Flag of Vietnam

The current Vietnam flag is merely one in a long line of Vietnam flags that reaches back several centuries. The modern flag of Vietnam bears a strong resemblance to many of those historical flags, but the resemblance owes more to coincidence than to any effort to connect the current flag to older designs.

Capital of Vietnam: Hanoi
Area of Vietnam: 325,360 sq. km
Languages used in Vietnam: Vietnamese (official), English, French, Chinese, Khmer, mountain area languages
Religions in Vietnam: Buddhist, Catholic, Hoa Hao, Cao Dai, Protestant, Muslim

Colors and Symbolism of Vietnam Flags

Vietnam flags have a solid red field with a large golden star in the center. The flag's design was inspired by the red flag of the Paris Commune and other socialist movements. The red and gold color scheme is common to many such flags, so its uses emphasizes the links between Vietnam and many of its historical allies. The star was chosen as the emblem for the Vietnam flag in order to symbolize the five social classes that make up the bulk of Vietnamese society and to honor their contributions to the nation.

History of the Flag of Vietnam

Red and gold flags have represented Vietnam since the start of the 19th century. The use of gold to represent Vietnamese soldiers is significantly older and can be traced back to a rebellion against Chinese rule in 40 AD, but it took many centuries for the colors to find their way onto a national flag. The first such flag was adopted by Emperor Gia Long. His design had a solid gold field with a red circle in the center, and it was used until it was replaced with a design that replaced the red circle with a solid red stripe.

The traditional flag of Vietnam fell out of use when the nation became part of the French Empire. French colonies did not use flags of their own, so the national flag of France represented Vietnam until it regained its independence. Vietnam first used the flag of France in 1887, and the flag was used for the last time in 1954.

Vietnam eventually split between the communist government in the northern part of the country and an opposing government in the southern portion. South Vietnam used a golden flag with three horizontal stripes of red which was inspired by the nation's historical flags, while North Vietnam used the modern design. North Vietnam won the conflict between the two parts of the country, and so its flag has come to represent the entirety of Vietnam in the modern era.