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Flag Lore of All Nations
A comprehensive book presents the flags of the 192 recognized independent countries while offering facts about each one's history and symbolism, complete with world map.
112 pages, Library Binding
First published May 1, 2001
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About the author
Whitney Smith Jr.
10 books2 followersDr. Whitney Smith Jr. was an American professional vexillologist (a scholar of the history of flags and banners) and political scientist. He coined the term vexillology, which refers to the scholarly analysis of flags and banners in all aspects.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
June 17, 2024
Flags are fun to learn about, and this book is no exception. I appreciate that it includes a world map at the back, with each country discussed in this book clearly labeled, although I wish that the map had been located or referenced in the front, because it took me quite some time to realize that the resource was readily available. I also wish it had been formatted differently, so that less countries got hidden in the crease between pages.
I also wish that this book included images of every flag that it described, such as the older/outdated versions of a country's flag. It was disorienting to have each entry fly through centuries of flag designs, only to have the most recent one depicted. I would love to see a full column of each flag's history, providing a visual for the country's evolution.
I also wish that this book included images of every flag that it described, such as the older/outdated versions of a country's flag. It was disorienting to have each entry fly through centuries of flag designs, only to have the most recent one depicted. I would love to see a full column of each flag's history, providing a visual for the country's evolution.
April 19, 2019
Flag Lore of All Nations Review
I really enjoyed this book. Before I read this, I thought flags were the way they were because it looked nice. After reading this however, I learned that flags have lots of meaning and symbolism behind them. For most flags each color represented a different thing. One of my favorite flags was Nepal’s flag since it was the only flag not to have a rectangular shape. Instead, the flag had the shape of two triangles. I now know that the triangles on the flag represents the Himalayan Mountains. Also, another plus for this book is that it is executed perfectly. For each country the book includes a paragraph about the flag, a picture of the flag, the name of the country, pronunciation for foreign words, and a grid showing the uses of that flag. If you are interested in countries, this book is a must have. I give Flag Lore of All Nations 5/5 stars.
I really enjoyed this book. Before I read this, I thought flags were the way they were because it looked nice. After reading this however, I learned that flags have lots of meaning and symbolism behind them. For most flags each color represented a different thing. One of my favorite flags was Nepal’s flag since it was the only flag not to have a rectangular shape. Instead, the flag had the shape of two triangles. I now know that the triangles on the flag represents the Himalayan Mountains. Also, another plus for this book is that it is executed perfectly. For each country the book includes a paragraph about the flag, a picture of the flag, the name of the country, pronunciation for foreign words, and a grid showing the uses of that flag. If you are interested in countries, this book is a must have. I give Flag Lore of All Nations 5/5 stars.
April 29, 2016
Very helpful for doing a history project about European flags. Great book.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews