^{This page is part of © FOTW Flags Of The World website}

Norfolk Island (Australia)

1:2 | stripes 7+9+7
image by Johann Eisenreich Jr. and António Martins, recoloured 15 August 2006
Flag adopted 17 January 1980

Description
Norfolk Island Pine (Araucaria heterophylla, formerly Araucaria excelsa)

See also:

Description

From Foley: "...the winning design was approved by the Norfolk Island Council on 6 June 1979. The designer of the flag was not announced. The "Norfolk Island Flag and Public Seal Act" 1979 (NI) legislatively created the Norfolk Island Flag and set out rules in relation to its use. The Flag became official as at the date of the commencement of the Act on 17 January 1980."

David Cohen, 6 March 1998

From Political History of the Pitcairn People in Norfolk Island from 1856 to 1996:

1980 - The Governor-General of Australia assented to Norfolk Island's having its own flag. Queen Elizabeth II signed the warrant for Norfolk Island's armorial bearings, which show the Norfolk Island escutcheon supported by a British lion and an Australian kangaroo. Neither beast is native to Norfolk Island.

Does anybody know about this? The flag, on the other hand, seems well-accepted. But reading the whole of this historical (and political) statement, one may well wonder if this remarkably non-Aussie flag will survive until Australia itself changes its own flag (it this ever happens)...

Thanh-Tâm Lê, 15 October 1998

The green is dark green, the center stripe is wider than the outer ones. Stripes' ratio is 7:9:7.

Ralf Stelter, 25 July 1999

In the Flags of Aspirant Peoples chart [eba94] appears "169. Norfolk Island - External territory, Australia." Identical to the flag in FOTW.

Ivan Sache, 17 September 1999

The Norfolk Island flag was adopted with a law issued on January 1st 1980, effective 17th January 1980.

Pier Paolo Lugli, 21 September 1999

António Martins asked, "what is the overall ratio of the flag?". Foley 1996 [fol96] doesn't give a ratio, but the image in the book is 1:2, the same as our [Australian] national flag.

David Cohen, 22 September 1999

I have an official model of the Norfolk Island flag on file, and this suggests that the green is Pantone 356C.

Christopher Southworth

Norfolk Island Pine

Araucaria heterophylla, formerly Araucaria excelsa

The pine is scientifically named Araucaria excelsa.

Pier Paolo Lugli, 21 September 1999

The English name is Norfolk Pine, or maybe Norfolk Island Pine.

António Martins, 29 September 1999

António Martins asked about the number of branches. I have a 2x4 feet Norfolk Island flag (bought on NF but no doubt manufactured in Australia) and the branch detail is very poor. The image in Foley 1996 [fol96] is the most detailed one I have. My opinion: there are 40 branches on each side, thus totalling 80 (although they are of course not symmetrical).

David Cohen, 22 September 1999

From Webster's New International Dictionary (India Paper Edition), Washington, 1924:

Norfolk Island pine — a handsome pinaceous tree of Australia and Norfolk Island (Araucaria excelsa), with whorls of horizontal branches densely set with deep green awl-shaped leaves. It is often cultivated in pots, seldom exceeding a few feet in height, though in its native home it grows 200 feet high.

Jarig Bakker, 30 September 1999

The University of Vermont refers to the Norfolk Island Pine as Araucaria heterophylla. This name is also used at Green & Evergrowing LLC and at Norfolk Island's own website. A wholesale growers site uses Araucaria heterophylla as its primary reference with A. excelsa in parenthesis.

Michael P. Smuda, 1 October 1999

The tree is Araucaria heterophylla now. It was formerly A. excelsa but was renamed by dendrologists quite a number of years ago.

Rex Glencross-Grant, 8 August 2002

A. heterophylla is endemic only to Norfolk Island, not Australia. Whilst it grows well in Australia (and quite a number of areas) its original home is Norfolk Island.

Rex Glencross-Grant, 20 January 2003