Which flags have writing on them? Words, mottos and inscriptions

Quick answer: 17 national flags in the Trivillion flags quiz include writing. Saudi Arabia shows the shahada, Iraq the words Allahu Akbar and Brazil the motto Ordem e Progresso. Most others carry a motto inside the coat of arms, such as Spain’s Plus Ultra and Haiti’s L’Union fait la force.

Every flag with writing

The words and what they mean:

Arabic writing on flags

Saudi Arabia’s flag shows the shahada, the Islamic declaration of faith, above a sword. Because the words are sacred, the flag is not flown at half-mast and is made so that the text reads correctly from both sides. Iraq’s flag carries the words Allahu Akbar in green, and Iran’s repeats Allahu Akbar 22 times along the edges of its green and red stripes, for the 22nd day of the month of Bahman in the Iranian calendar, the date of the 1979 revolution.

Mottos in Latin and Spanish

Latin mottos appear on the flags of San Marino, Andorra and Belize, and Spain’s Plus Ultra refers to the Pillars of Hercules, once thought to mark the edge of the known world. Many Latin American flags put their country’s name or a date of independence into the coat of arms, as Guatemala does with 15 September 1821.

Brazil’s motto

Brazil’s Ordem e Progresso is written on a white band across its starry globe. The motto comes from the ideas of the French philosopher Auguste Comte, which were popular among the founders of the Brazilian republic in 1889.

Flags with writing

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