arms of the city in the centre.
Each element and how many of the 1,390 flags in the catalogue carry it. In yellow, the rarest.
Every date in its story, at a glance.
The city was founded in 1728 by the missionary Hans Egede
Red building: the seminary, the teachers’ college of 1907
The coat of arms was drawn by Ejner Heilmann and Sven Tito Achen, and was registered in 1986
How it was born, how it has changed and what it means.
Nuuk is the capital of Greenland, the largest island in the world. Its flag is white with the coat of arms of the city: a red building in front of a mountain, with a kayak paddle and some waves.
The city was founded in 1728 by the missionary Hans Egede, who called it Godthåb, ‘good hope’. The coat of arms was drawn by Ejner Heilmann and Sven Tito Achen, and was registered in 1986. The flag is simply that coat of arms on a white field. The date it was approved has not been found.
No other versions are known.
Red building
the seminary, the teachers’ college of 1907, perhaps the most important cultural institution in Greenland’s history.
Mount Sermitsiaq
the 1,208-metre mountain that dominates the city, some 15 kilometres to the north.
Kayak paddle
the way of life of the Inuit, hunters of sea mammals. It also recalls that Greenland is governed from Nuuk.
Blue and white waves
the sea and the fjord, and the ice that floats on them.
Instead of a castle or an animal, Nuuk chose its teachers’ seminary, a building of 1907 considered one of the most beautiful in Greenland.
Sermitsiaq is on the island of Sadeløen, some 15 kilometres from the city, but it dominates its landscape and is its symbol.
Test what you have read about the flag of Nuuk.
Text based on the article “Nuuk (Greenland, Denmark) — Flags of the World” from the Spanish Wikipedia, published under the licence CC BY-SA 4.0.
Sources consulted:
Flag image: SaluteVII and Jack Ryan Morris, Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0.
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