Flag anthem

A flag anthem is a patriotic song or ode dedicated to a flag, usually one of a country (in which case it is also known as a national flag anthem). It is often either sung or performed during or immediately before the raising or lowering of a flag during a ceremony. Most countries use their respective national anthems or some other patriotic song for this purpose.^[1] However, some countries, particularly in South America, use a distinct flag anthem for such purposes. Not all countries have flag anthems. Some used them in the past but no longer do, such as Iran and South Africa. Flag anthems can be officially codified in law, or unofficially recognized as such through mere custom and convention. In some countries, the flag anthem may be just another song, and in others, it may be an official symbol of the state akin to a second national anthem, such as in the Republic of China.

List of flag anthems

Country	Song	Year	Writer	Composer	Notes
Bolivia	"El Himno a la Bandera"	1947[2]	Ricardo Mujía	Manuel Benavente
Brazil	"Hino à Bandeira Nacional"	1906	Olavo Bilac	Francisco Braga
Costa Rica	"Saludo a la Bandera"[3]	1946	Porfirio Brenes Castro	José Joaquín Vargas Calvo
Dominican Republic	"El Himno a la Bandera"[4][5]		Ramon Emilio Jimenez
Ecuador	"El Himno a la Bandera"	1936[6]	Ángel Rivadeneira Pérez	Ángel Rivadeneira Pérez
Estonia	"Eesti lipp"	1922 (music), 1897 (lyrics)	Martin Lipp	Enn Võrk
Finland	"Lippulaulu"	1927[7]	V.A. Koskenniemi	Yrjö Kilpinen	Title literally means "Flag song" in English; song is also known as "Siniristilippumme".
Indonesia	"Berkibarlah Benderaku"	1950[8]	Ibu Soed
Italy	"Onori e Inno Nazionale"[9][10]	1847	No lyrics	Michele Novaro	Essentially an abridged version of the Italian national anthem played with ruffles and flourishes beforehand and omitting the introductory section. The song concludes where the bridge of the national anthem would otherwise begin. Alternatively known as "Alzabandiera".
Japan	"Hinomaru no hata"	1911	Takano Tatsuyuki	Teiichi Okano
Malaysia	"Jalur Gemilang"	1997	Siso Kopratasa	Pak Ngah
Netherlands	"Het Vlaggelied"	1863 (lyrics),[11] 1853 (music)[12]	Jan Pieter Heije	Wilhelmus Smits
North Korea	"Our National Flag"[13][14]	2019	Lee Hui-jeong	Kim Kang-nam
Norway	"Flaggappell"	ext. 2002
Paraguay	"Himno a la Bandera"	1944[15]	Mauricio Cardozo Ocampo	Mauricio Cardozo Ocampo
Switzerland	"Fahnenmarsch"
Republic of China	"National Flag Anthem of the Republic of China "	1936 (music), 1937 (lyrics)	disputed	Huang Tzu	The author of the lyrics is disputed, though it is usually attributed to Tai Chi-tao. An alternate title is "青天白日滿地紅", which means "The clear blue sky, white sun, and a wholly red ground". Due to political complications, this song is often played at international sporting events involving the country in place of the National Anthem of the Republic of China.
United States	"You're a Grand Old Flag"	1906	George M. Cohan
Uruguay	"Mi Bandera"	1939[16]	Nicolás Bonomi	José Usera

Former flag anthems

Country	Song	Used	Writer	Composer	Notes
Iran	"Sorude Parcam"	Until 1979	Mohamad Haschim Afsar [fa]	Davood Najmi Moghaddam	Title literally means "Flag song" in English; tune also used in the Iranian royal anthem and national anthem of the time.
South Africa[17][18]	"Vlaglied"[19][20][21][22][17]	1961–1994[17]	Cornelis Jacobus Langenhoven[17]	F.J. Joubert [af][17]	Title literally means "Flag song" in English; also known alternatively as "Ons eie vlag".[23]