Flag of Austria
Officially Republic of Austria
Locally Österreich
What the flag looks like
Three equal horizontal stripes of red, white and red.
What it means
The colors come from the arms of the Babenberg dukes; legend says Duke Leopold V's white tunic was soaked in blood at the Siege of Acre in 1191, except under his belt.
How to remember it
Picture a blood-soaked white tunic with a clean band where the belt was: Austria
is bright red-white-red in equal stripes, unlike Latvia's
dark maroon with a thin white stripe.
Fun facts
- The red-white-red colors are attested as early as 1230, making them among the oldest national colors in the world.
- The state flag used by government bodies adds Austria's coat of arms, a black eagle, in the center.
Austria at a glance
- Capital
- Vienna
- Region
- Central Europe
- Population
- 9.2 million
- Area
- 83,871 km²
- Languages
- German
- Currency
- Euro (€)
- Flag adopted
- 1945
Flags often confused with Austria
- Latvia: Austria and Latvia are both red-white-red horizontal stripes. Latvia's red is dark maroon and its white stripe is narrow; Austria's red is bright and the three stripes are equal.
- Lebanon: Austria and Lebanon are both red-white-red horizontal stripes. Lebanon has a green cedar tree on a taller white band; Austria's flag is plain with equal stripes.
- Peru: Austria and Peru are both red-white-red. Austria's stripes are horizontal; Peru's are vertical.