Flag of Bouvet Island
This is the flag of Norway, which is used for Bouvet Island: a red field with a blue Nordic cross edged in white.
What the flag means
Fredrik Meltzer, the member of the Storting who designed the Norwegian flag in 1821, left no written explanation of his choice. Scholars read the cross as a Christian symbol.
History
Bouvet Island has no flag of its own. On 1 December 1927 the First Norvegia Expedition, led by Harald Horntvedt, raised the Norwegian flag and claimed the island. Britain gave up its claim in November 1929, and the Dependency Act of 27 February 1930 made the island a Norwegian dependency. It is uninhabited and has been a nature reserve since 17 December 1971.
From 1844 to 1899 the Norwegian flag carried a Norwegian-Swedish union mark in the upper hoist, nicknamed 'the herring salad'.
Sources
- Wikipedia: Bouvet Island
- Wikipedia: Flag of Norway
Last reviewed 24 October 2026. Read how we research flags in our editorial policy, or report a mistake.
