Another Brick in the Flag Trivia Quiz

There is an elegant simplicity to the flag of Somalia with a single white five-pointed star (Star of Unity) taking centre stage on a field of blue. Somalia is located on the Horn of Africa and the flag reflects the nation's coastline on bodies of water such as the Indian Ocean and the Gulf of Aden.

Other themes captured by the blue field are the sky and, historically, the United Nations who were a presence during the run-up to independence in 1960.

The flag of Portugal was adopted in 1911 and its design consists of three core elements: a red fly, green hoist and an off-centre variant of the country's coat of arms (the coat of arms proper is adorned with laurel branches that would perhaps make the flag overly flamboyant were they to have been included). Nestled within the coat of arms are five blue shields, each of which contain five white discs that are said to represent the five wounds sustained by Christ during the crucifixion.

The delicate yellow and white combination on the field of the flag of Vatican City references the Papal States, a group of territories or states - under the control of the Pope - that existed for over a thousand years up until Italian unification in the late 19th century. The flag features the papal tiara atop the keys of Saint Peter or "Keys of Heaven".

The keys are referred to in Matthew 16:19, "I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven" (New International Version, NIV).

The flag of India can be described loosely as three horizontal stripes - a triband - of orange, white and green with the famous navy blue wheel (Ashoka Chakra) taking pride of place. The non-white stripes are however specific shades, with the top stripe being saffron (kesari) and the bottom stripe coloured India green.

The Indian Ocean nation of Seychelles has a flag that stands out from the crowd. This is not only due to the striking use of five colours - blue (sky and sea), yellow (sun and light), red (people and progress), white (peace and harmony) and green (land and nature) - but also for the rejection of standard horizontal or vertical bands. By using oblique bands with a focus on the bottom left hand corner, the flag of the Seychelles really does have a point of difference!

As we head to the Caribbean and the country of Saint Lucia, it is unsurprising that we see a field of light blue (cerulean) used on this beautiful nation's flag. Thereafter, the flag of Saint Lucia goes all Pythagorean on us with a variety of triangles on display in white, yellow and black.

The use of black and white symbolises racial harmony whilst yellow represents the sun and the desire to prosper. The triangle formations are a depiction of Petit Piton and Gros Piton, two volcanic plugs that are important to Saint Lucians.

As a Welshman I certainly appreciate the presence of a dragon on a national flag! Whereas the flag of Wales features "the red dragon" or "y ddraig goch", Bhutan's dragon ("druk" or "thunder dragon") is white in colour. The use of yellow and orange on the field allows the uncoloured dragon to stand out and permits observers to spot that the highly symbolic creature is holding a jewel in each claw.

The possession of jewels represents prosperity for Bhutan and its population.

The flag of Brazil - blue disc on yellow diamond (rhombus) surrounded by a field of green - is etched into the minds of soccer fans across the globe. The flag famously features a number of constellations - in whole or in part - including Crux (Southern Cross), Canis Major and Scorpius.

A white band runs across the night sky which contains Brazil's motto "Ordem e Progresso", which translates rather straightforwardly as "Order and Progress".

The maple leaf is an icon and screams Canada. The field of the Canadian flag features a central vertical band of white which accounts for 50% of the width, flanked on either side by a vertical red band, each accounting for 25% of the width. This 1:2:1 arrangement has come to be known as the "Canadian pale" in vexillology.

Other "drapeaux" that contain a Canadian pale include the national flag of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and the state flag of Mississippi.

The Cypriot flag was designed with neutrality in mind and this ideal was achieved through the use of a copper representation of a united Cyprus sat above two olive branches (symbols of peace) on a plain white field. Further aiding the cause of neutrality, there was a mandatory stipulation that the flag could not feature blue or red in order to steer clear of comparisons with the flags of Greece (blue and white) and Turkey (red and white).

The flag was created by Ismet Güney of Limassol in 1960.

The flag of Papua New Guinea is diagonally divided with the top right portion of the field coloured red and the bottom left portion in black. On the red side of the divide is a bird-of-paradise and on the black section sits the Southern Cross, a vexillological favourite! This very distinctive flag was designed by Susan Karike and was officially adopted by the state of Papua New Guinea in 1971.

The flag of Pakistan is heavily influenced by Islamic themes and the use of the star and crescent on a field of dark green took inspiration from the flag of the All-India Muslim League, a body that sought to advance the representation of Muslims in India and the wider subcontinent.

Whilst the field is dominated by dark green (representing the Muslim majority), the flag of Pakistan features a narrow white band toward the hoist that represents minority religions such as Christianity, Sikhism and Hinduism.