Flag of Saint Pierre and Miquelon
Officially Territorial Collectivity of Saint Pierre and Miquelon
Locally Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon
What the flag looks like
An unofficial but widely flown local flag: a yellow three-masted ship sailing on a blue field over white-crested waves, with a strip at the hoist bearing the Basque, Breton and Norman flags. The official flag is the French tricolor.
What it means
The ship is the Grande Hermine, in which Jacques Cartier reached the islands in 1536, and the three small flags honor the Basque, Breton and Norman origins of the settlers.
How to remember it
Saint Pierre and Miquelon
is a golden sailing ship on blue, with three tiny flags of Basques, Bretons and Normans stacked at the pole like passengers' luggage.
Fun facts
- The islands are the last remnant of New France, France's former empire in North America.
- They lie less than 25 km off the coast of Newfoundland, Canada.
Saint Pierre and Miquelon at a glance
- Status
- Overseas collectivity of France
- Sovereign state
- France
- Capital
- Saint-Pierre
- Region
- French overseas collectivity
- Population
- 5,819
- Area
- 242 km²
- Languages
- French
- Currency
- Euro (€)