Flag of Canada
A red flag with a white square in the middle holding a red 11-point maple leaf, the leaf that has stood for Canadian identity since the 19th century, the Canadian government says. Red and white are not national colours in law, Canadian Heritage says, though many Canadians see in them the white of winter snow and the red of autumn maple leaves.
Easily confused with
- Flag of PeruAlso red, white and red in vertical bands; Canada’s white middle is a square twice as wide as each red band, with a maple leaf.
- Flag of LebanonLebanon’s flag has a white stripe between two red stripes, the white as deep as both red stripes together, with a green cedar tree in the centre. The constitution gives the colours no meaning; Store norske leksikon gives the usual reading, white for snow and for purity and peace, red for the blood given to defend the country, and calls the cedar a national symbol, a tree named several times in the Bible.
How to read it
Queen Elizabeth II proclaimed the flag on January 28, 1965, after the House of Commons (December 15, 1964) and the Senate (December 17, 1964) recommended it, and it became the National Flag of Canada from February 15, 1965, when it was first raised on Parliament Hill. The proclamation describes “a red flag of the proportions two by length and one by width, containing in its centre a white square the width of the flag, bearing a single red maple leaf”, in heraldic terms “gules on a Canadian pale argent a maple leaf of the first”. Canadian Heritage gives the proportions as 64 units long by 32 wide, with the stylized 11-point maple leaf in the centre of the square. The red is fixed by the Canadian General Standards Board’s national standards for the flag. The National Research Council defined it in a standard published in June 1966, the first time, it says, that international colour standards were applied to a national emblem. February 15 has been National Flag of Canada Day since 1996.
Also searched as: canada flag, canada flag meaning, canadian flag, canadian flag meaning, flag of canada, maple leaf flag.
Are red and white Canada’s official colours?
Not in law. Canadian Heritage says it was long believed that King George V named red and white the national colours when he proclaimed Canada’s coat of arms in 1921, but the proclamation contains no such declaration. Red and white have become Canada’s colours through use, because they are the colours of the flag.
Where the maple leaf design came from
The single-leaf design was proposed by George Stanley, Dean of Arts at the Royal Military College in Kingston, Ontario, and inspired by the college’s own flag. A 15-member parliamentary committee chose it in October 1964 over Prime Minister Lester B. Pearson’s design of three red maple leaves between two blue borders, known as the “Pearson Pennant”. Stanley’s leaf, as first drawn, had 13 points; graphic artist Jacques St-Cyr redrew it with 11 because the 13-point leaf lost its detail when seen from far away.
Canada’s and Peru’s flags
Peru’s flag is also three vertical stripes of red, white and red, as its constitution says. On Canada’s flag the white middle is a square, 32 units wide against 16 for each red band, and holds the maple leaf.
Read next
- Next in North and Central American flagsFlag of MexicoMexico’s flag is green, white and red with the national coat of arms in the centre: an eagle on a prickly pear cactus devouring a snake, the sign that told the Mexica where to found Tenochtitlan. Mexico’s flag law gives the colours no meaning; the meanings taught in Mexican schools are green for hope, white for unity and red for the blood of those who won the country’s freedom.
- The same shape in OBD-II trouble codesP0449: Evaporative emission system vent valve/solenoid circuitAn OBD-II trouble code meaning the engine computer has found a fault in the circuit of the fuel vapour system vent valve.
More north and Central American flags
The same shape elsewhere
Browse symbols drawn with squares and rectangles.
Sources
- Description of the National Flag of Canada, Canadian Heritage, Description of the National Flag of Canada, Government of Canada (Canadian Heritage), Technical description; Red and white; Colour specifications
- Official symbols of Canada, Canadian Heritage, Official symbols of Canada: The national colours, Government of Canada (Canadian Heritage), The national colours
- History of the National Flag of Canada, Canadian Heritage, History of the National Flag of Canada, Government of Canada (Canadian Heritage), Creating a new flag 1960-1965
- The Story of Canada’s Flag, George F. G. Stanley, The Story of Canada’s Flag (1965), Appendix A (the Proclamation) and Appendix B (Official design), George F. G. Stanley (hosted by St. Francis Xavier University), Appendix A
- World’s first national flag applying international colour standards, National Research Council Canada, World’s first national flag applying international colour standards (2016), National Research Council Canada, Page text
- Peru 1993 (rev. 2021) Constitution, Constitution of Peru, Article 49, Constitute Project, Article 49
Researched, edited and approved by Rory Hansen before publishing. Last reviewed October 13, 2026. How we research
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